Southern Japan Seminar 2014 Issues in Translation and Interpretation

"Translations of the Heian Masterpiece, The Tale o/Genii" by S. Yumiko Hulvey Univers ity of Florida

Murasaki Shikibu, a woman of the mid-He ian period, is the author of Genji

monogafari (The Tale o/Genii, ca. II ttl c., hereafter the Genii), the masterpiece of the

Japanese literary canon that has been translated several times in both Japanese and

English. All four translations in Japanese were produced by famous literary figures:

Yosano Akiko ( 1878-1942), Tanizaki Jun'ichiro (1886-1965), Enchi Fumiko (1905-

1986), and Setouchi Jakucho (1922-). Of trans lations in to English, the first was by

Suematsu Kencho (1855- 1920), a Japanese diplomat who graduated from the University

of Cambridge in 1884 with a Law degree and who produced a partia l translation of the

Genii (the first seventeen chapters) while in Cambridge, England. In addition to the

partial trans lat ion by Helen Craig McCullough (19 18-1998) published in 1994 (Genji and

Heike), three complete English translations belong to Arthur Waley (1889-1966), Edward

G. Seidensticker ( 1921-2007), and Royall Tyler (1936-), academics in England, the

United States, and Australia. Let me present a brief survey of translations of the Heian

literary masterpiece.

The earliest modern Japanese translation was produced by Yosano Akiko, a

female poet famous for the collection Midaregami (Tangled Hair. 190 1), whose abridged

version Shin )'Clkll Genii lIIonagalari (A New Translation of The Tale a/Genii, 1912-13),

was followed two decades later by the complete translation, Shin Shin 'yaku Genii

mOl1ogatari (A New, New Translation of The Tale o/Genii, 1938-39}.1 Both the

I Gayle Ro .... lcy. YOJano A/ako and The Tall' aiGe,'.!i Ann Arbor. r>oll Cemer for Jol,ancsc Stud,es. 2000

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abridged and complete versions of the Yosano Genji are in print today. Gayle Rowley

translates Yosano 's ideas on translating the Genji:

I eliminated those detail s which being far removed from modern li fe we can neither identify nor sympathize with, and thus only resent for their needless nicety. My principal aim has been to bring forth as directly as possible the spi rit of the original through the instrument of the modern language. I have endeavored to be both scrupulous and bold. I did not always adhere to the expressions of the original author; I did not always translate literally. I-laving made the spirit of the original my own, I then ventured a free lranslation.2

Yosano worked independently on her translation because she felt a kindred spirit to the

pioneering work of Murasaki Shikibu of the J-Ieian period (794-1185).

Tanizaki JlIn'ichiro 's third wife Matsuko asked him to translate the Genji even

though he was not a fan. Ibuki and Rowley 's art icle -'The Tanizaki Genji" suggests that

hi s role in the translation was more akin to that of a supervising editor rather than a

translator? Matsllko was obsessed with the abridged version of the Yosano Genji and

wanted her husband to produce a complete translation that would be useful for well-bred

yo ung ladies like she and her sisters to read. 4 Even though Tanizaki produced three

versions of hi s Genji translations, in the 19305, 19505, and 19705, to the end remarks

disparaging the Genji escaped his lips. It seems that some women translators treat the

Genji with more affection.

Enchi Fumiko, the third translator of the Genji devoted six years of her literary

career to the Genji, since she was an avid lover of the classical maste rpiece like Yosano

Akiko. Enchi was the daughter o f Ueda Kazutoshi (1867-1 937), famous philologist,

editor of Dai NiholJ kokugojilen, and professor at Tokyo University. With access to her

1 Ibuki Kru:uko and G G. ROIllc)" "The Tani7.J.::i GenJ" Incepuon. Process, and Allerthoughs " With translations by lbomas Harpel o f Tanmdl Jun'ichlr~'s "On Translating tne Tale afGttnJl into Modem Japanese" (1938) and "Some MaliCIOUS Remarks" ( 1965). In the Grand Old Man and thc GICa! TradlilOn. Essays on TaJllzakl Jun'lchlr~ In Iionor of Adnana Boscaro Edi ted by LUisa Sienati WId l1ouna\'entura Rupertl Center for Japanese Studies. Thc Un,vcrslly of Michlgwl, 2009 22-52. , Ibukl and Ro\\ ley, p 41-42 • Ibukl and ROI\ley stHlC Ihat Morita Matsuko was obsessed by YosaRo Aklko's IrnnslallOIl oflhe G,>njl and wanted her husband 10 produce hiS own translation. p 30.

