[konjaku]

乳茸刺[Chidakesashi] Astilbe microphylla

乳茸[Chidake|Chichitake] : Lactifluus volemus

刺[Sashi] : 刺す[Sasu], to pierce

The flowers have five slender, spatula-shaped petals and range in color from white to pink. Although they are small, measuring about five millimeters, they bloom in clusters on several flower spikes that are about ten to twenty centimeters long, creating a beautiful display.

It grows in slightly damp grassy areas and reaches a height of about forty centimeters to one meter, and at this time of year, its flowers bloom above the grass.

The stem is long and somewhat stiff, with fine hairs. Most of the leaves grow around the bottom, and they are not many in the middle. it seems this species got its name because, in the past around Shinshū(Nagano Pref.), people used to skewer Chichitake they had collected onto this stem to carry them home.

Speaking of skewering, one well-known story about it in our country is the following passage.

(前略) ...と名乘りければ、今井の四郞は軍しけるが、是れを聞いて、今は誰をかばはんとて、軍をばすべき。是れ見給へ東國の殿原、日本一の剛の者の、自害する手本よとて、太刀の鋒を口に含み、馬より倒に飛落ち、貫かつてぞ失せにける。

[(Zenryaku) ...] to nanori kereba, imai-no shirō wa ikusa shikeru ga, kore wo kiite, "Ima wa tare wo kabawarn tote, ikusa woba subeki. Kore mi-tamae tōgoku no tono-bara, nippon-ichi no gō no mono no, jigai suru tehon yo" tote, tachi no saki wo kuchi ni fukumi, uma yori sakasama ni tobi-ochi, tsuranukattezo useni keru.

(Omitted) ... since he introduced himself, Imai-no Kanehira was engaged in battle, but on hearing this, he thought, "I no longer have the reason to fight", and said, "Men of Tōgoku(the Kantō region), take a look at this. This is the perfect example of how the toughest man should take his own life", then, taking the tip of the sword into his mouth, he fell headfirst from his horse and impaled himself on his sword and died. From 木曾の最期[Kiso no saigo](The final moment of Kiso) Source: https://dl.ndl.go.jp/pid/1105588/1/34 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imai_Kanehira

This is one of the most famous scenes from 平家物語[Heike Monogatari](The Tale of the Heike). I intentionally omitted the preceding text. It depicts the scene of the last moment of 木曾 義仲[Kiso-no Yoshinaka](Military commander, 1154-1184), who was mocked by the nobles as a country bumpkin for his poor table manners, not knowing how to get into the Gissha(ox-drawn carriage), etc.

This is also well-known story. The grave of Haiku poet 松尾 芭蕉[Matsuo Bashō](1644-1694) is next to that of Yoshinaka. On his deathbed, Bashō left the following last will.

からハ木曾塜に送るへし

[Kara wa kiso-zuka ni okuru beshi] Send my remains to the temple where Yoshinaka is buried From 類聚名物考 巻第四十四 人物部第十三[Ruiju meibutsu-kō; Maki Dai yonjūyon; Jinbutsu-bu Dai jūsan](Classified Collection in book form Popular Thought; Volume No.44; People Section No.13) Source: https://dl.ndl.go.jp/pid/1869498/1/379 https://maps.app.goo.gl/cdBxZRxoaQ8dCJzx9

The exchange of words between Kanehira and Yoshinaka is a worth reading. Since this scene is often used as a text for classical literature in schools, there are plenty of easy-to-read modern-language editions and translations with commentary available, so I recommend giving it a read. If I feel like it, might post about it, though. Incidentally, Kiso is a place name in Nagano Prefecture.

彼の一生は失敗の一生也。彼の歴史は蹉跌の歴史也。彼の一代は薄幸の一代也。然れども彼の生涯は男らしき生涯也。

[Kare no isshō wa shippai no isshō nari. Kare no rekishi wa satetsu no rekishi nari. Kare no ichidai wa hakkō no ichidai nari. Saredomo kare no shōgai wa otoko-rashiki shōgai nari] His(Kiso-no Yoshinaka) life was a life of failure. His history was a history of stumbling. His generation was a generation of unhappiness. But, his lifetime was a manly lifetime. From 最後[Saigo](The Last) by 芥川 龍之介[Akutagawa Ryūnosuke](Novelist, 1892-1927) Source: https://dl.ndl.go.jp/pid/1223321/1/322 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mldMbrQXlTs

[konjaku]

藤[Fuji] Wisteria floribunda

As if wondering where to go, a thin vine of Fuji was extending into the empty space of the forest.

