The Tale of Genji- A Visual Companion
Page 22
Left Palace Guard. Just as the comparison between
ning as her true biological brother. With so many
Tamakazura and the daughter f rom Ōmi seemed
men vying for her attention, Tamakazura worries
to embed within the narrative a didactic set piece,
that accepting a position as Handmaid at the Palace,
here too the description of these various suitors and
where she will not be an offi
cial wife and thus still
the way they each pursue Tamakazura bear similar-
accessible to other men, could lead to scandal. Even
ities to didactic tales of courtship written for young
Genji seems to be planning to maintain his intimacy
women of marriageable age.
Chapter 30 | Mistfl owers | 143
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The voices of the retainers in his
escort were audible.
“The snow is letting up . . .”
“It’s getting late . . .”
They coughed and cleared their
throats, urging him as discreetly as
possible to set off , aware that their
lord’s principal wife was there.
washburn, p. 589
144
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31
A Beloved
Pillar of
Cypress
Makibashira
Saburai ni hitobito koe shite,
“Yuki sukoshi hima ari.
Yo wa fukenuran kashi,” to sasuga
ni maho ni wa arade, sosonokashi
kikoete, kowazukuri aeri.
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Of all the male suitors of Tamakazura, the one who
ings of humiliation over the imminent introduction
seemed least likely to win her hand was the Major
of a new wife into the household have been made
Captain of the Right Guard, the hirsute courtier
known, but on this night, she is eerily calm. It has
known as Higekuro (Blackbeard), and yet at the
begun to snow heavily, as the painting suggests
start of Chapter Thirty-One preparations are being
through the depiction of reeds laden with white
made for the “third night ceremony” that will mark
near an icy-looking pond. As the storm intensifi es,
their formal union. The details of how this came
Higekuro worries that braving the elements on
about are never explicitly given, but apparently a night like this might be too disrespectful to his Higekuro manipulated one of Tamakazura’s female
wife, but she encourages him to go, playing the
attendants in order to gain access to Tamakazura’s
martyr and acting like the ideal obedient wife in a
chambers, and then began an intimate relationship
polygynous marriage. She even assists him in per-
with her that made a formal marriage with him the
fuming his garments for his new bride. All seems
only option for the young woman. Tamakazura is
well; Higekuro’s escort outside begins to urge him
distraught at the turn of events, feeling no attraction
to depart, as is related in the album’s text, while the
to this man and realizing how poorly he compares
female attendants, Moku and Chūjō, sit at ease. The
to Genji and her other previous options, including
wife too has been seated calmly but suddenly she
Prince Sochinomiya and Emperor Reizei, who with
retrieves the censer of burning incense being used to
their familial connections to Genji possessed shades
scent the robes, walks up behind her husband, and
of his radiant appeal. Instead she is left with a man
dumps a mound of ash all over him. This shocking
who is no blood relation to Genji, technically respect-
act of pique by a noblewoman is unique in the tale,
able as his pedigree may be, and whose current
and the artist of the album seems to revel in captur-
household situation is a cause for concern. Higekuro
ing precisely this dramatic moment. Higekuro looks
already has a principal wife, a woman of distinction,
over his shoulder in surprise, as he lurches to the
to whom he has been married for many years and
side, raising his folding fan in a useless attempt to
with whom he has a daughter and two sons. The
shield himself. The ash f rom the censer, depicted in
wife is in fact a princess, the daughter of Prince
long lines of gray pigment, covers his robe and fan.
Hyōbu, Murasaki’s father, by his principal wife. She
In the tale, the ash does far worse damage, getting
is described as suff ering f rom an unspecifi ed malady
in his eyes and ears so that he is temporarily blinded
that prompts her to engage in unruly behavior and
and confused. Higekuro’s wife, dressed in a lavish
that makes her prone to verbal outbursts; some sus-
multicolored robe with a delicate fl oral pattern in
pect a malignant spirit at work. Higekuro’s amorous
gold, seems rather calm as she tilts the censer over
feelings for his wife have long faded, as a result of
her husband in her act of retribution. According
these “episodes” of hers, prompting him to con-
to the codes of courtly painting, any depiction of
sider dissolving the marriage. In the meantime, he
a noblewoman standing in an interior, however, is
plans to move Tamakazura out of Rokujō and into
usually a sign that things have gone awry. The inclu-
the home that he shares with his wife and children.