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father's extensive library, Enchi developed an avocation as a scholar of the classics from

an early age and produced an oeuvre replete with multiple allusions to the Heian period

masterpieces by women. No wonder the Enchi Genji (1967-72) feels as if it were one of

Enchi's own creations since she breathed life into the translation. Enchi too felt a kindred

spirit with Murasaki Shikibu's Genji, even though her translation reflects an Edokko

sensibility of one born and raised in the Kanto.

Finally, the fourth translation by Setouchi lakucho (I-Iarumi) was pub li shed in

1997 by an I-novelist (warakllshi-sh6selslI) with a torrid past, who renounced the world in

1973 and became a nun, just as women did in the Heian period in which the Genji is set.

Unlike Heian women who became nuns, lakucho lives the life of a superstar featured

constantly in various popular media such as magazines and television although she is

now ninety-one years old.s For all her stated devotion 10 The Tale o/Genji, she has

accused Genji of rape, whi le Royall Tyler has come to Genji's defense in "Marriage,

Rank, and Rape in The Tale o/Genji.',6

Let us now turn our attention to English translations of the Genji that make the

Heian masterpiece accessible to students in the United States. These are all translations

by male scholars of England, the United Stales, and Australia: Waley, Seidensticker, and

Tyler. The Waley Genji was replaced by the time I entered graduate school so the

Seidensticker Genji was the staple for most of my academic career. However when the

Tyler translation was published in 2001 I made the transition. For the sake of time I will

, Royall Tyler. "Some Viells o f Tlte Tale ofGl!nji," p, 9 : "According to the aniclc. which was primcd by newspapers acros~ America, Setouchi "sees in the novel a strong feminist l oice, protesting Ihe conditions ofwomell at the time" and argues that ·' the key figures" in the talc are "the women \\ hom [Genji) uscs and di scards." "While GenJ i's liaisons arc l1 orm~lly described as seductions, the intervicwer ..... rote. "Ms. Setouchi scoffs at thaI. ' It was all Tilpe. not seduction, ' she says ," htlp:flww ..... .jpf.org.aulonlineaMlclcsfprofilelroyalltylcr-genji -lcct-english.pdf • For Genj i'S defense. see Royall Tyler's "Marriage. Rank, and Rape in The rulf' ofGenji, .' IIIIUll!Clions: Gender, Hlslory and Culture in Ihe Asian COn/ex t. lssuc 7. Milrch 2002, hllp;ffinterscctions.anu.edu.aulissuc7Ityler,html

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not be discuss ing the partial translations, since I have more than enough territory to cover

with the complete translations.

j-IO\y a translator justifies his new translation offers a chance to glimpse both

motivation and method behind the theory of translation. Seidensticker begins with an

apology of sorts in his article, "Chiefly on Translating the Genji,"7 citing that there is no

such thing as a "perfect translation" before he proceeds to declare that it is easier to

translate prose rather than poetry and modern rather than old languages. Seidensticker

declares that, "the most difficult stage in a literary translation is that of seeking to put the

translat ion into acceptable language, by which is meant language that conveys in some

measure the literary aptness of the original" (16). He continues that "the process of

beating a literal translation into what seems acceptable Engl ish has generally taken as

long as all other stages combined, including ascertaining what the original means, putting

it into a literal draft, and annotating" (16).

When justifying the new translation, Seidensticker stated about the Waley Genji:

It is often said that Waley was a lover of simplicity, but his Genji translation does not support the statement. It is a highly ornate piece of work, adding much that may seem very nice but represents elaboration upon the original. I f it is the translator's duty to imitate, then he should not replace sparseness of detail by a rich profusion. An editor may suggest additions and deletions and improve by these devices, but they probably lie beyond the realm of translation (23).

Seidensticker continues by examining the opening paragraph of the Waley Genji:

There are more than twice as many words in the Waley translation of the samc passage ... Already we have in it, however, instances of the sort of thing he does so frequently. Mezamashiki mono is rendered as "the upstart who had dispelled their dreams." This is very ingenious and not at all displeasing, but it is a literal rendition of an expression whose sense had departed rather far from those literal origins. "Still less were her former companions, the minor ladies of the Wardrobe, content to see her raised so far above them," says Waley' s second sentence. Again the trans lation is marked by an ingenious and not unpleasant and yet misleading sort of literalness.