If it keeps up and continues to grow, it will crawl over the low grass and shrubs, entwine the trunk of a tree somewhere, and climb upward, stretch across the branches of the forest trees, and eventually, will produce a lot of pale purple flowers around the end of spring. This is called 藤波[Fujinami](lit. waves of wisteria flowers). While each flower is beautiful on its own, the way they spread across the other trees can sometimes look unsightly. The vine of Fuji is called 藤蔓[Fujizuru|Fujikazura], and a vine that has been coiled or that has entwined something is called 巻蔓[Makizuru].

その幾日か後の日に、今度はほんとうの植木屋――といつても半農であるが――が、彼の家の庭に這入つた時には、あの松と櫻とにああまで執念深く絡みついて居た藤蔓は、あの百足の足のやうな葉がしをれ返つて、或る部分はもうすつかり靑さを失うて居るのであつた。さうしてあのもの狂ほしい指である卷蔓は、悉くぐつたりとおち入つて居た。彼は惡人の最後を舞臺で見てよろこぶ人の心持で、松の樹の上で植木屋が切り虐む太い藤蔓を、軒の下にしやがんで見上げて居た。 「これや、もう四五日ほして置くといい焚きつけが出來まさあ」と突然、植木屋は松の樹の上から話しかけた。 「其奴はよつぽど死太い奴だね。」彼はそんな事を答へて置いて、「然うだ」とひとり考へた。「あの剛情な藤蔓が、そんなに早くも醜く枯れたのは、彼をそんなに太く壯んに育て上げたと同じその太陽の力だ」と、彼はこの藤蔓から古い寓話を聞かされて居た。彼は又、彼の意志――人間の意志が、自然の力を左右したやうにも考へた。寧ろ、自然の意志を人間である彼が代つて遂行したやうにも自負した。藤蔓が其處に生えて居た事は、自然にとつて何の不都合でもなかつたであらうに、とにかく、最初に人間の手が造つた庭は、最後まで人間の手が必要なのだ‥‥。彼は漫然そんなことをも思つて見た。

[Sono ikunichi ka nochi no hi ni, kondo wa hontō no ueki-ya ―― to ittemo hannō dearu ga ―― ga, kare no ie no niwa ni haitta toki niwa, ano matsu to sakura toni aa made shūnen-bukaku karami-tsuite ita fujizuru wa, ano mukade no ashi no yōna ha ga shiore-kaette, aru bubun wa mō sukkari aosa wo ushinōte iru nodeatta. Sōshite ano monoguruoshii yubi dearu makizuru wa, kotogotoku guttarito ochi-itte ita. Kare wa akunin no saigo wo butai de mite yorokobu hito no kokoromochi de, matsu no ki no ue de ueki-ya ga kiri sainamu futoi fujizuru wo, noki no shita ni shagande miagete ita. "Korya, mō shi-go-nichi hoshite okuto ii takitsuke ga dekimasā" to totsuzen, ueki-ya wa matsu no ki no ue kara hanashi kaketa. "Soitsu wa yoppodo shibutoi yatsu dane." Kare wa sonna koto wo kotaete oite, "Sōda" to hitori kangaeta. "Ano gōjōna fujizuru ga, sonnani hayakumo minikuku kareta nowa, kare wo sonnnani futoku sakanni sodate-ageta to onaji sono taiyō no chikara da" to, kare wa kono fujizuru kara furui gūwa wo kikasarete ita. Kare wa mata, kare no ishi ―― ningen no ishi ga, shizen no chikara wo sayū sita yō nimo kangaeta. Mushiro, shizen no ishi wo ningen dearu kare ga kawatte suikō sita yō nimo jifu shita. Fujizuru ga soko ni haete ita koto wa, shizen ni totte nanno futsugō demo nakatta dearō ni, tonikaku, saisho ni ningen no te ga tsukutta niwa wa, saigo made ningen no te ga hitsuyō nanoda.... Kare wa manzen sonna koto womo omotte mita.]

