Kimono Quotes from Japanese Literature II: Rising Gracefully from Bed

Mirror: The Fiction and Essays of Koda Aya by Ann Sherif, P93- 94:

"Nandori, still in bed, reached out with her slender fingers and flipped each of the red yūzen silk comforters off her, one by one. Then she sat up, and, leaning back on one arm, drew her legs up to one side. By thus extracting herself from under the covers, she could leave them smooth and unmussed. Her manner of rising was most graceful indeed.

She wore a dark lilac cotton kimono decorated with a pattern of white weeping cherries and pale green willows. Its silver-gray collar had fallen open a bit during the night. At the waist, she had loosely tied a sturdy sash adorned with green bamboo and white iron-club pattern. She managed to look gorgeous without even a spot of red in her clothing. …

Nandori slipped her hand back under the covers and pulled out a small folding mirror. She peered into it and smoothed back some stray locks. Sitting up in bed, ever so gracefully and slowly, like a figure in a film in slow motion, and taking time to check her hair in a little hand-held mirror…"

See also:

* Falling Gracefully in a Kimono: Description of an Elegant Collapse

* Kuki Shūzō. “iki” no kōzō. Iwanami shoten, 1979.

Cherry Blossom Schedule Forecast in Japan 2012 桜開花スケジュール

* Click image above to go to original site


WHEN WILL THE CHERRY TREES BLOOM IN JAPAN?!

People, the cherry blossoms almost always bloom more or less at the same time every year in Japan, (last year was a bit of an exception though). If you schedule your trip to Japan for the second half of the last week of March through the first half of the first week of April (March 28 – April 5), you are going to see the cherry blossoms. If they bloom late, you will either catch them at their peak or just afterwards; if they bloom early, you will catch them just before they peak. Either way, you will not miss the blossoms. Thus year is no different.

The most unusual thing about this year’s cherry blossom prediction, is not when they will bloom, but rather that the English sites have posted their blogs on the subject much earlier than usual. I usually post around the mid to end of February, but at least two sites already have their blog posts up. Competition for site hits among Japan blogs?

According to JWA (Japan Weather Association):

“When the weather has been cold from fall to winter, and the temperatures rise in early spring, it is thought that the cherry blossoms will bloom early.

This winter, the weather for December and January has been either colder than usual or average. From February to April, it is predicted that the weather will continue to be colder than usual or average.

As a result, the cherry blossoms (somei yoshino) are predicted to bloom later than normal or average; beginning to bloom in Kyushu and Shikoku around the end of March and then spreading northward.”

The Cherry Blossoms Are Predicted to Open Their Blooms:

* Tokyo: March 30th
* Osaka: March 30th
* Kyoto: March 29th

Otherwise:
(Kyushu) Fukuoka: March 27th
(Shikoku) Ehime: March 28th
Hiroshima: March 29th
Yamanashi: April 1st
Niigata: April 11th
Nagano: April 13th
Sendai: April 13th
(Hokkaido) Sapporo: May 4th

Several forecast maps are available online so you can keep up with the moving cherry blossom front.

Cherry Blossom Flowering Date Maps:



Weather News Map (Current State Live)
http://weathernews.jp/sakura/
* At WeatherNews site, click button "Sakura Simulator" for forecast by date.　





Mapple Net Map (Current State Live)
http://www.mapple.net/sp_sakura/



JWA Forecast Map (Forecast Prediction)
http://tenki.jp/sakura/expectation




Japan Weather Agency 気象庁の桜の開花予想
(Forecast Prediction)
http://www.hanazakura.jp/sakura/
skaika/kaika2.html
(Unfortunately ended as of 2009)
* See: http://hanazakura.jp/





Enjoy Tokyo Blossom Viewing
http://flower.enjoytokyo.jp/sakura/index.html
* 2012 version may not be available yet, stay tuned...　




Walkerplus Famous Places in Tokyo
http://www.walkerplus.com/hanami/kanto/tokyo/
* 2012 version may not be available yet, stay tuned...　




Cherry Blossom Web Cam Site (2012 Not Available Yet):
ケーブルテレビ局合同企画 全国桜最前線2010 近日公開!!




