Once upon a time, there lived an old bamboo cutter. He would go into the fields and mountains to cut bamboo, using it for various purposes. His name was said to be Sanuki no Miyatsuko.
In the midst of those bamboo stalks, there was one particularly radiant bamboo. Curious, he approached and looked inside, where he saw a light emanating from within the stalk. Upon closer inspection, he discovered a tiny person, about three inches tall, sitting there remarkably beautiful.
The old man said, "I have come to know that you are within the bamboo I see every morning and evening. You must be someone destined to become our child." With that, he took her in his hands and brought her home. He entrusted her to his wife the old woman, to raise her. Her beauty was beyond compare. As she was very young, they cared for her in a basket.