full of affection
iroka made
and fragrance—
nao hazukashiki
I humbly receive them
haru no kyō kana
this day in the spring.
Chiyoi took the poem, folded it, and gave it to Matsuwaka-maru. When
Saishō received the princess’s poem and looked at her exquisite handwrit-
ing, his affection for her deepened all the more.
At the end of the day, Saishō visited the nurse’s house and compli-
mented the princess on her poem of plum blossoms. He playfully told
his nurse about it, too. The nurse said, “How auspicious; I will also add a
poem.” Then she recited:
Ume no hana
The plum blossoms
yae kōbai no
with added colors
iro soete
of double red-blossomed tree
kawaranu haru zo
May this spring
chiyo o henu beshi
last forever and ever.
When everyone felt comfortable, as saké went round, Saishō told Chiyoi,
who was pouring wine for him, “You should add a poem, too. Come, do
so.” As Chiyoi blushed, she composed,
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Ume no hana
The plum blossoms
iro sou haru no
deepening their colors in spring
kyō goto ni
today and everyday
chiyo yorozu yo no
Vestige of the lasting happiness
kage zo hisashiki
ever and forever.
The love between Saishō and the princess deepened increasingly, and
Saishō’s sole concern was that his parents know nothing about this. “What
will happen later when this is revealed?” he thought. But as the nurse,
Chiyoi, and Matsuwaka-maru were determined to keep it secret, nobody
knew anything about the relationship.
Thus, Saishō came night after night and felt utterly comfortable, and
nothing seemed to separate the couple. But because Saishō’s mother had
not the slightest idea about his affair, she pondered day and night about her
son’s future partner. One day after seeing Saishō off, the mother told his
nurse, “You know, nurse, Saishō has grown up. He looks particularly mature
recently. I have hesitated, but it’s getting a little too late. I am considering a
certain princess for his bride.”
The nurse replied with a blush “I understand,” worrying what her
young master and the lady would think. The nurse went to Saishō and told
him what his mother had said. Saishō was very upset and said, “You just
cannot accept all of my parents’ ideas.” He cried. “This life is not worth-
while if I am to be separated from my lady and must marry a person I don’t
want to be with. If my parents force me to do this, I will leave the house
and go wherever my feet take me. I will not abandon my lady. Tell this to my
mother.” Listening to him speak in this vein, the nurse was finally sure that
her master’s love for the princess was not simply a young man’s fancy. She
knew indeed that Saishō would never leave the lady. She also considered it
cruel to separate the couple who were so much in love.
So the nurse later told Saishō’s mother on an occasion of talking about
something else, “Madam, recently I hear that the young master has some-
one he loves and visits. I doubt it, but . . .”
“What? How terrible,” the mother interjected. “What kind of woman
is she? Well, that is simply not to be. The parents should plan for their
children. I wonder whether someone recommended her. Matsuwaka-maru
must know about this, eh? Ask him.”
The nurse replied, “I’m afraid, Madam, Matsuwaka-maru says he
doesn’t know. The young master has hidden this so deeply that nobody
knows.” The mother regretted waiting so long to find Saishō someone
extraordinary.
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191
A lady-in-waiting serving the mother, age about sixty, proposed an idea.
“I suggest you order a ‘bride’s contest.’ There are examples now and past. If
she is unaccomplished, the young master will feel ashamed and will abandon
her.” The mother thought it was a great idea and sent her lady attendants to
Saishō with a message: “The plum blossoms in the garden have passed their
height, but please come and look at them one last time tomorrow. All my
daughters-in-law are coming, so please have your lady [Blossom Princess]
attend the gathering, too. We will have a ‘bride’s contest.’ ”
To this, Saishō replied without hesitation, “Although my lady is a woman
of humble origin, your order is of the utmost importance. I will have her
attend the party.” After reporting his message back to the lady of the house
[Saishō’s mother] and leaving her presence, the lady’s attendants whispered,
“The young master’s insolence is extraordinary. Has he no sense of shame?
We didn’t know he was such an unkind person.” Hearing Saishō’s message,
his mother, too, became anxious.
When the sun had set, Saishō came to his nurse’s house and told the
story of the day. The princess said, “What a bitter request. I am prepared to
leave for wherever. Please obey your parents’ wishes.”
Saishō responded, “If you are leaving, take me with you till the end of
the earth. But how can we hide like this forever?” he pleaded, “After this,
we can stay together openly. As for your dress for tomorrow, I will have my
nurse request one from my little sister.”
