Japanese Plays
Page 4
Along the coast of Ise and Owari
He drifted on like a cloud,
With nothing to look at
But the sullen billows,
His heart full of regrets
For what he had left behind.
Until at length he came
To the peak of Asama in Shinano
And viewed its smoky pall.
Now in Shinano
See the cloud of smoke arise
From Asama’s peak,
Those who view it from afar
Might mistake it for a cloud.
Then he went on his journey
Till he reached the province of Mikawa,
Where is the famous Yatsubashi,
With its clumps of iris blossoms
And there it was he remembered his spouse
Far away in the ancient capital.
He who was beloved of so many ladies,
As you may read in the Tales of Ise.
SPIRIT:
But though thus gaily he lived and died
And passed into darkness at dawn of day,
And the light of the moon was not so serene
Or the spring quite the same as the springs of yore,
Yet still is he the Narihira of old,
The God of Poetry and the Buddha-mind.
Be in no doubt of this, O wayfarer!
Before the flowers the snow-flake butterflies!
Over the willows bush-warblers like gold!
Still in this place there flowers the purple iris,
The orange blossom wafts its clinging perfume.
The flag, so like the iris, flutters in the breeze
And on the bough in sheen of old brocade
Shrills the cicada.
While ’gainst the purple clouds of iris shines
The snow-white Deutzia.
Thus all these flowers and trees together gain enlightenment.
And like the earth itself attain the Buddha-mind,
And so are here no longer.
IWABUNE*
PROTAGONIST THE DRAGON SEA GOD
DEUTERAGONIST AN IMPERIAL ENVOY
TIME THE NINTH MONTH
PLACE SUMIYOSHI IN SETTSU
ENVOY: The Empire is at peace on every side. No barriers stay our progress through the land.
CHORUS: I am one who humbly serves in the court of our Sovereign. And so wise and benevolent is his rule that no rough wind of adversity stirs the tranquility of his people, who sleep secure with their doors all unbarred. And as he has issued an Imperial edict that a market be established on the beach of Sumiyoshi in Settsu, to the end that his people may buy the precious merchandise of China and Korea, I am this day on my way to Settsu in the province of Tsu.
PILGRIM-SONG:
All things go as we wish.
On the four seas of our land
The waves lap soundlessly.
Akitsushima’s bounds
Are happy and secure.
Now are we come to Tsu
Where always without fail
Arrive the tribute-ships
From China and Korea.
CHORUS:
The town of Sumiyoshi,
Where softly blows the pine-breeze,
We enter.
This town whose farthest limits
Our Sovereign’s grace embraces.
DRAGON GOD: His grace is wide extended, and here in Sumiyoshi, a place full good to live in, the God of Sumiyoshi adds his protecting favor. May our Lord live forever, and rule his prosperous people, unchanging as the pine-trees. I am the Dragon God of the Waters of Akitsushima, who dwells in this world reverencing the great Deities and protecting the Sovereign of the land.
CHORUS: As it has been from the Age of the Gods—
DRAGON GOD: I go forth in the Empire—
CHORUS: As guardian of the treasure ships of the Mikado.
DRAGON GOD: Greatly to be revered is the Imperial command. And his great ship—
CHORUS: Bearing his treasure let the waves lap gently—
DRAGON GOD: Bearing it on its way.
CHORUS: A zephyr appears in the sky—
DRAGON GOD: With gentle rhythm the wavelets—
CHORUS:
Roll splashing round its bosom, while from fair Sumiyoshi
Blow soft the pine-bough breezes.
The full tide sweeps it onward.
Eight Dragon Gods arise.
From out the heaving billows
They haul upon the cables.
They bring it safe to shore,
To Sumiyoshi’s strand.
And pearls and gold and silver
And myriad precious treasures,
Tribute for the Mikado,
Rejoicing hands unload.
May the Gods guard forever
Our land’s Imperial Sovereign
Ruling his prosperous Empire.