, JOllmal of JapaneS<! Studies 6. 1 (1980): 15-47,

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K6i may originally, as the words suggests, have had to do with the royal wardrobe, but by the period of the Genji they were lesser concubines, ladies not of sufficiently good family to be major consorts. In hi s first sentence Waley seems to render k6i as "gentlewomen of the Chamber," which indeed they were , and the higher-ranking ny6go seem to be called "women of the Wardrobe," which they were not (24-25).

Furthermore, Seidensticker states:

Perhaps Waley was right , if we may assume that the ingenious embellishment was for purposes of imitating the rhythm of the original . Whether or not that was his intention is by no mcans clear, and his willingness to make radical deletions may suggest that no consistent principle was operative. Il may be that what did operate was rather more the matter of what "sounded good"-and what interested him (25).

These ideas might provide some insight into what translators arc faced with when

deciding what path a translation is to follow. Another problem Seidensticker mentions is

the lack of names in the original that he solved by referring to characters by stable names

throughout the Genji. Royall Tylcr used the lack of names in the original Genii as one of

his justifications for undertaking the new translation. The Tyler Genii certainly has a

languid feel in terms of pace that Seidensticker mentioned above about the WaIey Genii,

and the rapid-paced feel of the Seidensticker Genii might be due to its spate of short

sentcnces. Yct the raison d'etre for the Tyler Genii, the intention to follow the original in

choosing to forgo names for the continua ll y changing titles, ironically becomes the

source of confusion for readers and thereby a source of criticism.s Students complain that

the lack of constant names make them re-read passages a number of times before they

understand exactly who's who and who did what to whom. However the Tyler Genji has

produced lovely translations of poetry, a languorous pace that more approximates the

original, and a marvelous nuanced translation with copious explanatory notes. He even

provides interpretation in The Disasler of Ihe Third Princess that is an invaluable

• For details on Tyler 's ideas on translat ion, see "Translat ing The Talc of Genj i:' hllp:l/wwW.C5sc.rn onash.cdu.ut.Jf-j\\blt)lcrlccturc.html

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teaching tool. Many female writers have been inspired by hi storical masterpieces and

continue to allude to works written by women in earlier times. Kurahashi Yumiko (1935-

2005) is one who found inspiration from writers of the past, and now I would like to lum

our attention to translating narratives with multiple allusions.

"Translat ing and Interpreting Allusions in Kurahashi Yumiko's Yume no kayoiji (Path of Dreams, 1989)"

by S. Yumiko Hulvey University of Florida

INTRODUCTION

A translator is one who acts as a bridge from one language to another, usually

from one more obscure into one more familiar. Then we might infer that a translator's job

is to convey as closely as possible the meaning of the original into another language.

However, when one attempts to translate a language that is no longer spoken or used

today into another language that does not even belong to the same group of languages,

such as Indo-European languages, the process is made all the more complicated because

one must span huge chasms of time, linguistics, and culture to make the translation

meaningful and significant. Thus interpretation becomes another tantamount effort.

Although my speciali zation is classical Japanese literalure, the topic of my talk today

focuses on a modern Japanese text that makes heavy use of intertextual allus ions to the

classical literary canon of the past. I will limit myself to discussing translat ions that arc

text-centered, one that allows time to consult dictionaries and research sources to flesh

out an accurate and hopefully literary result. And I strive to teach students how to manage

reading texts published and disseminated for native speakers of Japanese.

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My fie ld is classical Japanese literature written from the tenth to the fourteenth

centuries . or texts from the I-Ieian and Kamakura periods, but I can only teach the canon

in English translat ion_ My love for the classical canon led me to search for modern

literary texts that contain echoes of the past that I could introduce to students in 4,h year

Japanese al the Unive rsity of Florida. At first I chose writers like Akutagawa RyGnosuke

who used Konjakll monogatari (Tales of Times Now Past, ca. late I i h century) as

inspiration fo r some of hi s short narrati ves in Rashomon and later Enchi Fumiko whose

avocation as a classical scholar led her to set some of her narratives in the Heian period,

such as A Tale of False Oracles (Namamiko monogalari). However, a colleague stated

that Akutagawa's works were too easy while Enchi 's texts were dense and difficult. I

continued my search for narratives that might capture the imagination of my students and

satisfy my need for the classical canon. Somehow while browsing the shelves of lhe

library, I came across Kurahashi Yumiko's Ylime no kayoiji (Path of Dreams, 1989) that

contained multiple intertextual allusions to literary texts and hi storical fi gures from the

classical canon. Some of Kurahashi's short narratives had been published in The Woman

with the Flying Head and other Stories by Kurahashi YIIII/ik.o translated by Sakaki