A few days later, when a real gardener — a half farmer, though — began tending his garden, the Fujizuru that had so tenaciously entwined around those trees of Matsu(Pinus) and Sakura(Cerasus) had withered completely, their leaves resembling legs of a centipede had shriveled, and some had already lost their green color entirely. And, that Makizuru, or those frantic fingers, was now completely limp and on the verge of falling off. Crouching under the eaves and looking up, he watched the gardener cutting the thick vine as if to torment it on the top of the Matsu, feeling like an audience rejoicing at the demise of a villain on stage. "Oh, if you let this dry for another four or five days, it will become good firewood," the gardener suddenly spoke to him from the top of the Matsu. "That one is quite tough" as he replied like that, thinking to himself, "I got it." "It's the power of the sun, the very same power that made him grow so thick and strong, that caused that stubborn Fujizuru to wither so quickly and so unsightly," so he had been told an old fable by this Fujizuru. He also thought that his will — the human will — had influenced the forces of nature. Rather, he took pride in the fact that he, as a human, had carried out nature's will on its behalf. The fact that the Fujizuru had grown there probably posed no inconvenience at all for nature, but in any case, gardens created by human hands in the first place requires human hands until the end.... He idly pondered such things as well. 田園の憂鬱[Den'en no yū'utsu](The melancholy of the countryside) by 佐藤 春夫[Satō Haruo](Novelist, 1892-1964) Source: https://dl.ndl.go.jp/pid/1110053/1/20

The enemy general, appeared in the fifth night, was carrying a bow made of Fujizuru. https://maps.app.goo.gl/bCJ4NfPrzMY5pjAUA https://colbase.nich.go.jp/collection_items/tnm/A-11098?locale=en

[konjaku]

駒繋[Komatsunagi] Indigofera pseudotinctoria

駒[Koma] : Foal, horse

繋[Tsunagi] : To tether, to chain, to join, etc.

This time, I will share 第五夜[Dai go-ya](The fifth night) from the short story collection 夢十夜[Yume jū-ya](Ten nights of dreams) by 夏目 漱石[Natsume Sōseki](Novelist, 1867-1916). For convenience, I splited it into three parts.

こんな夢を見た。 何でも餘程古い事で、神代に近い昔と思はれるが、自分が軍をして運惡く敗北た爲に、生擒になつて、敵の大將の前に引き据ゑられた。 其の頃の人はみんな脊が高かつた。さうして、みんな長い髯を生やしてゐた。革の帶を締めて、それへ棒の樣な劔を釣るしてゐた。弓は藤蔓の太いのを其の儘用ひた樣に見えた。漆も塗つてなければ磨きも掛けてない。極めて素樸なものであつた。 敵の大將は、弓の眞中を右の手で握つて、其弓を草の上へ突いて、酒甕を伏せた樣なものゝ上に腰を掛けてゐた。其顏を見ると、鼻の上で、左右の眉が太く接續つてゐる。其頃髮剃と云ふものは無論なかつた。 自分は虜だから、腰を掛ける譯に行かない。草の上に胡坐をかいてゐた。足には大きな藁沓を穿いてゐた。此の時代の藁沓は深いものであつた。立つと膝頭迄來た。其の端の所は藁を少し編殘して、房の樣に下げて、歩くとばら／＼動く樣にして、飾りとしてゐた。

[Konna yume wo mita. Nandemo yohodo furui koto de, kamiyo ni chikai mukashi to omowareru ga, jibun ga ikusa wo shite un waruku maketa tame ni, ikedori ni natte, teki no taishō no mae ni hiki-suerareta. Sono koro no hito wa minna se ga takakatta. Sōshite, minna nagai hige wo hayashite ita. Kawa no obi wo shimete, sore e bō no yōna tsurugi wo tsurushite ita. Yumi wa fujizuru no futoi nowo sonomama mochiita yōni mieta. Urushi mo nutte nakereba migaki mo kakete nai. Kiwamete sobokuna mono deatta. Teki no taishō wa, yumi no mannaka wo migi no te de nigitte, sono yumi wo kusa no ue e tsuite, sakagame wo fuseta yōna mono no ue ni koshi wo kakete ita. Sono kao wo miruto, hana no ue de, sayū no mayu ga futoku tsunagatte iru. Sono koro kamisori to iu mono wa muron nakatta. Jibun wa toriko dakara, koshi wo kakeru wake niwa yukanai. Kusa no ue ni agura wo kaite ita. Ashi niwa ookina waragutsu wo haite ita. Kono jidai no waragutsu wa fukai mono deatta. Tatsuto hizagashira made kita. Sono hashi no tokoro wa wara wo sukoshi ami-nokoshite, fusa no yōni sagete, aruku to bara-bara ugoku yōni shite, kazari to shite ita.]