Footnote
* Iwabune. The rock-stout ship. Sumiyoshi and Sakai, two of the most ancient ports in Japan were Shinto Shrine property, the Deities of which protected and throve by trade, both native and foreign.
TAMURA
PROTAGONIST IN THE FIRST ACT A YOUTH. IN THE SECOND
SAKA-NO-UE NO TAMURA MARO
DEUTERAGONIST A PRIEST FROM THE EASTERN PROVINCES
TIME THE THIRD MONTH
PLACE KYOTO
ACT I
PRIEST: Through many a country town I have pursued my journey, and now I haste to the Nine-fold Capital. I am a priest from the eastern provinces, and since I have never yet beheld the capital, this very spring I have determined to visit it. ’Tis now the season of early April, and calm is the shadow of the circling sunbeams. The mists drift yonder o’er Mount Otowa, and gently murmurs the fall of its water, for now we approach to Kiyomizu. Now we draw near to its well-known temple. Indeed we have come to the end of our journey, for this is Kiyomizu well known in the capital. And see! Its cherries are all in blossom. Let us then find someone whom we may ask about it.
YOUTH: Spring of its bounty thus makes its offering, and lays its flowers before the Gongen. Though many are the places whose flowers are famous, by the radiance of the grace of the Goddess Kwannon this spot is indeed surpassed by none. By the blossoming spring of her great compassion, the autumn moon of her thirty-three revelations shines clear in the water of the five impurities and makes fragrant this world of the ten transgressions. Snow white as the palaces of the mighty Deities, like the masses of cloud that spread o’er the hills are the full-laden boughs of the blossoming cherries, manifold as the clustering courts of the Imperial Palace. Embosomed thus in its encircling hills decked with these lovely blossoms, how seasonable is the spring scene of our ancient capital.
PRIEST: Ah, here is one of whom I may inquire.
YOUTH: And what is it then that you wish to know?
PRIEST: And you who ply your broom so gracefully beneath the trees. Are you the Flower-warden, may I ask?
YOUTH: I am indeed one who thus serves the Goddess here. And since in the season of flowers I sweep beneath these trees, you may call me the warden of the flowers, as also I am styled the servant of this shrine. And my attachment to it is most strong.
PRIEST: Ah, so it seems. And do you then tell us all its history.
YOUTH: Know then that this Temple of Kiyomizu was founded in the second year of the era Daido through the vow of Saka-no-ue no Tamura Maru. Long ago the monk Kenshin of the Temple of Kojima in the province of Yamato prayed earnestly that he might behold the real form of Kwannon, and seeing one day a golden light shining from the upper waters of the Kozugawa, he made his way towards it and there found an old man who addressed him thus: “I am called Gyō-en Kōji. Do you seek out a beneficent donor and with his assistance build a great temple;” and with that he suddenly vanished in the direction of the eastern hills. And this Gyō-en Kōji was indeed a revelation of the Goddess Kwannon.
CHORUS: And this beneficent donor whom he was to seek, it was none other than Saka-no-ue no Tamura Maru. Ah! Ho
w gracious is the vow of the all-embracing Kwannon of the Thousand Hands of this most famous fane of Kiyomizu, deep and constant as its perennial waters, that offers salvation to all men without exception, so abundant is her overflowing mercy. Yea, unutterable is her divine condescension in leaving Paradise to appear in the flesh in this world of sorrow.
PRIEST: How happy are we to meet with one whose words are so entertaining. No doubt these spots we see around us are all famous in story. I pray you, sir, tell us what you know about them.
YOUTH: I’ll tell you all I know. Pray point them out.
PRIEST: There toward the south there stands a pagoda. What is that place called?
YOUTH: That is Uta-no-nakayama Seiganji that looks over toward Ima-kumano.
PRIEST: And that temple to the north from which we hear the sound of the bell of eve?