Atsuko in J 997, but there were others in the co ll ection Path of Dreams that were virgin

territory. I decided to give Path of Dream!)· a try for the 4th year Japanese class. During

the course of reading thi s co ll ection with my students, I have come to appreciate the

genius of thi s writer who captured the interest of my students and inspired their curiosity

in the classical Japanese literary canon and the historical past of Japan. The reaction of

the last class was most gratifying and I am happy to have found a final topic to research

before J leave UF and my students behind.

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PAnl OF DREAMS

Path 0/ Dreams is a collection of twenty·one short narratives, seventeen of which

is connected by the appearance of the female protagonist, Keiko. Another unifier of this

collection is communion with the "other" world, or the spirit '",orld inhabited by people

that have gone to Hades (or Yomi in Japanese). The tit le of the volume, Path a/Dreams,

placed last in the co llection, hi nts at how visits to the other world occur but Keiko is not a

part this narrative.

In this series of narratives, Kurahashi Yumiko, reaches back into history,

resuscitates people, such as emperors, pocts, wri ters, and so on, to cavort with Keiko in

racy adventures. Flowing throughout all the narratives are Oagrant displays of sexuality

and forays into taboo topics such as bestiality, incest, vampirism, and the like, to explore

uncharted territories. It is writing in the fan tastic mode at its best with escapades designed

to engage our attention by even playing with the concept of time: dipping into the past for

historical characters, forging into the present with progressive feminist agendas, and

glancing into the future with cosmological physics.

These briefseven·page narratives by Kurahashi remind mc of poetry collections

li ke the Shinkokinshfi (The New Collection of Ancient and Modern Japanese Poetry,

1205) that link short 31·syllable poems by assoc iat ion and progression and honkadori

(allusions to poetry from earlier anthologies) into sequences that expand the limit of

individual poems into something greater than the sum of its parts. In addi tion, these

intertextual allusions to classical Japanese poetry, No plays, Western culture, and the like,

expand the boundaries of these short narratives onto the world stage. Further fue led by

scientific images of dark holes, dark matter, and celestial bodies noating in space, the

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venue expands into the universe. These stories carry echoes of topics, themes, characters,

and situations from the past that resonate in the present and prognosticate the future,

defying both time and space. My talk today will be restricted to di scussing just the first of

seventeen Keiko-centered narratives in the Path of Dreams so I will have time to trace

allusions embedded in --Beneath Cherry Blossoms" (I-lana no slli/a).

APPLIED TRANSLATION

What are the steps to begin translating a text? In my classes, the first step is to

provide lexical knowledge. I make vocabulary li sts to distribute to students, so that we

arc literally on the same page. These lists provide pronunciations of characters (Sino­

Japanese or ol1-yomi, and/or native Japanese or kun-yomi) and their meaning in context

selected on my understanding of the text. (If students were reading these on their own,

they would consult dictionaries and chose which of the various definitions fit the

particular needs of the sentence in question.) Second, comprehension of the grammatical

structures is essential to arrive at the correct translation of the meaning of the original.

(As the instructor, I guide students' reading and interpretation in class, and later collect

their translations, correct them, and return them so they can either accept or reject

revisions in MSWord. They submit corrected versions as final submissions for each text.)

Next, translators must provide interpretat ion and infonnation for any cultural or literary

allusions readers might require to fully comprehend the writer's intention for its inclusion.

