Urashima Tarō and Otohime became lovers during his stay at Ryūgū-jō. Their romance in the Dragon Palace beneath the waves lasted what seemed like days but was centuries in the world above.
Urashima Tarō lived in Ryūgū-jō for what seemed like three days but was actually three hundred years. The Dragon Palace's otherworldly time flow made his stay a paradise from which return proved devastating.
Ryujin hosted Urashima Tarō in Ryūgū-jō after the fisherman saved a sea turtle. Days in the Dragon Palace equaled centuries on the surface, and Urashima returned to find his world gone (Otogizōshi).
Otohime gave Urashima Tarō the tamatebako upon his departure from Ryūgū-jō, warning him never to open it. When Urashima opened the forbidden box in despair, white smoke escaped and he aged three hundred years in an instant.
The Nihon Shoki identifies Urashima Tarō's destination as Tokoyo, the Eternal Land beyond the sea. His journey to and from Tokoyo — where time stands still — is the defining episode of his legend.
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