I had a dream that goes as follows. It seems to be in a very ancient era, close to the age of the gods, I was unlucky enough to be defeated in battle, so I was captured alive and brought before the enemy general. At that time, all the people of that time were tall. And, they all wore long beards. They wore a leather belt and hung a rod-like sword from it. Their bow appeared to be made from a thick vine of Fuji(Wisteria floribunda) left in its natural state. The bows were neither coated with Urushi(lacquer, Toxicodendron vernicifluum) nor polished. The designs were very simple. The enemy general held the center of his bow with his right hand, propping it upright on the grass, and sat on something shaped like an upturned Sakagame(sake barrel). Looking at his face, his thick eyebrows were connected above his nose. Of course, there were no razors at that time. Since I was a captive, I could not take a seat. So I sat cross-legged on the grass. I was wearing large Waragutsu(straw boots). The straw boots in that era were made with high shafts. When I stood, their tops reached up to my knees. Those edges were left unbraided so they would hang down like tassels, and as the wearer walked, they would sway, serving as a decoration.

大將は篝火で自分の顏を見て、死ぬか生きるかと聞いた。是れは其の頃の習慣で、捕虜にはだれでも一應はかう聞いたものである。生きると答へると降參した意味で、死ぬと云ふと屈服しないと云ふ事になる。自分は一言死ぬと答へた。大將は草の上に突いてゐた弓を向ふへ抛げて、腰に釣るした棒の樣な劔をするりと拔き掛けた。それへ風に靡いた篝火が橫から吹きつけた。自分は右の手を楓の樣に開いて、掌を大將の方へ向けて、眼の上へ差し上げた。待てと云ふ相圖である。大將は太い劔をかちやりと鞘に收めた。 其の頃でも戀はあつた。自分は死ぬ前に一目思ふ女に逢ひたいと云つた。大將は夜が明けけて鷄が鳴く迄なら待つと云つた。鷄が鳴く迄に女を此處へ呼ばなければならない。鷄が鳴いても女が來なければ、自分は逢はずに殺されて仕舞ふ。 大將は腰を掛けた儘、篝火を眺めてゐる。自分は大きな藁沓を組み合はした儘、草の上で女を待つてゐる。夜は段々更ける。 時々篝火が崩れる音がする。崩れる度に狼狽た樣に㷔󠄂が大將になだれかゝる。眞黑な眉の下で、大將の眼がぴか／＼と光つてゐる。すると誰やら來て、新しい枝を澤山火の中へ抛げ込んで行く。しばらくすると、火がぱち／＼と鳴る。暗闇を彈き返す樣な勇ましい音であつた。

[Taishō wa kagari-bi de jibun no kao wo mite, "shinu ka ikiru ka" to kiita. Kore wa sono koro no shūkan de, toriko niwa dare demo ichiō wa kō kiita mono dearu. "Ikiru" to kotaeru to kōsan shita imi de, "shinu" to iu to kuppuku shinai to iu koto ni naru. Jibun wa hito-koto "shinu" to kotaeta. Taishō wa kusa no ue ni tsuite ita yumi wo mukō e nagete, koshi ni tsurushita bō no yōna ken wo sururito nuki-kaketa. Sore e kaze ni nabiita kagari-bi ga yoko kara fukitsuketa. Jibun wa migi no te wo kaede no yōni hiraite, tanagokoro wo taishō no hō e mukete, me no ue e sashi-ageta. "Mate" to iu aizu dearu. Taishō wa futoi ken wo kachari to saya ni osameta. Sono koro demo koi wa atta. Jibun wa "shinu mae ni hito-me omou onna ni aitai" to itta. Taishō wa "yo ga akete tori ga naku made nara matsu" to itta. Tori ga naku made ni onna wo koko e yobanakereba naranai. Tori ga naitemo onna ga konakereba, jibun wa awazuni korosarete shimau. Taishō wa koshi wo kaketa mama, kagari-bi wo mite iru. Jibun wa ookina waragutsu wo kumi-awashita mama, kusa no ue de onna wo matte iru. Yo wa dandan fukeru. Tokidoki kagari-bi ga kuzureru oto ga suru. Kuzureru tabi ni urotaeta yōni honoo ga taishō ni nadare kakaru. Makkurona mayu no shita de, taishō no me ga pika-pika to hikatte iru. Suruto dare yara kite, atarashii eda wo takusan hi no naka e nagekonde yuku. Shibaraku suru to, hi ga pachi-pachi to naru. Kurayami wo hajiki-kaesu yōna isamashii oto deatta.]

