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The karaginumo or "twelve-layered"
(juunihitoe) formal robe was worn by women on special occasions.
A woman's skill in chosing fabrics, patterns, and color combinations was
a mark of her taste and sensibility. Certain colors were permitted only
to to the highest ranks and another sign of a woman's talents was her ability
to dress originally within those restrictions. The seclusion of women prompted
the custom of letting ones multi-layered sleeves show attractively beneath
screens and curtains at home and in carriages when men might be present
to see them. |
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A model of Heian-period residential estate, built in the so-called
shindenzukuri style. Note the prominent central garden and pond.
A male courtier might live in the main hall at center, while his various
wives and servants would be assigned to the different radial wings. The
architectural style was relatively simple, and lacked the heavy fortifications
typical of a Western palace. The open-ness of the architctural style allowed
the residents to appreciate the changes of weather and season in the surronding
gardens. |
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The aristocracy had a variety of games and contests of skill.
Kemari was a kind of football played by noblemen. Eight or six players
arranged themselves in a circle and kicked the ball among themselves to
prevent it from touching the ground. According to records, in one game played
in 905 for the emperor, the ball was passed 260 times without a miss. Archery
was another outdoor activity popular among guardsmen. Spectator sports included
sumo wrestling, cock-fighting, and boat-racing. (See Ivan Morris, The
World of the Shing Prince (1964) for more detail.) |
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The Genji monogatari emaki, or The Tale of Genji
Picture Scroll, dates from the late Heian period. The calligraphy to the
left, together with many of the images below, from this handscroll. To the
left is a portion of the text from chapter 16, "The Gatehouse."
While the figures' faces in this picture scroll are simply drawn and seem
to lack individuality, the characters' emotions are suggested by the pictures'
color scheme, by spacial relationships among the figures and within their
architectural settings, and by the use of images of nature. |
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Murasaki Shikibu came from a family of renowned poets and
scholars. She was employed in the service of the Empress Akiko during the
first decade of the eleventh century. This picture shows Murasaki Shikibu,
at right, reading a lecture for the Empress, at left. The picture is from
the Eiga monogatari emaki, or The Tale of Flowering Fortunes Picture
Scroll. |
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Numerous forms of transportation are employed in The Tale
of Genji, including boat, horse, walking, and various forms of cart. A hand-pulled
carriage such as this would normally be used only by princes and primary
wives of the Imperial family (other members of the court rode in ox-carts--
see Chapter 9, below. In Chapter One, the emperor orders such a carriage
for Genji's mother, even though, as a low-ranking concubine, she would not
usual be permitted this honor (S 9). Actions such as this were sure to arouse
the jealosy of the Emperor's primary wife, Kokiden. |
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Chapter 4: Evening Faces. To the left is the yûgao,
or "evening faces" flower. To the right is a depiction of a commoner's
house, such as might have been found along the lane in Gojô where
Genji encounters "the lady of the evening faces." |
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Chapter 4: Evening Faces. A woman fulling clothing on a fulling
block-- by striking the clothing on a fulling block, women would remove
wrinkles and restore the clothing's sheen. The sound of the fulling block
is among the many unaccustomed sounds Genji hears while staying with "the
lady of the evening faces." |
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Chapter 9: Heartvine. "Presently all the Sanjo carriages
were in place. The Rokujo Lady, behind the lesser ones, could see almost
nothing. Quite aside form her natural distress at the insult, she was filled
with the bitterest chagrin, that having refrained from display, she had
been recognized. . . . She must, after all, see the man who caused her such
unhappiness." (S 169-170) |
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In this picture, a shamanistic medium, at center, is being
employed to "channel" a malignant spirit that has "possessed"
an ailing person. The priest at left is overseeing this ceremony. In Chapter
9, such mediums (usually a woman or a child) are called in to try to identify
the spirit which is oppressing Genji's pregnant wife (Aoi). For more information
on spirit possesion and its treatment, see Doris G. Bargen,
A Woman’s Weapon: Spirit Possesion in the Tale of Genji,
on reserve. |
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Chapter 12: Suma. 'The sight of Genji brought tears of joy
and sadness. Genji's house seemed very strange and exotic. . . .Genji's
dress too was somewhat rustic." (S 254) |
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Chapter 25: Fireflies. "Tamakazura was the most avid
reader of all. She quite lost herself in pictures and stories and would
spend whole days with them. Several of her young women were well-informed
in literary matters. She came upon all sorts of interesting and shocking
incidents (she could not be sure whether they were true or not) but she
found little that resembled her own unfortunate career." (S 458) |
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Chapter 36: The Oak Tree. Genji tenderly cradles the infant Kaoru, thought
by the world to be his son, but actually Kashiwagi's (S 694). What are Genji's
thoughts as he looks into boy's face? |
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Chapter 38: The Bell Cricket. Genji pays an infrequent visit
to the Reizei emperor (S 717-718). While the world thinks that Reizei is
Genji's half-brother, he is actually his son by Fujitsubo. The composition
of the picture emphasizes the distance between the two men, as they face
each other at left, each lost in his own thoughts. At right, a courtier
plays the flute; this inconguity only amplifies the sense of thoughtful
silence between Genji and Reizei. |
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