Prince Ishizukuri (石作皇子)
Prince Ishizukuri (Ishizukuri no miko) is one of five kikoshi (a young nobleman) who appeared in "Taketori Monogatari" (the Tale of Bumboo Cutter).
Genealogy
Unknown. It seems that he is a fictitious person as there is no such a prince with this name. However, considering the fact that the three out of five kikoshi existed, the Prince Ishizukuri may be an actual person who was not recorded in history or the known person with a different name.
Model
Morohira KANO, a scholar of Japanese classical literature in the Edo Period points out the possibility that TAJIHI no Shima, sadaijin (Minister of the left) in the reign of Emperor Monmu, may be the Prince Ishizukuri. There is another theory that the Prince Ishizukuri is a prince of either Emperor Tenchi or Emperor Tenmu because Shima is not a prince.
Backgrounds
In "Taketori Monogatari" (the Tale of Bumboo Cutter), Kaguya-hime (Princess Kaguya) told him to bring 'the stone begging bowl used by Buddha' which emits celestial light, as a condition for marrying her.
However, he didn't go to India and after 3 years, he came up with the bowl which he found in a mountain temple in Toichi-gun, Yamato Province, insisting that it is 'the stone begging bowl used by Buddha.'
Despite his insistence, Kaguya-hime (Princess Kaguya) didn't believe him because the bowl didn't emit light. The Prince Ishizukuri who was desperate to marry her said, `the bowl lost its light in front of you, because you are sparkling like a white mountain. But, I still want to throw myself on your mercy,' including puns in his words, but Kaguya-hime (Princess Kaguya) didn't listen to him.