With the light of Kagari-bi(Flame in the iron basket for Taimatsu, torch or firewood), the general looked at my face and asked, "Die or live?” This was a custom of the time, everyone would ask a captive this question just for form's sake. If answering "Live" meant surrender, while saying "Die" meant not surrender. I replied with one word, "Die." The general threw the bow aside that he had been propping on the grass and reached for the rod-like sword hanging from his waist. The Kagari-bi fanned by the wind blew against him from the side. I spread my right hand like a leaf of Kaede(Acer), turned my palm toward him, and raised it above my eyes, that is, a signal to "Wait." The general sheathed his thick sword with a clink. Even at that time, there was such a thing as love. I said, "Before I die, just once, I want to see the woman I've fallen in love with." The general said, "I'll wait until dawn breaks and the rooster crows." I had to summon her here before the rooster crowed. If the rooster crowed but she didn't arrive, I would be killed without ever seeing her. As sitting (on the Sakagame), the general was gazing into the Kagari-bi. My legs crossed in my big straw boots, I sat on the grass and waiting for her. The night gradually deepens. Sometimes, I hear the sound of firewood crumbling in the Kagari(iron basket). Each time it crumbles, the flame moves towards him as if it were flustered. His eyes sparkle beneath his jet-black eyebrows. Then, someone comes over and tosses many new branches into the flame. After a while, I hear the crackling of burning wood. It was a stirring sound, as if it were repelling the darkness.

此時女は、裏の楢の木に繋いである、白い馬を引き出した。鬣を三度撫でゝ高い脊にひらりと飛び乘つた。鞍もない鐙もない裸馬であつた。長く白い足で、太腹を蹴ると、馬は一散に驅け出した。誰かが篝りを繼ぎ足したので、遠くの空が薄明るく見える。馬はこの明るいものを目懸けて闇の中を飛んで來る。鼻から火の柱の樣な息を二本出して飛んで來る。それでも女は細い足でしきりなしに馬の腹を蹴てゐる。馬は蹄の音が宙で鳴る程早く飛んで來る。女の髮は吹流しの樣に闇の中に尾を曳いた。それでもまだ篝のある所迄來られない。 すると眞闇な道の傍で、忽ちこけこつこうという鷄の聲がした。女は身を空樣に、兩手に握つた手綱をうんと控へた。馬は前足の蹄を堅い岩の上に發矢と刻み込んだ。 こけこつこうと鷄がまた一聲鳴いた。 女はあつと云つて、緊めた手綱を一度に緩めた。馬は諸膝を折る。乘つた人と共に眞向へ前へのめつた。岩の下は深い淵であつた。 蹄の跡はいまだに岩の上に殘つて居る。鷄の鳴く眞似をしたものは天探女である。この蹄の痕の岩に刻みつけられている間、天探女は自分の敵である。

