THE GREAT FIRE OF THE PURPLE ROBE

about 250 years ago, a rich wine-seller lived in tokyo, one day , he and his family were at their local temple.
the wine-seller's daughter noticed a young samurai in the crowd. he was very handsome and she inmediately fell in love with him. but he disappeared in the crowd. because she was in love , she remembered his face and his clothes very clearly, he wore a purple robe.
the wine-seller's thought that if she wear a robe of the same colour perhaps he will notice she at the next holiday, she ordered a bright purple robe, " please let me win his love", she prayed to the buddhas. she could think only of him. but she never saw him again. she fell ill, and died.

the purple robe was sold at a good price for a lady young. she only wore it for one day , then she fell ill and began to act strangely, and she died too; and again the robe was sold, a third young lady bought it, she wore it only once before she fell ill, she talked of a beautiful shadow, and she died, the robe was sold for third time, once more it was bought by a girl. once more it was worn . and the girl fell ill and died.

finally the priest was sure that there were bad spirits in the robe. he told his assistants to make a fire in the temple garden. the robe was burning house by house, street by street, and finally the whole city was in flames.
that terrible day is still remembered in tokyo, they called it " the day of the great fire of the purple robe".