Aug. 22, 2010
Japanese devote themselves to remembering the dead on hot August days
Uji River, which flows in a scenic area south of the ancient capital of Kyoto, plays an important role in a tragedy in the last part of the Tale of Genji, one of the world’s oldest novels. Written early in the 11th century, the novel moves its setting from Kyoto to Uji toward its climax and depicts a three-cornered romance involving a young woman called Ukifune, Commander Kaoru and His Highness of War Niou.
Japanese devote themselves to remembering the dead on hot August days
Uji River, which flows in a scenic area south of the ancient capital of Kyoto, plays an important role in a tragedy in the last part of the Tale of Genji, one of the world’s oldest novels. Written early in the 11th century, the novel moves its setting from Kyoto to Uji toward its climax and depicts a three-cornered romance involving a young woman called Ukifune, Commander Kaoru and His Highness of War Niou.
Their episode followed a prelude which evolves around the two noblemen and Ukifune’s two half sisters, who lived in seclusion with their father, Prince Hachinomiya, at a riverside residence. Ukifune found herself in a fix between the proposals of Kaoru and Niou, just like her elder half sister, who became feeble and died. Ukifune hoped to follow her sister’s fate and committed suicide by jumping into the river, but she was rescued by a Buddhist monk.
I drowned myself into the river of tears,
but who built the weir in its swift stream to keep me in this life?
(A personal translation)
This is a waka poem which the author of the novel, Nurasaki Shikibu, narrates for Ukifune after her aborted suicide. She eventually became a nun and renounced the world, choosing to “die” while living.
August is an important period for Japanese to remember the dead, not only their ancestors but also those with which they have connections. A series of Buddhist rites to receive their souls is held between Aug. 13 and Aug. 15 across the country. After the end of the “Bon” festival period, people light “okuribi” fires to escort the spirits back to the other world. A big okuribi bonfire rite takes place in Kyoto, in which many torches are lit on hillsides around the ancient capital so that Bon-related Chinese characters and figures appear in the darkness of the night. In Nara, another ancient capital, okuribi rites were observed at many places. Near Sarusawa Lake in the heart of Nara, people floated small paper lanterns on a brook, while children lit sparklers to entertain the dead.
The traditional events for remembering the dead toward mid-August give an occasion for Japanese to think about their identity and roots. This also must be the case for young people, including those gathering at a busy public square in Osaka, the commercial hub of western Japan.
Uji, now Uji City, used to host many villas and retreats for noblemen in the Heian period from the ninth to 12th centuries. Its natural environment, including Uji River, has been preserved over the centuries. As Uji City calls itself as “Town of the Tale of Genji,” places and monuments related to the series of characters in the novel are carefully preserved by local people as if they are real persons.
I drowned myself into the river of tears,
but who built the weir in its swift stream to keep me in this life?
(A personal translation)
This is a waka poem which the author of the novel, Nurasaki Shikibu, narrates for Ukifune after her aborted suicide. She eventually became a nun and renounced the world, choosing to “die” while living.
August is an important period for Japanese to remember the dead, not only their ancestors but also those with which they have connections. A series of Buddhist rites to receive their souls is held between Aug. 13 and Aug. 15 across the country. After the end of the “Bon” festival period, people light “okuribi” fires to escort the spirits back to the other world. A big okuribi bonfire rite takes place in Kyoto, in which many torches are lit on hillsides around the ancient capital so that Bon-related Chinese characters and figures appear in the darkness of the night. In Nara, another ancient capital, okuribi rites were observed at many places. Near Sarusawa Lake in the heart of Nara, people floated small paper lanterns on a brook, while children lit sparklers to entertain the dead.
The traditional events for remembering the dead toward mid-August give an occasion for Japanese to think about their identity and roots. This also must be the case for young people, including those gathering at a busy public square in Osaka, the commercial hub of western Japan.
Uji, now Uji City, used to host many villas and retreats for noblemen in the Heian period from the ninth to 12th centuries. Its natural environment, including Uji River, has been preserved over the centuries. As Uji City calls itself as “Town of the Tale of Genji,” places and monuments related to the series of characters in the novel are carefully preserved by local people as if they are real persons.
