The story of Qari al-Qulub is a story from the wonders of international children’s stories, collected and formulated by Toshio Ozawa. It is a story from old Japanese stories, or more precisely, it is Japanese folklore from past times, which is taught to Japanese children until the end of the elementary stage. The story is told as follows:
An Old Man in the Cave: Once upon a time in ancient days, in ages of old times, there was an old man living in a cave at the highest of the mountains. That man used to cut wood and make from it statues and paintings. One night from the nights of the true autumn, he lit the fire in the stove, saying to himself: I will make this night food from the chestnuts.
Making the Food and the Old Hermit: While he was thus, something strange happened to him with a great joy entered upon him, and said: Oh hermit old man, do you allow me to cook on the fire for a little while? He said: With sorrow, with sorrow… it came… He said that and ascended from the stove, but he did not take himself from thinking about that this thing was dangerous to the chestnuts, so it kept saying in its heart: This joy, came to help me, it will eat me and turn against me.
The Joy and the Old Hermit: The joy smiled as it moved its two big eyebrows, and called to them and said: Oh hermit old man, oh hermit old man, oh hermit old man, oh hermit old man, oh hermit old man, oh hermit old man, do you want to say to me what you were thinking now?
An Evil One: Then he added: This joy, came to help me, might eat me and turn against me, isn’t it?! The man denied, and said to himself: This is an evil one, so I will use the trick with him… Except that the joy thought again what the man had thought in his heart: This is an evil one, so I will use the trick with him.
Qari al-Qulub: And the fear began to overcome the man more and more. He said in his heart: But escape is not possible… The joy answered what the old man had thought in its heart. And it added to him in admiration: I am named Qari al-Qulub, and I can read everything that passes in the heart of the human.
Making the Food: As for the man, he was feeling he was weak and was being defeated, so he tried not to think of a thing and not let a thing pass in his heart. But his thought continued to pursue ideas and thoughts in the heart, and whenever he finished a matter in his heart, the joy warned him and said to it.
The man had no choice before him, so he turned towards the side of the stove, and began to twist the two legs of the chestnuts and make the food. While he was twisting one of the legs, it slipped from between his hands and ran with force to finally prevent the face of the joy, and Qari al-Qulub was surprised and stood shouting: The human is very suspicious. There are hearts about him that I cannot read.
And the story ended: Then the two fled to the heights of the mountain without twisting a thing. From then on, the old man stopped thinking. And whenever Qari al-Qulub came to his house to ask him… And the story ended.