Links:

* EnjoyTokyo Department Store Box Lunches for Blossom Viewing (2011 Version) デパ地下のお花見弁当

Tokyo Yokohama Information: Cherry Blossom Viewing Spots

Japan Guide: Popular Hanami Spots

All About: 江戸の名所で桜を愛でよう

* Japan Guide on Blossom Viewing in English
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2011.html

* See also Infoseek for more links (in Japanese):
http://bekkan.web.infoseek.co.jp/sakura/sakura_saku.html

Finally in Kimono Again! Grey Tsumugi Awase 2012.02.04

(Or, how to coordinate a Meisen-like shiny pale grey tsumugi kimono)






* Meisen-like shiny pale grey tsumugi kimono
* Kunoya-san fancy obijime cord
* Awai two-tone crimson-and-grey obiage

On Saturday, the weather turned warm (well, relatively, compared to the cold spell we had been having), and I managed to escape from the university early, so I hurried home to vacuum and attend to kimono.

This grey tsumugi kimono, along with an Ōshima tsumugi (which I also haven’t worn yet), was given to me by a friend quite some time ago, probably last spring right after it was too late seasonally to wear a lined “awase” kimono anymore. I had been meaning to wear this kimono since it turned awase season last fall, but just haven’t had the time. This pale grey tsumugi is quite shiny and looks almost like a Meisen kimono, both rather “lovely” and somewhat retro at the same time. The flowers of the design resemble camellia, but I imagine they are purposely unidentifiable flowers so that the kimono is not seasonally specific. I really wish I knew what kind of tsumugi it was; also I wished I had asked my friend what kind of obi she used to wear with it.

When I bought the grey Ojiya tsumugi (小千谷紬) at some Tansuya last fall, I bought a cheap black Nagoya obi with crimsons flowers at the same time, just to make sure I had something to wear with it. If my dear reader has been following along, naturally, as usual I have never worn this obi with this Ojiya tsumugi I bought to go with it; actually I have yet to wear this obi at all. Since I bought this obi to match this grey Ojiya tsumugi, it dawned on me that it might match this grey tsumugi here as well, since this grey tsumugi has touches of pink in the design. Just for the record, I had intended to accessorize it in this case with a crimson obijime and the Awai crimson-and-grey obiage. However, I thought it was too harsh to go with this, for lack of a better word, “lovely” type of kimono.

Recently, probably last November or December (I really keep meaning to keep better records), I bought this “lovely” (neither quite elegant nor subdued, but there must be a better word) white Nagoya obi with a design of squares in somewhat metallic-like pink and aqua blue on sell in the kimono section of Tobu; where they absolutely adore me because it located between the train platform and my home, and I frequently pick something up when I walk through. Anyway, I bought this obi because I thought it might go both with this kimono as well as my blue tsumugi. I still think it will go well with the blue tsumugi.

*Note to self, at some point I must blog about my escapades at Tobu; they are hysterical, at least to me—but then this blog is pretty much about me, and more and more just about kimono. Just also blog about the exhibition I just saw, especially since originally this was really intended to be a Japanese art blog, Oooops!

Anyway, back to the topic at hand, I thought the blue in this white Nagoya obi was a bit too much for this kimono, and I was going to wear it out drinking anyway, so I thought it best to avoid white. Afterwards, I noted there is also a bit of light blue in the kimono, albeit a subtly different tone of aqua blue. I also have a white and pink Hakata Nagoya obi which may well go nicely with this kimono, but it is put away in the summer kimono chest since I bought it to go with summer yukata and kimono, and I didn’t feel like trying to rummage through the drawers to find it. Plus it is white, so hence the same problem as the other obi.

So back to my maroon Hakata obi I wear all the time. The new obi choice naturally necessitated a rethinking of the obiage and obijime accessories. I was thinking of a light pink obijime cord paired with a white chirimen obiage with pink shibori roundel flowers (輪出しの絞りの帯揚). However, the variegated pinkish-purple obijime looked better with the maroon obi, and I had still intended to wear the white chirimen obiage (see pic at very top). However, while dressing, I decided to wear the fancy obijime from the Kunoya-san kimono boutique in Ginza. While I has many of the same colors as the kimono, I do thought it is a bit overpowering for the kimono. Anyway, having decided on that obijime, I then changed my mind about the obiage and decided to wear the two-tone crimson-and-grey obiage from Awai, folding it just so that very lightest pink shade as it graduated to grey would show.