For example, in the casc of Kurahashi Yumiko, when she cites a poem written in class ical

Japanese by Saigyo who lived during the I-feian period (794-1185), the task fall s on the

translator not only to provide a translation of the poem for its meaning. but also to

provide historical information about the poet and his place in literary history to which the

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author must have been hinting by featuring this particular poem in the narrative. Thus my

lexicon also must contain relevant information about other texts to which Kurahashi' s

narratives allude. (Students need most guidance on intertextual allusions since they have

limited knowledge of the classical Japanese literary canon to which the author makes

frequent reference.) At times I wonder how many native Japanese readers understand

these literary allusions since not everyone in the reading audience is as erudite as Sei

Shonagon of Pillow Book fame or as eager to flaunt their knowledge before the world. I

must admit I am game to trace the literary sources that inspired our author to include

these references. So let us see where this will lead us. I will concentrate on unraveling the

sources for the first of seventeen Keiko-centcred narratives in the Path of Dreams, so that

the example of the first may set procedures for the rest to follow. In class we read the first

seven narratives in the collection, each narrative in the original is set at seven pages each,

quite an accomplishment in holding to a speci fied length for seventeen linked narratives.

SOLVING THE MYSTERY OF INTERTEXTUAL ALLUSIONS

To trace sources of intertextual allusions seem a bit like solving a mystery. In the

first narrative by Kurahashi titled "Hana no shita" (Beneath Cherry Blossoms, 1989),

there are three allusions to Saigyo. One is a poem by Saigyo with the first line negawaku

wa. In this case, it happens to be one ofSaigyo's most famous poems about cherry

blossoms, so it was easy enough to translate. But in order to do justice to the poem and

poet, one needs to find the collection in which the poem was memorialized. So I began

the investigation by going to the library to consult volumes of the Kokka taikan (~!lik*

tiJl Compendium of National Poetry) and look for Saigyo's poem in the vo lumes of the

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personal poetry collections (;fL.*m shikashii), not among the volumes of imperi al poetry

co llections (WJJm4t chokllsenshli) because I was looking for a named poet. By following

leads such as the first line index in Kokka Taikal1. I learned it was located in Book 1 No.

77 in Saigy6's personal poetry collection called Sankasllli (Poems of a Mountain Home).

Here is my translation:

negawaku wa hana no shita nite haru shinamu sono kisaragi no mochizuki no koro

Would that I could beneath cherry blossoms die in spring around the second month under a full moon.

Here I adhe red to a Ji ne·by·Jine correspondence between the transliterat ion and the

Engli sh translat ion by which I mean: negawaku 1\10 is translated as "would that I could"

and so forth. Sometimes it is possible to adhere to a line.by.line correspondence between

trans literat ion and translation throughout the entire poem as I was able to do here, but

other times it is impossible since Engli sh demands a verb earli er than is provided in

Japanese because ve rbs are located in sentence final pos ition. Now that the poem has

been properly identified and translated for meaning. the translator must explain who the

poet Saigyo is to readers who have never studied class ica l Japanese literary history and

speculate why Kurahashi might have felt inclined to include his poem in her modern

narrative.

Biographical information on Saigyo begins with re vea li ng hi s name before he

renounced the world and took on the name by which he is known today. I-Ie was born

Salo Norikiyo (111 8- 1190), an ari stocratic samurai who served as one of the elite private

guards known as the North Face (/lokumen no bush;) for Retired EmpcrorToba (r. 1107-

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1123; 1103-1156).9 While still only twenty-two in 1140, Saigyo suddenly renounced the

world and retired from society to pursue otherworldly activities. Various reasons have

been suggested why such an affluent young aristocrat would renounce the world, but

suffice it to say that he thereafter concentrated on poetry and travelled extensively around

the country even though the Genpei Civil War (1180-1185) restricted hi s journeys for a

while toward the end of hi s life. So now that we know who the poet is we have to

continue the investigation to find Ollt why this particular poem by thi s poet might have

been included in this particular narrative.

Kurahashi's initial narrative in Path of Dreams is "Beneath Cherry Blossoms"

(Hana no shita). In classical Japanese poetry Ciolfi: waka or jjilfl: tanka), hana ({~) is

usually defined as flowers, but specifically refers to "cherry blossoms" (l.k sakllra). Thus

by referring back to Saigyo's poem, negawaku wa, the title of Kurahashi's first narrative

is revealed to be an allusive variation (honkadori) 10 the Sankashu 1.77 poem. Honkadori

or an allusive variation was a wok" technique Llsed to expand the original confines ofa

3 I-syllable poem. Brower and Miner in Japanese Court Poetry provide a definition:

"Echoing of the words, sometimes only the situation or conception of a well-known earlier poem in such a way that recognizable elements are incorporated into a new meaning, but one in which the meaning of the earlier poem also enter, in a manner distinguished from mere borrowing and use of similar materials and expressions" (506).