[Kono toki onna wa, ura no nara no ki ni tsunaide aru, shiroi uma wo hikidashita. Tategami wo san-do nadete takai se ni hirari to tobi-notta. Kura mo nai abumi mo nai hadaka-uma deatta. Nagaku shiroi ashi de, futobara wo keru to, uma wa issanni kakedashita. Dareka ga kagari wo tsugitashita node, tooku no sora ga usu-akaruku mieru. Uma wa kono akarui mono wo megakete yami no naka wo tonde kuru. Hana kara hi no hashira no yōna iki wo ni-hon dashite tonde kuru. Soredemo onna wa hosoi ashi de shikirinashini uma no hara wo kette iru. Uma wa hizume no oto ga chū de naru hodo hayaku tonde kuru. Onna no kami wa fukinagashi no yōni yami no naka ni o wo hiita. Soredemo mada kagari no aru tokoro made korarenai. Suruto makkurana michi no hata de, tachimachi "kokekokkō" to iu tori no koe ga shita. Onna wa mi wo sorazama ni, ryō-te ni nigitta tazuna wo unto hikaeta. Uma wa mae-ashi no hizume wo katai iwa no ue e hasshito kizami konda. "Kokekokkō" to niwatori ga mata hito-koe naita. Onna wa "At" to itte, shimeta tazuna wo ichidoni yurumeta. Uma wa morohiza wo oru. Notta hito to tomo ni matomoni mae e nometta. Iwa no shita wa fukai fuchi deatta. Hizume no ato wa imada ni iwa no ue ni nokotte iru. Tori no naku mane wo shita mono wa amanojaku dearu. Kono hizume no ato no iwa ni kizami-tsukerarete iru aida, amanojaku wa jibun no kataki dearu.]

At that moment, she led out a white horse that had been tied to a tree of Nara(oak, Quercus) behind (her dwelling). She stroked its mane three times and nimbly leaped onto its tall back. It was a bareback horse, without a Kura(saddle) or Abumi(stirrups). She kicked its flanks with her long, white legs, and it dashed forward at full speed. Someone added more firewood, so the distant sky appeared faintly lit. The horse comes running toward that source of light as if flying through the darkness. It comes running toward, two breath like pillars of fire streaming from its nostrils. Even so, she kept kicking the horse's flanks continually with her slender legs. The horse comes running toward so fast that the sound of its hooves echo in the air. Her hair trailed behind like a streamer in the darkness. Yet she still hasn't reached the place where the Kagari is. Just then, beside the pitch-black road, suddenly, I heard the crow of a rooster, "Cock-a-doodle-doo!" She arched her upper body backward and yanked the reins she was holding in both hands. The horse dug its front hooves firmly into the hard rock. "Cock-a-doodle-doo!" the rooster crowed again. "Ah!" she exclaimed and loosened the reins all at once. The horse buckled its front legs, and lurched forward with the rider(her). Beneath that rock lay an abyss. The hoofprints still remain on that rock. It was Amanojaku who imitated the rooster's crow. As long as these hoofprints remain etched into the rock, the Amanojaku will be my enemy. Source: https://dl.ndl.go.jp/pid/14462762/1/24 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanojaku https://colbase.nich.go.jp/collection_items/narahaku/1114-0?locale=en

[konjaku]

藪手毬[Yabudemari] Viburnum plicatum var. tomentosum

In the dimly lit forest, in early summer, the sight of numerous flowers blooming, resembling swarms of white butterflies, is striking, but in this season, that of the noumerous red fruits, with even their peduncles turning red, are also striking. The fruit is less than one centimeter long.

As these fruits ripen over time and turn black, wild birds come to peck at them. I have never eaten them, nor have I heard of anyone close to me eating them. Since this is a close relative of Gamazumi(V. dilatatum) that can be used to make fruit wine, it is probably not poisonous.

[konjaku]

竹似草[Takenigusa] Macleaya cordata

The name is also written as 竹煮草. While there are several theories about the origin of the name and it remains unclear, it seems that the kanji 似(to resemble) is mainly used in botany, while 煮(to boil) is often used in poetry and other literary works.