Also, I wore my silver and brownish-maroon zōri, my black fur-trimmed cape, and Chiyo’s sakura design black vinyl bag.




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Handy Things for Everyday-Wear (Fudangi) Kimono

As my loyal readers no doubt already know, I came to kimono through yukata. I love yukata both because of the designs which are larger, distributed evenly over the entire yukata, and yet still more subdued than many of the formal kimono (at least the yukata I typically buy). And the other reason is because it is so easy to put on and wear. My first yukata I only wore with panties and a brassiere, although it had a lining to cover the derrière. Now of course I wear yukata much more like a kimono, with at the very least a hada-juban slip.

The first kimono I bought turned out to be a formal hōmongi which is worn with a long fukuro obi, and it takes a great deal more time and effort to put on properly and wear graciously (see Hatsugama in Kimono). Wonderful for the Tea ceremony and other formal events, but hardly everyday wear since it is more like a designer dress in formality and expense.

Anyway, what I really wanted was an informal kimono I could wear during the rest of the months of the year (yukata is typically only for summer), with just as much ease and trouble-free as a yukata. All sorts of handy goods are sold so one can wear a kimono more attractively and not have it become disheveled while being worn. Also many of these handy things are also meant to pad the body so that the kimono silhouette is in the ideal straight up-and-down cylindrical form that would only be natural for a prepubescent. Likewise lessons in how to wear a kimono properly require the use of all these “handy goods.”

All this I find exasperating because I wanted to wear kimono naturally without all the unnecessary “handy goods,” the way people must have worn kimono when it was still the normal daily-wear. So it was basically up to me to teach myself by buying and wearing different types of kimono (bought second-hand of course), and through practice, to see what worked.

I still eschew all the supposedly “handy goods” except for the eri-shin, stiff collar liner, which ironically I started to use when I began to wear kimono more regularly, because it keeps the collar unwrinkled ad nicely in place. It has its own problems though; since I have a short torso with no real waist (there is only a couple of inches between my ribs and my hips), the kimono rides up when I sit down, and often forcing the stiff eri-shin up so that it spreads the collar wide.



I have also bought an elastic koshi-himo cord, used for tying the o-hashori fold at the waist. Since most of my kimonos are used, and typically sewn for the small Japanese figure of yesteryear, many are too short for me. As a result, I have to make an extremely short O-hashori fold. To help deal with this problem, it was recommended to me to buy an elasticized koshi-himo cord. I still have not decided whether the elasticized koshi-himo cord is really a help or not for tying a short O-hashori, but I do think it helps with the problem of the kimono riding up at the waist when sitting. Because the elastic koshi-himo cord stretches when sitting and then returns to its formal shape when one stands up, it helps to keep the kimono in place. However, I tend to tie it too tight and am sore where it was tied by the end of the day.

Two things I have bought recently, I have actually found to be very handy. Both of which I also bought at the same place, the kimono boutique Awai. One is a two-color, grey and crimson-pink, obiage sash (for tying the cushion for the obi bow in back) with gradations in between (縞地二色暈【薄紫×赤紫】). With just this single obiage, I can dress almost all my informal to semi-formal kimonos, because one color or the other of this obiage is bound to match the kimono.

Plus it is a lot of fun for coordinating the ensemble because you wear one color or the other, or any gradation in between, or you can wear both colors at once, one on the right side and one on the left. Although, this obiage is only appropriate up to the semi-informal level; if you can only afford to buy one obiage, I highly recommend an antique-pink plain-weave obiage, because you can genuinely wear it with any kimono, regardless of formality.