sion of the couple’s white curtained bed in the room
The narrator describes Higekuro as an exemplar of
seems to function as a symbol of their marital bond,
dignifi ed courtly behavior, who is now suddenly act-
now broken, and the wife’s sense of betrayal. In the
ing like a lovesick young man, visiting Tamakazura
foreground, one female attendant with a view of
every night at the Rokujō estate.
the shocking incident responds with alarm, a hand
The painting for Chapter Thirty-One depicts extending f rom her outstretched sleeve, while her one such night when Higekuro is about to depart
counterpart with her back to the couple still seems
for an evening with Tamakazura and is at his home
blissfully unaware of the conf rontation taking place.
fastidiously primping and adjusting his wardrobe
If Higekuro’s wife intended to prevent his tryst,
in preparation. His wife’s sadness, anger, and feel-
the ash dumping did the trick, as the smoky odor
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permeates his undergarments, lingers on his body,
f rom a poem by the daughter, who is reluctant to
and makes a visit to Rokujō impossible. While the
part f rom her beloved father; she leaves the poem
episode is dramatic, and is not without its moments
in the house attached to her favorite “cypress pil-
of high comedy, especially in the description of lar” ( makibashira), a metaphor for her father as the ashen Higekuro, it results in the husband sum-her stalwart supporter. By the end of the chapter
moning priests and exorcists to purge his wife of
Tamakazura has moved in with Higekuro and his
the demons to which he attributes her actions. The
boys, and soon she gives birth to her fi rst son. Her
narrator describes the wife crying out in anguish
life as an exalted overseer of the handmaid staff at
during the exorcism, which continues for days in
the palace, a job she accepted even though she was
what can only be interpreted, at least on some level,
in the process of marrying Higekuro, then comes
as a punishment meted out by her husband for her
to an end. Although Tamakazura will reappear
bad behavior.
later as a mother arranging the futures of her chil-
The chapter goes on to record the details of
dren, Chapter Thirty-One brings the so-called “ten
the couple’s divorce, the wife’s return to her par-
Tamakazura books” ( Tamakazura jūjō, Chapters
ents’ home, and her decision to take her daughter,
22–31) to a close, having traced Tamakazura’s story
called Makibashira, with her, leaving her two sons
f rom the provinces to the very center of courtly life
to be raised by Higekuro. The chapter title derives
in the capital.
Chapter 31 | A Beloved Pillar of Cypress | 147
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What an elegant presentation, he
thought. He noticed a poem:
washburn, p. 610, modified
Fragrance of the bloom
Does not linger on the branch
Whence the fl owers fall,
But will it be but shallowly
It perfumes the receptive sleeve?
cranston, p. 845
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32
A Branch
of Plum
Umegae
“Ennaru mono no
sama kana” tote, onme
todometamaeru ni,
Hana no ka wa
Chirinishi eda ni
Tomaranedo
Utsuran sode ni
Asaku shimame ya
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Although the Akashi girl is only eleven years of
the one woman who always eluded Genji, despite
age, in Chapter Thirty-Two, Genji holds her com-
numerous advances and fl irtations on Genji’s part,
ing-of-age ceremony, the so-called donning of the
and deliberately chose not to marry. In their poetry
skirt ( mogi), which will precipitate her entry into the
exchange in Chapter Twenty, the chapter that bears
imperial palace. If all goes as planned, she will win
her name, she rejected Genji outright, leading him
over the Crown Prince, become Empress, as proph-
to respond by implying that she was past her prime.
