Evening glories, white flowers that bloom at dusk in early summer. The flower language of "fleeting loveThe stone monument is related to Yugao (evening glory), which has the name of "Yugao" in Japanese. The monument stands in front of a tasteful private house about 200 meters up Sakai-machi Dori, north of the "Kannawa no Ii" introduced in the previous issue. The inscription on the monument reads, "Genji Densetsu Gojo Hen Yugao no Mound. The Tale of Genji" was written by Murasaki Shikibu in the mid-Heian period. One of the characters in the novel, Yugao, a woman who was loved by Hikaru Genji, is said to have a five-ring pagoda in the garden of this private house (the pagoda is not open to the public).

Stone monument of Yugao no Mound

The hero, Hikaru Genji, is on his way to his mistress, Rokujo no Mikosho,He gets to know a woman, Yugao, who lives in a private house around Gojo where Yugao are in bloom.Tired of the high-minded Rokujo no Mikoto, Hikaru Genji is attracted to the frank and lovely Yugao. He is also drawn to Yugao, who is not only pretty but also capable of witty conversation. One night, Yugao is taken out to a deserted house to go somewhere quiet. However,At the mansion, Yugao is suddenly possessed by the specter of an "itoshigarenaru onna" (a woman with a mysterious appearance) and loses her life.

In the story, the identity of the specter that haunts Yugao is not revealed. There is a theory that it is a spirit that has long haunted a dilapidated old mansion. However, the spirit that haunts Yugao blames Hikaru Genji, saying, "She is nothing to me," which seems to indicate that the younger lover is on the way out,Monokai created by the jealousy of the anguished Rokujo no MikotoIt is more natural to think of it as

Tsuki Hyakkaku Genshi Yugao Scroll (National Diet Library Digital Collections)

The fact that Hikaru Genji's attitude toward Rokujo no Mistusho was that he would cool down once he had obtained her and treat her roughly, and that the woman with whom he had a change of heart was not a particularly outstanding woman (the daughter of a former lieutenant general of the third rank and wife of the head lieutenant), probably deepened the darkness in Rokujo no Mistusho's heart and made her into a monster. Rokujo no Mistress later became a living spirit and possessed Aoi no Kami, his rightful wife who had been defeated in a car fight, and took her life. After that, he was unable to regain Hikaru Genji's heart,The dead prince, who died with a "demon" dwelling in his heart, became a spirit of death and haunted the female Sannomiya and Murasaki no Ue one after the other.

from long agoThe Tale of Genji" is a tale of sinIt has also been said that it is more than a "sin",A story about the "magical world" of men and womenBut there may be some.

by the way,Murasaki Shikibu also contrasts Yugao and Rokujo no Mistukoto in other ways than their personalities.For example, the cucurbitaceous plant that leads to the encounter between Yugao and Hikaru Genji, yugao, was cultivated in the homes of commoners because it was edible (kanpyo). On the other hand, in the scene at the residence of Rokujo no Mikoto, there are morning glories, which were loved by the aristocrats of the time.

As a side note, Yugao, who has always been weak and yet devilish, is popular among male readers, while Rokujo-Miyasuboso, a man of passion who turns into a monster, seems to be sympathetic to female readers.

The Tale of Genji" has been read for about a thousand years. It is said that the Yugao five-ring pagoda was built in the Edo period by people who loved "Yugao".The name of the town was also changed to "Yugao-machi" during the Edo period (1603-1867) and has continued to this day.