The second is a pair of rubber-soled zōri sandals. I walk a great deal and often wear out my zōri, to the extent that the soles have to be replaced. I often wear geta clogs with tabi socks to gardens and such so that my zōri do not get soiled from the dirt. However, geta wreak havoc on my tabi, and for the most part wearing tabi with geta is not really considered appropriate, or to put it in Japanese terms, it is not considered iki.

These rubber-soled zōri sandals are the perfect answer; they are hardy, as easy to walk in as regular sandals, and formal enough for everyday kimono. On first inspection, they don’t really look any different from regular zōri, and are nicer looking and more comfortable than the plastic-soled zōri often worn in rain or as a geta alternative. Plus, they are custom-made, so I got to choose the fabric for the hana-o strap, the material for the zōri, the color of the rubber-sole, and how loose or tight the I wanted the hana-o strap. The one disadvantage is once made, the han-o can no longer be readjusted. Also, these zōri cannot be ordered online; you have to go to the store in person and have your feet fitted there. In rain though, I will probably still wear either geta and tabi, or cover my good zōri with transparent plastic booties.


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2012 NHK Taiga Drama: "Taira no Kiyomori" February: Eps. 5-8

NHK World Premium > Schedules > Historical Drama "Taira no Kiyomori"

NHK: "The historical drama for 2012 is the life story of "Taira no Kiyomori" who became Japan's first political leader from the samurai class, aiming to realize his vision to establish a trading nation in the late Heian Period, a time of confusion with the power struggles between the Imperial Family and the aristocrats."



Historical Drama "Taira no Kiyomori" Eps. 5

Feb 5 (Sun) 20:00-20:44
Feb 6 (Mon) 3:00-3:44
Feb 11 (Sat) 13:05-13:49

In 1135 at the Imperial Court, aristocrats are discussing countermeasures against pirates who are raising havoc in the Seto Inland Sea. Despite Tadazane's recommendation to place the Minamoto clan to expel the pirates, the retired Emperor Toba, who puts his trust in Tadamori, assigns the Taira clan to lead the punitive expedition. Tadamori, who wants to make Kiyomori his successor, orders Kiyomori to join the expedition, going against the opposition of Tadamasa. After arriving at the Sea, a giant vessel appears before Tadamori and Kiyomori.

AF’s Notes:
Although it is only a rumor that Kiyomori was the illegitimate son of Shirakawa, albeit recorded in historical sources, nevertheless NHK keeps stressing Kiyomori’s aristocratic heritage in the drama. So, you would think, perhaps NHK could have chosen an actor of somewhat more noble visage, like Ikuta Toma who played Hikaru Genji or Higashiyama Noriyuki who played Fujiwara no Michinaga in the recent movie Tale of Genji: A Thousand Year Enigma (源氏物語 千年の謎).

NHK’s portrayal of Kiyomori reminds me more of Ryōma. You don’t suppose that NHK has gotten the two confused somehow? Or perhaps the ratings for last year’s NHK Taiga Drama Ryōma were so good that NHK decided to go with the same rough and ready character type for portraying Kiyomori. I was especially reminded of Ryōma when Matsuyama Ken’ichi as Kiyomori kept rubbing his nose whenever he was exasperated in the last episode (eps. 4), reminiscent of the famous incident of Ryōma picking his nose as a response to some question.

Historical Drama "Taira no Kiyomori" Eps. 6

Feb 12 (Sun) 20:00-20:44
Feb 13 (Mon) 3:00-3:44
Feb 18 (Sat) 13:05-13:49

Amid the battle against the pirates, Taira no Moriyasu gets seriously hurt from protecting Kiyomori, and the Taira clan once returns to their base. Kiyomori, however, goes back to the Sea alone being mad at his cowardliness, where he is saved from his sinking boat by Takashina no Michinori. Meanwhile, Yoshitomo, who is on his way eastward from Kyoto, encounters Yura Gozen, daughter of the chief priest of Atsuta Shrine. Back at the Imperial Palace, Nariko from a middle-class aristocratic family becomes pregnant with a child of the retired Emperor Toba. Kiyomori and Michinori are captured by the pirates and taken to the giant vessel.