The nurse responded, “That’s not necessary, young master. I have pre-
pared a set of costumes for Chiyoi’s marriage someday. Your lady can use
the costumes for tomorrow’s occasion. Please rest assured.” The couple was
extremely pleased and grateful. The nurse was happy as well, for she knew
the princess was superior to any of the brides of Saishō’s brothers.
The following morning, the princess took a bath in a washtub and
applied her makeup beautifully. Then she remembered what the yamauba
had told her to do when she met the man she was to marry. “I shall do it
now,” she said and went behind the screen. She opened the bag and found
a jewel of variegated colors. Before her eyes, the jewel immediately changed
into an abundance of gold and silver, twill and brocade fabrics, Chinese
cloths and lady’s costumes, hairpieces, sashes, beddings, and swords, piling
upon each other. Bewildered, the princess called on the nurse, and the nurse
was no less surprised to see the mountain of treasure. “What are these?”
the nurse asked.
“This must be Kannon’s promise,” the princess replied.
“What a propitious promise indeed!” said the nurse. “So you are the
Kannon-sent child then. Today’s event is all the more auspicious.” From the
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Chinese brocade, Chinese cloths, to a scarlet hakama (divided skirt), there
was nothing missing. A long hairpiece the princess put on her hair swayed
gracefully. She looked like a blooming flower. The nurse was indeed pleased
to see such a stunning sight, knowing no one could surpass her beauty.
Several messen
gers came from the parents’ house and urged the princess
to come forth without further delay. “In that case,” the nurse said, “please
bring a palanquin.” The messengers whispered to each other, “That’s funny.
For whom is the nurse requesting a palanquin?” But considering the posi-
tion of their young master, they sent a palanquin to the nurse’s house. The
princess quietly sat in the palanquin, followed by the nurse and Chiyoi. Soon
they arrived at the middle councilor’s house. Saishō’s two elder brothers had
been waiting for the princess’s arrival—they had secretly planned to watch
the princess as she came out of the palanquin and laugh at her. The princess
came out of the palanquin with the assistance of the nurse and Chiyoi. Again,
the princess’s appearance might be portrayed but could not be described by
words. Looking at her, the elder brothers forgot about laughing. They looked
at each other and whispered, “Where does she come from?” Then they left.
In the banquet room the two wives and a younger sister were sitting
with full confidence. There, the princess entered, as if a celestial being
descending from the heavens. The middle councilor and his wife were so
astounded and delighted to see her stunning beauty that his wife stood up
and led the princess by the hand to the right side of her seat, looking at the
princess thoroughly. The young lady looked about fourteen or fifteen years
of age. Her face was like a shining jewel with sublime charm in her eyes.
Her hair was softly hanging at both sides of her face, resembling a willow
branch swaying in the spring wind. It was impossible to find a single flaw
in her appearance.
Who could have known how beautiful and enchanting Saishō’s lady
would turn out to be? “Where could he possibly have found such a beauty?”
The mother thought it so strange that she summoned Saishō’s nurse and
asked. But the nurse only replied, “I really do not know in the least. The
young master simply says that he found her.” “In that case,” the mother
mused, “she must be truly a celestial being descending on earth. She cer-
tainly does not look like an ordinary mortal.”
Now the saké came. After three cups of saké and various entertain-
ments, rare incense in a censer was brought in. The censer went around
the party and was taken to the princess, for she was the guest of the day.
After she gracefully put her hand around the censer and smelled the scent,
she took out from her sleeve an exquisite gold incense box containing fine
wooden incense and put it gently on the tray. Seeing the princess’s gesture,
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193
the middle councilor asked for the tray with the princess’s incense box.
When he examined the incense, [he found that] it was Ama no hagoromo
(Angel’s Feathered Robe), so named because it was the angels’ favorite and
its fragrance went up to the sky.
“How rare it is!” So saying, the middle councilor broke some off and
put it in the censer. The delicate scent was indeed superb, as if it erased
human sins. People were sure that a heavenly being had indeed descended.
“With what good fortune was Saishō born! Where did he find this angelic
lady?” They were all curious.
The day was over, and so was the party. People went back to their own
residences. The middle councilor and his wife felt the princess should not
be allowed to live in a plain house, so they had her use a parlor designed
as the middle councilor’s entertainment room. Further, they attached a
number of servants to the princess, from ladies-in-waiting to some humble
maids to wait on her with utmost care.
Thus, Saishō and the princess stayed together as they pleased. Saishō’s
mother thought the princess was adorable and frequently visited the prin-
cess’s quarters with her daughter and daughters-in-law. The ladies enter-
tained the princess with various activities, including reading and writing and
playing musical instruments, but the princess’s skill surpassed anyone else’s,
as she even knew the secret music of biwa.