By borrowing a line from Saigyo's poem and using the line as the title of her literary

creation, Kurahashi is utilizing a centuries-old technique from the waka literary tradition

in the twentieth century. I can't think ora more wonderful way to pay tribute to the past

than by bringing a twelfth century poem into a twentieth century text except perhaps by

bringing the poet back to life and have him interact with the protagonist of her narrative.

' llurtOt1 WatsOt1. SlIIg),O.- Poem! 0/ a !>IOIm/amllollle. Nc\\ York Co lumbia Ul1iverslly Press. 1991 2

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Saigyo is resuscitated in "Beneath Cherry Blossoms" because he so loved cherry

blossoms that he expressed a desire to pass away beneath cherry blossoms in full bloom

and then did exactl y that. By passing away just as he stated in hi s poem, his already

considerable reputat ion as a poet was enhanced into prophetic proportions after his

demise. Kurahashi takes this aspect ofSaigyo's claim to fame and brings him back to life

so her female protagonist Keiko can interact with the poet-priest in her creative narrative.

In addition to the famous poem by Saigyo. there are further references to Saigyo that

continue to expand the boundaries of this shon seven-page narrative.

First some li nes from a No play written by Motokiyo Zeami (ca. 1363-1443) of

the Muromac hi period (1337-1573), entitled Saigyozakllra (Saigyo's Cherry Blossoms),

is incorporated in the text by having the resuscitated character of Saigyo chant the lines to

Keiko:

anshitsu no hana wa hana ippon waga hitori nagamuru mono rno nagameraruru 1110110 1110

waga to hana to yori hoka ni wa nashi to omoishi ni

Cherry blossoms at the hermitage, only one tree for me alone-the one who looks, the one looked at, just me and the blossoms thinking there was no one else but me.

This quote comes from a mondo (PIl9~ dialogue) Saigyo delivers when visitors from the

capital intrude on his sol itary enjoyment of the lone cherry tree in bloom at his hut on the

western outski rts of the capital. Translating a Muromachi period text is no picnic, but

based on the grammar and modificat ion system of classical Japanese, I was able to arrive

at the essence ofa linc-by-line translation. Royall Tyler's trans lat ion of these

approximate lines from Saigyo 's Cherry Blossoms in Japanese No Dramas follows:

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"But my hermitage boasts only this one tree, which I alone live here to enjoy; and I confess myself somewhat distressed that its Oowcrs should have advertised the place to one and all" (2 19).

The overall meaning of the two translations is approximately the same, but a couple of

lines in the original- nagamllrll mono mol nagamerarurll mono mo-that I translated are

not found in the published translation. Docs it make a difference when the libretti are

translated in a prose paragraph? Probably not, but if the goal is to achieve a line-by-line

translation alongside the transliteration, then I had to translate each line I transliterated

wi th an equivalent translation beside it. Furthermore, when the publisher does not object,

I prefer to provide the transliteration of the original in poetry and libretti since their aural

quality was important to audiences of poetry gatherings and theatre.

When I tracked down Tyler 's translation of Saigy6 Cherty Blossoms and read its

contents. I found several clements appropriated by Kurahashi for her narrative: the spirit

of the cherry blossoms, the hollow tree in bloom. and the topic of dreams.lO First for

instance, Saigyo and Keiko keep an assignation determined long ago and might suggest

the Buddhist notion of reincarnation. Next, the hollow tree in bloom in Saigyo 's Cheny

Blo.ysoms becomes the space for the consummation of their love spanning centuries. And

finally the dream motif circles back to the idea expressed in Saigyo's famous poem about

drawing final breath beneath cherry blossoms on a night with a full moon shining

overhead in the Second lunar month. (Kurahashi writes often of cherry blossoms in

various narratives in other collections as well.)

The next allusion was much more of a mystery than the quoted text above. It was

much harder to trace since it was embedded in a conversat ion just seven lines after the

cited text [rom Saigyo 's Cheny Blossoms. First Saigyo, then Keiko speaks these lines

10 Ro)'all Tyler, Smgyo-:llkura in JapwK'se N6 DrwIIIIS, New York: Penguin Classks. 1992: 219-220.

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below, making me wonder what source might have contained such a conversation

between Saigyo and a woman that might have been a prostitute:

r ~ '''='-'(:' ~f;j:ffi 0) UJE 1-: 1;j' '!!:- ';( l.., -r ~ ,t~ t::n'? <: l.., t,: to, iM U 'im-z'1t/i to h -r l..,*,,=,t,:71' J rfl.'!!:- iIf:tcO)[itn' 2< Iv <: :to r"'JtIi~O)~ ? -z' l.., t,: n' to J

" ... When was it that you coldly refused to give me lodging one rainy night?,,11 ·'It was because you mistakenl y thought I was some harlot."