Historical Drama "Taira no Kiyomori" Eps. 7

Feb 19 (Sun) 20:00-20:44
Feb 20 (Mon) 3:00-3:44
Feb 25 (Sat) 13:05-13:49

The Taira clan finally succeeds in subduing the pirates, however, Tadamori is not granted the rank equal to the aristocrats. Kiyomori, on the other hand, gets promoted and pays a visit to Tadazane. On the way back home, Kiyomori and Morikuni, fisherman-turned-samurai, encounter Takashina no Motoaki, a lower-class aristocrat, and his daughter, Akiko. Motoaki immediately takes a liking to Kiyomori and asks him to take Akiko as his wife. Although Akiko feels reluctant to marry Kiyomori because of her low status, she gradually falls for Kiyomori as he reveals his honest feelings toward her.

Historical Drama "Taira no Kiyomori" Eps. 8

Feb 26 (Sun) 20:00-20:44
Feb 27 (Mon) 3:00-3:44
Mar 3 (Sat) 13:05-13:49

In 1136, Kiyomori learns that Tadamori is illegally trading with Sung and keeps it secret from the Imperial Court. Meanwhile, Fujiwara no Yorinaga, the second son of Tadazane who is known for his all-or-nothing personality, is assigned as the Minister of the Center, which eventually makes the already unstable situation in the Imperial Court worse. Yorinaga finds out about the illegal trading and summons Kiyomori to his place. Kiyomori, however, suggests to Yorinaga for Japan to emulate the prosperous country of Sung, pointing out Japan's wrong political structure.


LINKS:

NHK World Premium > Schedules > Historical Drama "Taira no Kiyomori" (in English)

http://asianmediawiki.com/Taira_no_Kiyomori (in English)

NHK 大河ドラマ「平清盛」Homepage: http://www9.nhk.or.jp/kiyomori/

Character Chart 登場人物相関図: http://www9.nhk.or.jp/kiyomori/cast/index.html

YahooテレビGuide 「平清盛」





EXHIBITION:

"Taira no Kiyomori" Exhibition:
* Edo-Tokyo Museum: Jan 2 (Mon) 〜 Feb 5 (Sun), 2012 (English Site)
* Kobe City Museum, Feb. 25 〜 April 8
* Hiroshima Prefectural Art Museum, April 21 〜 June 3
* The Museum of Kyoto, June 16 〜 July 17


NHK大河ドラマ特別展「平清盛」
* 江戸東京博物館 2012年1月2日（月・祝）〜2月5日（日）
* 神戸市立博物館 2012年2月25日（土）〜4月8日（日）
* 広島県立美術館 2012年4月21日（土）〜6月3日（日）
* 京都府京都文化博物館 2012年6月16日（土）〜7月17日（火）


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Hamamatsucho Boy Fountain January 2012 Back

Hamamatsucho Boy Fountain January 2012 Front

2012 NHK Taiga Drama: "Taira no Kiyomori" January: Eps. 1-4

NHK World Premium > Schedules >
Historical Drama "Taira no Kiyomori"





Historical Drama "Taira no Kiyomori" Eps. 1

Jan 14 (Sat) 13:05-14:19

In 1118 in Kyoto amid the time of confusion, Taira no Tadamori, the heir of the Taira clan, spends days doing dirty works to capture robbers under orders of the Imperial Court. One day, he encounters a pregnant woman named Maiko, who is on the run to protect her unborn baby, a child of the cloistered Emperor Shirakawa (who although retired is still the most powerful,) from being murdered. Tadamori secretly provides shelter to Maiko, while shaking off the pursuit from Minamoto no Tameyoshi, the head of the Minamoto clan, who is searching for her under Emperor Shirakawa's order. Maiko eventually gives birth to a baby boy, Heita, who later becomes known as Taira no Kiyomori.

AF's notes:
Maiko is captured by the Minamoto one day when she is at the river washing clothes. Taira no Tadamori is in deep do-do for having sheltered her and her baby, and is called in for questioning before the retired emperor Shirakawa. There, Maiko takes responsibility for Tadamori’s actions and is shot by the archers before everyone’s eyes. Tadamori says he will raise the child as his own.
(That Kiyomori was possibly the illegitimate son of Shirakawa is not a fiction invented by NHK, but actually recorded in historical sources as a rumor.)