esied long ago, and give birth to an imperial heir. To
In this scene, ever hopeful, he excitedly reads her
outfi t her palace quarters, which will be within the
letter, as Sochinomiya’s eyes turn to the remark-
Kiritsubo court of his late mother, Genji begins put-
able gifts she has sent. As described in the album’s
ting together a thoughtfully arranged trousseau. He
calligraphy text, Sochinomiya marvels at the “ele-
throws open his storehouses to procure the best fur-
gance,” or “allure” ( en) of the presentation. Her
nishings and textiles, such as brocades and damasks
two glass jars of incense rest within a Chinese box
f rom China and Korea, as well as books and scrolls,
made of f ragrant agarwood ( jinkō), itself a source
and he commissions new paintings and copybooks
of incense. She prepared one container the color of
of exemplary calligraphy. He even briefl y considers
blue lapis lazuli ( konruri), for incense of the black
including in her library the precious Suma scrolls,
variety ( kurobō) associated with winter, which she
his picture-poem records of exile that won him the
decorated with an artifi cial sprig of fi ve-needle pine.
important symbolic victory of the picture match in
Some loss of pigment has occurred in the album
Chapter Seventeen. In the end, Genji decides not to
painting, but the jar with the silvery blue color and
turn them over just yet, but the reference to them
red fabric corresponds to this description; traces of
reminds readers of the Akashi girl’s role in carrying
the brown pigment of pine branches, and green nee-
out the legacy of her family. Next Genji turns to the
dles, are still slightly visible. Traces of white pigment
task of gathering incense for his daughter, which
appear on the body of the other jar, while a deco-
she will need for scenting robes and perfuming her
rative white plum branch emerges f rom its center.
chambers. To concoct an alluring scent required the
The term used to describe this jar in the tale, “white
utmost skill and access to exotic aromatic woods,
lapis” ( haku ruri), calls to mind the cloudy white
along with the best instructions, which often took
shards of glass of possible Persian origin, found in
the form of closely guarded recipes handed down
the ancient Shōsōin imperial storehouse. The allu-
within families. Genji blends certain f ragrances sion to such exotic materials evokes ancient trade himself, and he enlists the help of his most trusted
women: Murasaki, Princess Asagao, Hanachirusato,
and the Akashi Lady.
The album painting for Chapter Thirty-Two
depicts the arrival of Asagao’s two f ragrances, in
f ront of Genji, on the left, and Sochinomiya (a.k.a.
Prince Hotaru), on the right. Sochinomiya is dressed
in formal attire to call on his esteemed half brother
at Rokujō. Outside, a canopy of plum branches, pro-
fuse with pink blossoms and red buds, arches over the
blue stream that winds its way into the background
through Murasaki’s celebrated spring garden. Genji
is absorbed in readi
ng a letter f rom Princess Asagao,
who formerly was the Kamo Priestess and is a cousin
to him and Sochinomiya, her father having been a
brother of the Kiritsubo Emperor. Asagao is also
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routes that linked central Asia to the Japanese royal
courts; Genji mentions the fabrics he was given by
Chinese and Korean envoys, and Asagao, as a prin-
cess, has in her possession precious objects the likes
of which were primarily owned by individuals with
royal bloodlines.
While scrutinizing Asagao’s elegant gifts,
Sochinomiya notices a poem f rom the lady attached
to the ensemble, which is the verse featured in the
calligraphy sheet in the album. It alludes to the bare
plum branch she attached to her letter, using it as
a metaphor for herself, no longer in the spring of
her youth, as she graciously cedes its fl owers to
the Akashi girl, hoping that their scent permeates
the young girl’s robes. The artist has chosen to
include a plum branch with its white blossoms still
intact, however, lying adjacent to the incense. One
palace is at the heart of the scene. Another more
fi nal object included in the composition is a censer
likely interpretation, however, is that the snow is an
for burning incense, which alludes to an incense
oblique allusion to the title of the chapter. Following
competition that follows this scene, during which
the scene illustrated in the album painting, Genji
Sochimoniya acts as the judge and complains of
and Sochinomiya are joined by Tō no Chūjō’s sons
the smoke he must endure. As Inamoto Mariko has
and Yūgiri for a musical soiree where Ben no Shōshō
suggested, the black lacquered censer with its ele-
(Kōbai), well known for his beautiful voice, sings the
gant gold pattern is also a visual echo of the censer
folk song ( saibara) “A Branch of Plum” (Umegae):
wielded by the wife of Higekuro in the previous
To the plum tree branch the warbler comes, to sing
album painting. Its conspicuousness in the center of
all spring long, all spring long, yet snow is still falling.
the composition marks a contrast between the two