S C R o L L T H R E E
In the meantime, the middle councilor and his wife had an auspicious day
selected for building the residence for Saishō and his princess. A great num-
ber of carpenters were summoned, and the residence was soon completed.
On the occasion of Saishō and the princess moving into the new house, the
young couple received various congratulatory gifts. The middle councilor
gave them two warehouses, one a treasury, the other a granary. People were
envious of such a generous and propitious gift.
Thus, Saishō and the princess led a happy married life, pledging eternal
marital vows to each other. There was nothing missing or lacking in their
lives—except that the princess missed her father and nurse and wished her
familiar servants were there at her side. With that weighing on her mind, she
shed tears morning and evening. Time passed. In spring, they played with
flowers—the late cherry blossoms flowered among green leaves, but sadly
spring days were soon gone. With deutzia flowers, the summer came. A
breeze from a fan was refreshing, and the fountain water comforted people.
Quickly, though, the summer was gone and it was already autumn. It was
the seventh day of the seventh month, the day of the Star Festival. Many
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offerings were given to the Weaver and Herd Boy in the sky. Saishō, too,
composed a poem and offered it to the stars. While he was at it, he playfully
wrote another poem and put it on the princess’s lap. The princess read:
Aki machite
Long-awaited autumn
kyō Tanabata no
the joy of the Weaver and Altar tonight
yorokobi mo
is all the greater—
ware hatsuaki no
the first autumn
ureshisa zo masu
I spend with you.
She was amused by the poem. Saishō gave her his brush and asked her
to compose as well. Finding it hard to resist, the princess wrote:
Tanabata no
Hearing it is
au hatsuaki to
the first autumn
kiku kara ni
when the Weaver and Altar meet,
itodo tsuyukeki
my sleeves are
waga tamoto kana
indeed wet.
She then put her sleeves on her face. Looking at her and her poem,
Saishō asked, “Do you have, then, a secret lover whom you miss?”
“oh no, never,” she replied. “But my love for my father is no less great
than my love for you.” Listening to her, Saishō urged, “So you have a parent
you miss terribly. Tell me who it is. Even if he is in a barbarian land, I will
surely bring him back here. You are so cautious.”
The princess realized that she should not hide her secret any longer, so
she replied, “It shouldn’t be concealed, but I had a great deal of scruples
about saying it. My father is Bungo no kami Moritaka, who lives in a village
at the foot of Mt. Fuji. I am his only child, and my parents have doted on
me. But my mother died when I was ni
ne years old, and my father grieved
so much to the point of following her. Three years after my mother passed
away, the relatives got together and through the good offices of some-
one close, my stepmother came to our house. My father would only think
of praying for my mother’s happiness in the next life from morning till
night and hardly visited his new wife’s quarters. She hated me because she
thought my father did not frequent her quarters because of me. Although I
pretended not to know her feelings, one day while my father was away from
home, she schemed to have a samurai kidnap and abandon me in the deep
mountains. Fortunately, perhaps by Kannon’s power, I didn’t become prey
for the wild beasts, and instead a yamauba kindly gave me lodging for the
night. This yamauba was compassionate. She gave me directions to a human
habitation, accompanying me till midway. She then said that once I got
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195
there I should follow the white water. When I walked slowly along the white
water, I arrived at the east gate of this house. While I was resting, Akino, a
maid of this house, came out and took me to her home to take care of me.
Later, she let me stay beside the cooking stove during the winter. I don’t
know what karma it was, but then you found me there. Nobody noticed me
[during the day] because I was wearing a yamauba’s clothes that transformed
me into an old woman. The treasure I found right before I came into your
parents’ house came from a small bag the yamauba gave me. I didn’t wish to
tell this story because I didn’t want my stepmother’s name to be revealed.”
Listening to her story, Saishō also shed tears. “Indeed, you have stead-
fastly concealed this story. However, now that I know, please write a letter
to your father. I will have it delivered to him.”
“That I thank you, but please do it secretively,” she said. Saishō under-
stood. “Don’t worry. I’ll send a very trustworthy man. Rest assured, and do
it quickly.”
The princess happily wrote a detailed letter: “I miss you, Father, more
and more recently. As I am a woman who caused you displeasure, I spend
time lamenting. If you are so inclined, please come and see me soon, and
let me see your unchanged appearance.” Receiving her letter, Saishō sum-
moned a man named Genta, who was wise and ran fast. Genta received
detailed instructions and left Saishō’s house the following morning while it
Seven Demon Stories from Medieval Japan Page 30
