Tradition: Japanese mythology
Alternative Names: Konryū, Long-Nosed Kulve Taro, Konryū Under the Nose
Category: Dragon
The Myth
The Konryū is a long-nosed dragon depicted holding a donation ledger in one hand and a begging bowl in the other. It appears among the strange creatures of Fujyūkoku, the first fictional foreign country visited by Uritarō in Ikoku Manyū Uritarō Monogatari, a satirical journey through imaginary lands.
Fujyūkoku, also called Machigai-koku or the Unfree Country, is described as an isolated island more than 2,300 ri south of the equator. Though its civilization resembles that of contemporary Japan, it is filled with arrogant people who behave as though they own everything, timid commoners, and a society where lies, mistakes, and immorality are widespread.
Among the country’s strange inhabitants is the Konryū, known as the “Long-Nosed Kulve Taro” or the “Konryū under the nose.” Its peculiar appearance is a joke aimed at religious institutions. Temples and shrines solicit donations from people, recording the names of donors in their ledgers and receiving offerings in their begging bowls, supposedly for religious purposes but, as the satire suggests, ultimately to support the livelihoods of monks and priests themselves.
The dragon’s long nose and its association with begging and donation records turn this practice into a grotesque creature. The Konryū is therefore one of the many bizarre inhabitants of Fujyūkoku whose very appearance exposes some aspect of human behavior that the story’s satire seeks to ridicule.
Sources
Takahashi, Toshihiro. “鼻下昇竜 [はなのしたこんりゅう] (Hananoshita Konryū).” 新版TYZ 妖怪図鑑 (New TYZ Yokai Encyclopedia). October 21, 2024. https://tyz-yokai.blog.jp/archives/1082997793.html