Historical Drama "Taira no Kiyomori" Eps. 2

Jan 15 (Sun) 20:00-20:44
Jan 16 (Mon) 3:00-3:44
Jan 21 (Sat) 13:05-13:49

Heita, after reaching adulthood, wanders around gambling parlors being frustrated with his ironic fate of having two fathers: Tadamori as his foster father and the cloistered Emperor Shirakawa as his biological father. People consider Heita to be disreputable, however, Tadamori continues to treat Heita as the heir of the Taira clan, which worsens the relations between Tadamori and his brother, Tadamasa. One day, a fisherman close to Heita is captured by the Emperor Shirakawa for breaking the law that prohibits killing animals set by the Emperor.

AF's Notes:
Heita is forcibly capped by the upstart faction of the aristocracy in a coming-of-age ceremony, and given his adult name of Kiyomori (清盛). Shirakawa makes an edict forbidding the taking of life, and all the fishing nets are collected and burned in Kyoto. Kiyomori finds out from his friend, that all the people of the fishing village are starving because they cannot fish. His friend’s father, and head of the village, releases the fishing boats to save his people from starvation. He is captured by the retired emperor Shirakawa for this transgression, and I believe the sentence is, ironically enough, death. Kiyomori pleads his friend’s father’s case before the retired emperor, but to no avail. Kiyomori then finally accepts his father’s urging to take refined lessons in dance and such to become closer to the aristocracy who are the ones with power. As he was advised by a member of the aristocracy during his capping ceremony, “The retired emperor is becoming deaf, even if you howl like a dog, you will have to get close to the retired emperor for him to hear you.” (The warrior class are called “dogs of the aristocracy.”)
Too bad the actor playing Kiyomori (Matuyama Ken'ichi) is not really a great dancer (major understatement), but his dance before Shirakawa was certainly showy enough even for an American audience.

Historical Drama "Taira no Kiyomori" Eps. 3

Jan 22 (Sun) 20:00-20:44
Jan 23 (Mon) 3:00-3:44
Jan 28 (Sat) 13:05-13:49

Heita, renamed as Kiyomori, spends days fighting against pirates in the Seto Inland Sea and restoring stolen food to fisherfolk. Kiyomori, however, is mistaken as a pirate and sent to Kyoto where he is reunited with Tadamori. Although Tadamori tries to place Kiyomori to guard the Imperial Palace, Kiyomori refuses it saying he wants to live his own life. One day, Kiyomori is called to stop by a man named Minamoto no Yoshitomo, the son of Tadamori's longtime foe Tameyoshi, who later becomes Kiyomori's lifelong rival. Yoshitomo challenges Kiyomori on deciding which of the Minamoto clan and the Taira clan is superior to the other by comparing their horseback riding skills.

AF’s Notes:
My thoughts on this episode was if Kiyomori was such a twit as an youth (as portrayed in this episode), how did he manage to grow up into the brilliant statesman and forward thinker that I personally think he was and that I imagine NHK will eventually make him out to be.

Historical Drama "Taira no Kiyomori" Eps. 4

Jan 29 (Sun) 20:00-20:44
Jan 30 (Mon) 3:00-3:44
Feb 4 (Sat) 13:05-13:49

Tadamori becomes the first samurai granted a title which allows him to enter the Imperial Palace in recognition of his loyalty to the Imperial Court, which brings joy to the Taira clan including Kiyomori. However, some aristocrats are not pleased with Tadamori's promotion, and Fujiwara no Tadazane from a prominent family in the Imperial Court, plots to make a sneak attack on Tadamori by maneuvering Tameyoshi.

AF’s Notes:
Tadamori was waylaid by Minamoto no Tameyoshi as he was walking the curtained corridor to attend the palace. In a brilliant move, Tadamori whips out his sword and manages to talk Tameyoshi out of assaulting him. Swords were not permitted when in audience with the emperor, but Tadamori cleverly carried a sheathed wooden sword covered in silver foil.

