Summary & Question- answers of The Chapter:4-The Ashes that Made Trees Bloom with the concerned video

Summary

I

In the 19th century Japan there lived an old couple. Their only companion was a little pet dog named Muko. They loved it as if it were their baby. They gave it pieces of fish and boiled rice to eat. Muko also loved its noble master.

The old man was rice farmer. He worked hard with his spade from morning till sunset. Muko followed him everyday to the field. It did not attack the white heron bird which used to kill corn worms. The farmer was kind to all the living creatures.

One day the dog came running to its master. It took him to some place behind. The old man followed Muko to the place, where it began to scratch. The old man used his hoe to dig the earth. He found a lot of gold there. The old couple became rich. They bought land, hosted a party to their friends and gave it's generously to their poor neighbours.

In the same village there lived a wicked old man and his wife. They were unkind to all dogs. When they heard of their neighbour’s good luck, they called Muko to their garden and offered it fish. They hoped that Muko would find treasure for them also. But Muko refused to eat any fish. The dog took them to a pine tree in the garden. The greedy old fool danced with joy. He began to dig. But he found only a dead cat in the pit. In a fit of anger he beat Muko to death.

The owners of Muko mourned for their pet. They put flowers and water on its tomb. That night the spirit of Muko appeared to the old farmer in a dream. It asked him to cut down the pine tree over its graves, make a mortar for rice pastry and a mill for his bean sauce. Soon the old farmer made a hollow place in the tree trunk. He with his wife made a hammer of wood for pounding rice. They baked the pastry and suddenly the whole mass changed into gold coins.

The jealous old neighbour noticed bean sauce turning into gold. The old couple were rich again. So the neighbours also did the same. But their pastry and sauce turned into worms. They destroyed the mill borrowed from the old couple and burnt it.

II

The good old man had another dream. The spirit of their pet dog told him to take the ashes of the mill and spread it on the withered pine trees. He assured him that they would bloom again.

The old man brought some ashes of mill. He spread a pinch of it on the cherry tree. The tree was covered with blossoms. The greedy wicked couple gathered the remaining ashes of the wooden mill.

The wealthy landlord of the village was to pass by that road. According to the custom all the people had to shut up their high windows. Nobody was allowed to look down on lordship. They also knelt upon their hands and knees until the procession passed by. A tall man marched ahead asking the people to get down on their knees.

But the good old man didn’t kneel down. Instead of it he scattered a bit of ashes over the withered cherry tree. Suddenly it burst into blossom. The landlord got out to see the wonder. He thanked the man, offered him presents and also invited him to the castle.When the greedy neighbour heard of it, he also took the magic ashes to the highway. He waited until the landlord’s train came along, and instead of kneeling down like the crowd, he climbed a withered cherry tree. When the landlord was directly under him, he threw handful of ashes over him. But the tree showed no change. The dust rather blew into the nose and eyes of his lordship. The man who was escorting the lord dragged the greedy man from the tree and threw him into the ditch. He also beat him soundly. The greedy man thus died in the mud. The kind owner of Muko lived happily to a green old age.

Page No: 60
Comprehension Check
1. Why did the neighbours kill the dog?

Ans: The neighbours when heard about the good luck brought by the dog to the couple coaxed the dog into their garden in hope that he would find treasure for them. They dragged him out of doors and the dog scratched and pawed the ground under a pine tree. When on digging the ground, they saw that there was nothing but a dead kitten, they became furious at the dog. They beat him to death and then flung him into the hole.

2. Mark the right item.
(i) The old farmer and his wife loved the dog
(a) because it helped them in their day-to-day work.
(b) as if it was their own baby.
(c) as they were kind to all living beings.
(ii) When the old couple became rich, they
(a) gave the dog better food.
(b) invited their greedy neighbours to a feast.
(c) lived comfortably and were generous towards their poor neighbours.
(iii) The greedy couple borrowed the mill and the mortar to make
(a) rice pastry and bean sauce.
(b) magic ash to win rewards.
(c) a pile of gold.

Ans: (i) – (b) The old farmer and his wife loved the dog as if it was their own baby.
(ii) – (c) When the old couple became rich, they lived comfortably and were generous towards their poor neighbours.
(iii) – (c) The greedy couple borrowed the mill and the mortar to make a pile of gold. 

Page No: 63
Working with the Text
Answer the following questions.
1. The old farmer is a kind person. What evidence of his kindness do you find in the first two paragraphs?

Ans: The old farmer was a kind person. He and his wife had a pet dog named Muko, as his baby. Having no children, they loved it as though it were a baby. They fed him fish from their own chopsticks and all the boiled rice he wanted. He was patient and kind to everything that had life and often turned up a sod on purpose to give food to the birds.

2. What did the dog do to lead the farmer to the hidden gold?

Ans: The dog came running to the farmer and kept on whining and running to and fro till the farmer followed him. The dog began a lively scratching. Thinking it was possibly a buried bone or fish, the farmer struck his hoe in the earth and found the hidden gold.

3. (i) How did the spirit of the dog help the farmer first?
(ii) How did it help him next?

Ans: (i) The spirit of the dog asked the farmer in his dream to cut down the pine tree over his grave and make a mortar for rice pastry and a mill for bean sauce.
(ii) The spirit of the dog informed the farmer in his dream that his wicked neighbours had burnt the hand-mill. He advised him to take the ashes of the mill and sprinkle them on the withered trees and they would bloom again.

Page No: 64
4. Why did the daimio reward the farmer but punish his neighbour for the same act?

Ans: The farmer had the magical ashes. He made the old withered cherry tree blossom once again by sprinkling the ashes. So, the daimio rewarded the farmer for this. When his greedy neighbour heard about it, he took the ashes and when daimio was passing on the highway, he threw a handful of ashes over the tree. The tree did not blossom and wind blew the fine dust in the noses and eyes of the daimio and his wife. That is why his neighbour punished for the same act.