YOUTH: Ah, that is Washi-no-o. But look! From out of the high peaks of Otowa the moon emerges, and floods with its clear light the cherries of our temple. How beautiful it is!
PRIEST: True. For such sights in spring is every moment precious. For we would gaze on them the livelong day.
BOTH TOGETHER: One hour of an evening in spring is worth a thousand gold pieces. The fragrant scent of the flowers and the silver orb of the moon!
YOUTH: Indeed that sum were well lost for an evening such as this.
CHORUS:
How lovely is the scene of our temple’s flowery precincts,
The moonbeams filter through the spaces of the blossoms,
Gently the petals fall in the evening breeze like snowflakes,
And with them calm descends, pervading all our spirit.
Far-famed is the spring scenery of the Flowery Capital,
And now is it arrayed in its finest attire.
Set about with the delicate green of the willow,
The white thread cascade and the fall of Otowa
Mingle their murmur with the rustle of even.
By the grace of our Goddess our flowers are the finest!
YOUTH:
In her be our trust, for she will not fail us
Though slight be our faith as the stem of the mugwort.
CHORUS:
In this world our prayers must rise to her only.
Her grace is pure as these waters and ever green as the willows,
And even the withered tree will flower afresh at her bidding.
Constant is her kindness as the flowers of springtime,
Quiet and bright as the moon of the morning,
When the spring heavens flush with the hue of the blossoms.
How happy then is spring! How happy then is spring!
CHORUS: Indeed, when we consider it, this seems to be no ordinary person. Who then can it be I wonder?
YOUTH: Who indeed? Ah, well, if you view my now retreating footsteps with regret, I pray you watch the manner of my going.
CHORUS: He retires but not far. Perchance he hides his traces in these hills.
YOUTH: Though you may think it mysterious, mark well the way that I take!
(And when they look for him to withdraw from before the abode of the Goddess, instead of descending he goes up the slope* to the Tamura Shrine, and pushing open the moon-checkered door disappears within it, yea, withdraws into the sacred abode.)
(Exit)
ACT II
PRIEST: Here all night long, beneath the falling petals of the cherry-trees I will chant the holy Sutras. The wondrous law of the Flower of the Lotus in the clear moonlight that frees from the clouds of illusion.
TAMURA: Ah, how blessed are the holy Sutras! It is the voice of the traveler brought hither by the affinity of a former life, who has drawn deeply from the waters of the one pure river that flows from the waterfall of Kiyomizu. And this affinity is also the effect of the protecting mercy of the Goddess Kwannon.
PRIEST: How strange! See, over there amid a glimmering light a man’s form takes shape! What can it be?
TAMURA: Why dissemble further? I am that Saka-no-ue no Tamura Maru who in the august reign of the Emperor Heijo, the fifty-first earthly Sovereign, did smite the demon and subdue the eastern barbarians, and thus by loyal service give peace to the Empire; and that by the divine help of the Deity of this temple. For when at the august command of His Majesty to smite the demon Suzuka of the province of Ise and so restore security to the land, I raised an army. Before I set out I visited this temple and prayed to the Goddess and made my vow. And then I was favored with a gracious revelation, and trusting in her smile of compassion I hasted to smite the power of evil.
CHORUS: And know that there’s no spot in earth or heaven where the Imperial mandate does not run.
TAMURA: Passing then swiftly over the barrier of Ausaka I gained the shore of the lake by Awayu and made my way to the Temple of Ishiyama, where is adored the same Goddess Kwannon of Kiyomizu, and there too I offered up a prayer. And right soon then did our horse-hoofs rattle bravely on the long bridge of Seta. And the plum blossom, hardy vanguard of all the flower realm, came out to greet us as a token of victory, and our hearts beat high with martial valor, for every flower and tree is subject to our great Lord’s will and lends no refuge to his demon adversaries. And little did the demon Suzuka divine that in serried ranks the Imperial armies, backed by the aid of Buddhas and of Gods, would speedily confront him. And ’tis a portent too that in the holy Suzukawa, Ise’s stream, to bathe has been to conquer.