The episode of the wooden sword is recorded in historical sources and not an invention by NHK. Upon departing from the palace, Tadamori handed his sword over to an attendant (a woman I believe) to keep in trust for him at the palace. When he was called to task for bringing a sword to the audience, Tadamori asked that the sword be brought in for inspection and it was found to indeed be merely a wooden ceremonial sword.

LINKS:

NHK World Premium > Schedules > Historical Drama "Taira no Kiyomori" (in English)

http://asianmediawiki.com/Taira_no_Kiyomori (in English)

NHK 大河ドラマ「平清盛」Homepage: http://www9.nhk.or.jp/kiyomori/

Character Chart 登場人物相関図: http://www9.nhk.or.jp/kiyomori/cast/index.html

YahooテレビGuide 「平清盛」





"Taira no Kiyomori" Exhibition at Edo-Tokyo Museum
Jan 2 (Mon) 〜 Feb 5 (Sun), 2012 (English Site)

　NHK大河ドラマ特別展「平清盛」＠江戸東京博物館
2012年1月2日（月・祝）〜2月5日（日）


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Japanese "Enka" Song: "Tsumugi no Hito" (Tsumugi Woman)

What I Had Planned to Wear to Chushingura

I had planned to go see the Kabuki play Chushingura, starring my favorite actor Nakamura Kichiemon. In the end, I had no time to go, and gave my tickets to a friend, who was overjoyed to have a chance to see Chushingura played by Kichiemon-san, which was sweet.

Anyway, I had played to wear an ensemble reminiscent of the contents of the play.

http://www.kabuki21.com/gc.php

There are few plays more popular in Kabuki than "Chûshingura" or the "Treasury of the Forty-Seven Loyal Retainers", the story of a true incident when a samurai lord attacked another in the Shôgun's palace, was immediately sentenced to ritual suicide and his domain confiscated. After much hardship, forty-seven of the lord's retainers avenged their lord's death.

The vendetta was finally carried out on a snowy night in the 12th month
Act XI of Kanadehon Chûshingura http://www.kabuki21.com/kc.php

The long-awaited night has come. Deep in December snow the retainers, dressed as firemen, attack Moronô's mansion. The villain is discovered hiding in a charcoal shed. The retainers converge on the place, and shout for victory. They leave with the severed head of Moronô to place it at the grave of Lord Hangan. We know that they will then all commit seppuku, but that final deed is omitted from the play.

However, the play I was going to see was actually the Genroku Chushingura, a modern early 20th century play (1930s) which culminates in this scene:

Ôishi Saigo no Ichinichi (Ôishi Kuranosuke's Last Day) http://www.kabuki21.com/gc.php

"Ôishi Saigo no Ichinichi" is a particularly popular play, which is often performed independently and although it is the last play in the cycle, was the first to be written and its success inspired the cycle of 10 plays. In this play Ôishi Kuranosuke is shown being torn between the severe samurai duty that has made their mission a success and the desire to let a young couple meet one last time before they must die. The masterless samurai of the Akô clan have successfully completed their unauthorized vendetta and are being housed at the mansion of a samurai lord while their fate is being decided. The vendetta has caused a sensation and a young boy comes to meet the men as they are imprisoned. The boy turns out to be a woman in disguise, Omino, hoping to meet her betrothed, Isogai Jûrôzaemon, one of the group. But until they know whether they will be able to have honorable deaths by ritual suicide or die by execution like common criminals, the leader of the group Ôishi Kuranosuke, cannot allow her to meet her fiance.

Eartha Kitt "Santa Baby"

Merry Christmas!

2012 NHK Taiga Drama: Taira no Kiyomori

Back in September of 2010, NHK already announced that the 2012 NHK Taiga Drama would be on the 12th century for Taira no Kiyomori, "promising to shed new light on the life of the man cast as an anti-hero in the Tale of the Heike."

「平家物語」ではアンチヒーローとして描かれていた男に新たな光をあて、歴史絵巻から解放された、躍動感とエネルギーにあふれる男として描く。〜ＮＨＫ

There was a rumor for a while going around that the ever-sexy Kimura Takuya would be cast in the lead role, but unfortunately Matuyama Ken'ichi was chosen instead. Darn it all!!! Many of the other lead male characters are also of little interest, boo hoo!

