A governor of Shinano Province completed his tour of duty in the province and went to the capital. During the journey he noticed that he was accompanied by a three-foot-long snake. During the day the snake either preceded or followed him; at night it coiled under his clothes chest.

When they saw this, people felt very uneasy and spoke to the governor. One man told him, “The snake should be killed.” But the governor stopped him and would not allow him to kill the snake. The governor prayed silently, “Is this due to the deity of this province or to the evil inflicted by the spirit of someone living or dead? Possess me and reveal the truth in my dream.”

The night the governor dreamed that a man in speckled hunting clothes knelt before him and said, “I have been accompanying you to kill an old enemy of mine who has been hiding in your clothes chest. If I can have him, I will no longer follow you.” The governor awoke and realized that the snake had said this.

In the morning the governor looked inside the chest and found a frightened old rat crouching at the bottom. The people who saw this said, “You should let it go.” But the merciful governor thought, “If I drive the rat out now, he will surely be swallowed up by the snake, and so it is better not to let him go.”

For the sake of the snake and the rat, the governor made a copy of the Hokekyō and had a service of dedication performed on that same day. That night two handsome men, dressed in fine white clothes, appeared in his dream. They said to him respectfully:

“We have been old enemies during successive lives and have killed each other for many generations. However, thanks to the influence of your virtuous deed, we have now left our sinful state and are to be reborn in the Tōri Heaven. For generations we will not be able to repay you for your great virtue.”

After they had said this, they ascended into the sky, which was filled with soft music. In the morning, when the governor woke up, he found that the snake and the rat were both dead. (Page 140-141)