As soon as I read the word ifslIzoya fla (when might it have been), I knew the text was

most likely a quote from classical Japanese. It occurred to me that another No play might

be the source and searched for titles with like ly correspondents. I found one by the title of

Eguchi that I knew was the geographical location where asohi (talented entertainers who

sang popular songs, or imayo) and yahochi (prostitutes) congregated during the Heian

period from readings I had encountered teaching The Tale o/ fhe Heike. I learned that

Eguchi was another play that was written in the Muromachi period by Zeami , one of the

greatest masters of the No Theatre. 12 Thus it became clear that Kurahashi Yumiko was a

fan of the No Theatre, especially Zeami the most illustrious writer and theorist. (She uses

No plays and No masks in various narratives in thi s collection and others.) So by alluding

10 this play, Kurahashi highlights the historical context for the assignation that Saigyo

and Keiko conduct that night (since she might be the reincarnation of the woman who

lived in Eguchi in the play reborn to experience the assignation with Saigyo in the

twentieth century) as they traverse both time and space to arrive in Sagano in western

Kyoto. The ramifications of the hi storical story of the past overlaps with the new

interpretation in the narrat ive present to create the same layered effec t that Kurahashi

II Alludes to Zeami Motokiyo's No play I:.guchi when SaigyO Is refused lodging on a rainy night at the home of a harlot. See Royall Tyler,Japanese N6 Dramas. London: Penguin, 1992: 72. II Ro)·al1 T) Icr. Eguchi III JQ{X/flese 11'6 Dr/lm(ls. New York: I'cnguin Class1cs, 1992 : 72

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describes when Saigyo's figure is layered onlO cherry blossoms in full bloom since Ihe

earlier play Saig)'o 's Cheny Blossoms had implanted in our brain the fact that Saigyo is

the spirit of the cherry tree. My translation:

In just thi s way, thi s old cherry tree spread its branches with countless delicate blossoms and leaves, and in the figure wearing a flowery mantle like glossily, shiny haze, there was strange gentleness and magnificence. All thi s seemed to be layered on the figure of Mr. Sato, no, the venerable priest Saigyo.

In this way I follow the clues embedded in the text, finding pleasure in so lving

enigmas. However, there are still others I have yet to solve. The titl e of the forty.eight

volume history, Genpeijosuiki (ib~PP:JM:~~ Chronicle of the Genpei War, late 14th c.),

is mentioned, and then is followed by an enigmatic phrase: r tlJJ II {t.Ji J (mountains,

rivers, cherries. moon). A few lines later r ~ t t i"nS t.:. 'J J (The Unso licited Tale, or

The Confessions of Lad)1 Nij6. late 13th c.) is mentioned along with the author's name

[Go-Fukakusa'in] Nijo who mimicked Saigyo' s travels a couple of centuries later even

though she was a woman. In seeking the source of the phrase, I am faced with a dilemma:

which of the two titles am I going to follow when I seek the source of the phrase? There

is also the possibility that it might not be related to either. The phrase might refer to a line

from a famous Chinese poem written by someone on the continent or by someone in

Japan leamed in the art of Chinese composition since Kurahashi quoted a phrase by Bo

Chui (J. Bai Juyi 772-846) toward the end of this narrative. Or it might refer to the " ideal

of the eremitic life ... with a "keen sensitivi ty to the beauties of nature" that Burton

Watson states was the inspiration for Saigyo' s renouncement of the world (4) that might

offer the best fit in thi s context. Translating such narratives replete with intertextal

allusions is exhi larating when a solution is found and frustrating when they prove elusive.

But it is all a part of the task o f the translator. I feci it is rather like probing into the mind

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of the creative force behind the text and trying to discern what motivations might have

compelled the inclusion of so many other texts into the one being newly crafted. When

one is lucky enough to find a text that engages the pleasure of solving conundrums and

having students learn about the literary treasure store the past canon otTers then one can

truly say one is blessed. Let me end here and leave time enough to entertain questions.

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