Still, finally a Taiga drama of interest to me. I specialize in the Heian period (794-1185) and Kiyomori certain surfaces in a number of places in my dissertation. I think he was a fascinating and brilliant man, particularly interesting for his participation in international trade and his brilliant rise from warrior to aristocratic, and hardly the anti-hero he is often made out to be.

Although the Taiga Drama is based on the screenplay by Fujimoto Yuki (藤本有紀), the Tale of the Heike is also a wonderful semi-historical tale, though a bit long; I recommend McCullough’s translation.

The Tale of the Heike (平家物語, Heike Monogatari) is an epic account of the struggle between the Taira and Minamoto clans for control of Japan at the end of the 12th century in the Genpei War (1180-1185). Heike (平家) refers to the Taira (平) clan; "hei" being an alternate reading of the kanji (character) for Taira. In terms of the title of the Genpei War, "hei" can be alternatively read as "pei" again and the "gen" (源) is the same kanji used in the Minamoto (also known as Genji) clan's name.

The story of the Heike was compiled from a collection of oral stories recited by traveling monks who chanted to the accompaniment of the biwa, an instrument reminiscent of the lute. The most widely read version of the Heike monogatari was compiled by a blind monk named Kakuichi in 1371. 〜Wikipedia

All of this has merely been an excuse all along to quote the beautiful and moving opening lines of the tale:

The sound of the Gion Shōja *bells echoes the impermanence of all things;
The color of the sāla flowers reveals the truth that the prosperous must decline.
The proud do not endure, they are like a dream on a spring night;
The mighty fall at last, they are as dust before the wind.

-- Chapter 1.1, Helen Craig McCullough's translation


祇園精舎の鐘の聲、諸行無常の響き有り。
沙羅雙樹の花の色、盛者必衰の理を顯す。
驕れる者も久しからず、唯春の夜の夢の如し。
猛き者も遂には滅びぬ、偏に風の前の塵に同じ。

Gionshōja no kane no koe, Shogyōmujō no hibiki ari.
Sarasōju no hana no iro, Jōshahissui no kotowari wo arawasu.
Ogoreru mono mo hisashikarazu, tada haru no yoru no yume no gotoshi.
Takeki mono mo tsuwi ni wa horobin(u), hitoeni kaze no mae no chiri ni onaji.

＊ Temple bells were rung when someone died (as well as to mark time).

Taki no Shiraito 滝の白糸

Did you know?

滝の白糸 Taki no Shiraito (The Water Magician), the novel by Kyōka Izumi.

It was made into a black and white Japanese silent film directed by Kenji Mizoguchi in 1933.

Taki no Shiraito IMBd

Taki no Shiraito is a very independent young woman with a famous water juggling act in a travelling carnival troupe. She falls in love with an orphaned carriage driver Kinya Murakoshi, and pledges to put him through law school in Tokyo. She always encloses money in her letters to him, until one hard winter there is no work to be found. (Written by Will Gilbert)

It is also the basis of a popular Japanese enka song by the same name.




The things you learn when out drinking!

Why is Facebook Blue? For Red-Green Color Blindness

Why is Facebook so Blue in Color?

The young Facebook founder is color blind but can see blue:

Colors don’t matter much to Zuckerberg; a few years ago, he took an online test and realized that he was red-green color-blind. Blue is Facebook’s dominant color, because, as he said, “blue is the richest color for me - I can see all of blue.” ...

Facebook is not the only Internet brand the loves blue. An interesting study by Color Lovers has revealed that blue is the most popular and dominant color among the top 100 sites in the world followed by the red color.

...Emil Kostov sends this note on why Facebook maybe sticking with blue:

It is part of their well planned Marketing plan. Most colors distract and make the human eye focus on them while blue act as a transparent palette for 65% of time spending watching the main background aka index space. It is well known also that blue color is the nirvana for the brain, as well green. Well, their choice make the competition envy most of the time.

Christmas Kimono Ensemble--What I Really Wore