CHORUS: Hark to the roaring voice of the devil! It fills the earth and echoes to heaven! The hills quiver and the forests tremble.
TAMURA: Ho! there, O devil, incline your ear! In former days there was a rebel named Chikata who employed devils to resist the Imperial authority, and heaven blasted them so that they forsook his cause and he was soon overthrown and ceased to be! How, then, do you think to escape your fate?
CHORUS: And now by the plains of Ano by the Sea of Ise, in a whirl of black clouds and lightning the demon transforms himself into thousands of charging horsemen who sweep on like a mountain in movement.
TAMURA: But now see what a miracle takes place.
CHORUS: Indeed ’tis wondrous! For above our army’s banners there flash forth the beams of the Kwannon of the Thousand Hands, as she flies through the sky above them, and with each of these hands she lets fly the arrow of wisdom from the bow of compassion. At each discharge there fly a thousand shafts. They fall on the demons who flee in confusion, each one transfixed by an arrow of the Goddess. And so they perish, the whole host of them. Thanks be to the Goddess Kwannon. For those who call on her aid shall see the evil spells and weapons of the demons turned back in their faces. Yea the strength of her Buddha-might shall sweep them away.
Footnote
* Saka-no-ue.
TOMOE
PROTAGONIST IN FIRST ACT A COUNTRY GIRL. IN THE
SECOND, TOMOE
DEUTERAGONIST A TRAVELING PRIEST
TIME THE FIRST MONTH
PLACE THE PROVINCE OF OMI
ACT I
PRIEST: If only we push on the deepest forest will soon be passed. And thus I now have gained the Kiso Road.
CHORUS: I am a priest who comes from the mountains of Kiso, and never yet have I beheld the capital, so now do I take my way thither.
PILGRIM-SONG:
As on I journey
Kiso’s hills grow more distant,
And never knowing
Where the next night will find me
I make my way
Through Mino and Owari,
So by the Omi high road
I hasten to Lake Biwa.
CHORUS:
Thus quickly have I come
To Awazu in Omi,
And here by the lake-side
A while will I rest.
COUNTRY GIRL:
Calm are the waves,
And ’tis most pleasant
At pine-clad Awazu
To worship the God.
How hallowed the feeling!
PRIEST:
How strange!
I wonder how it is
That with such deep devotion
A country girl comes to this shrine
With eyes so full of tears.
What can it mean?
COUNTRY GIRL: Did you speak, priest?
PRIEST:
I did. I thought it strange
To see you weep before the shrine.
COUNTRY GIRL:
Strange, and it may be foolish?
But you may perhaps remember it is written
How the monk Gyokyo when he visited
The Shrine of Hachiman at Usa made a verse—
“I wonder why it is, I cannot tell,
But tears of gratitude my eyes o’erflow”—
So that the Deity himself was moved
And spread forth the protection of his arm,
Shadowing the monk with his wide-flowing sleeve.
And from that time the Lord of Usa came
And at Otokoyama nigh the capital
He took up his abode and swore to keep
Under his protection all the land.
Think you that strange or foolish?
PRIEST:
Gentle are women everywhere, but here,
So nigh the capital, their elegance is famed.
COUNTRY GIRL:
Then you, O monk, it seems are country-bred,
And come perhaps from some far province?
PRIEST: I am from the hills of Kiso in the province of Shinano.
COUNTRY GIRL:
Ah, if you come from a far-off hamlet of Kiso,
How should you know the name of the Deity of Awazu?
But it is Yoshinaka of Kiso whence you come,
Who is worshipped as the Deity of this place.
I pray you do him reverence, traveler.
PRIEST:
Indeed I’ll clap my hands before his shrine,
So strange it is to find him here a God!
CHORUS:
His fame from ancient days
Still shines bright as the moon.
On him we may rely
As God and Buddha too,
To guard this land of ours.