竹煮草の花は淡い白茶色の、花とも云へぬ地味な花であるが、夕立のあとなどに花穗に雫をふくんで、黃昏の野にひつそりとしてゐる時などの美しさは、なんとも云へない趣がある。夏のにはか雨が近づいてくる時など、大きな葉を折からの風にばさ／＼ゆらせながらゆれてゐる竹煮草は、地上の植物といふより、なんとなく私は波間にゆらめいてゐる海草の感じがしてならない。秋が近くなると下の方から順に、平たい楕圓形の實がなつて、風が花穗をゆするまゝに實がバタ／＼と觸れあつて鳴る頃には、次第に色も薄茶色にわびてきて、味ひが一層深くなつてくる。よく考へてみると、以前に氣味が惡くしたしめたかつた點の凡てが、今ではこの草の長所に思へるのだから、人間の見方といふものは誠に不思議なものである。

[Takenigusa no hana wa awai shirocha-iro no, hana tomo ienu jimi na hana dearu ga, yūdachi no ato nado ni kaho ni shizuku wo fukunde, tasogare no no ni hissorito shite iru toki nado no utsukushisa wa, nantomo ienai omomuki ga aru. Natsu no niwaka-ame ga chikazuite kuru toki nado, ookina ha wo orikara no kaze ni basa-basa yurase nagara yurete iru takenigusa wa, chijō no shokubutsu to iu yori, nantonaku watakushi wa namima ni yurameite iru umikusa no kanji ga shite naranai. Aki ga chikaku naru to shita no hō kara jun ni, hiratai daen-kei no mi ga natte, kaze ga kaho wo yusuru mama ni mi ga bata-bata to fure atte naru koro niwa, shidai ni iro mo usucha-iro ni wabite kite, ajiwai ga issō fukaku natte kuru. Yoku kanngaete miru to, izen ni kimi ga waruku shitashimenakatta ten no subete ga, ima dewa kono kusa no chōsho ni omoeru nodakara, ningen no mikata to iu mono wa makotoni fushigina mono dearu.]

The flowers of Takenigusa, with pale white-beige color, are such plain flowers that they can hardly even called "flower", yet when their flower spikes glistening with raindrops after an evening sudden shower, there is an indescribable charm in their beauty as they are quietly in the twilight fields. An approaching summer shower, when I see its large leaves fluttering and the entire grass swaying in the wind, I can't help but see it as a seaweed drifting among the waves rather than a terrestrial plant. As autumn approaches, it produces flat, oval-shaped fruits starting from the bottom, by the time the wind sways the flower spikes and the fruits clatter with each other, they have gradually turned a light brown, deepening the taste even further. Come to think of it, all the aspects of this plant that I once found unsettling and couldn't bring myself to like them, now seem like advantages of this grass, so the way human perceive things is truly strange. From 竹煮草 by 原田 光子[Harada Mitsuko](Music critic, 1909-1946) Source: https://dl.ndl.go.jp/pid/1129846/1/14

花穂 is read as kasui in botany, but reading it as kaho sounds more literary. 海草 is usually read as kaisō, but in this case, reading it as umikusa sounds more literary. And, Takenigusa is also called 囁草[Sasayakigusa](Whispering grass) because when the wind blows, the seed pods collide with each other, making dry, rustling sound.

When I see the flowers, especially those glistening in the sunlight in the shade of woods, they remind me of fireworks. And, by the way, the Sumidagawa Fireworks Festival is held tonight. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumidagawa_Fireworks_Festival

[konjaku]

盗人萩[Nusubitohagi] Hylodesmum podocarpum subsp. oxyphyllum

盗人[Nusubito] : Thief, robber; also read as nusutto

萩[Hagi] : Bush clover, the genus Lespedeza

下人には、勿論、何故老婆が死人の髮の毛を拔くかわからなかつた。従つて、合理的には、それを善惡のいずれに片づけてよいか知らなかつた。しかし下人にとつては、この雨の夜に、この羅生門の上で、死人の髮の毛を拔くと云ふ事が、それ丈で既に許す可らざる惡であつた。勿論、下人は、さつき迄自分が、盜人になる氣でいた事なぞは、とうに忘れてゐるのである。 そこで、下人は、兩足に力を入れて、いきなり、椅(梯)子から上へ飛び上つた。さうして聖柄の太刀に手をかけながら、大跨に老婆の前へ步みよつた。老婆が驚いたのは云ふ迄もない。 老婆は、一目下人を見ると、まるで弩にでも彈かれたやうに、飛び上つた。

[Genin niwa, mochiron, naze rōba ga shinin no kami no ke wo nuku ka wakaranakatta. Shitagatte, gōriteki niwa, sore wo zen'aku no izure ni yotte katazukete yoi ka shiranakatta. Shikashi genin ni totte wa, kono ame no yo ni, kono rashōmon no ue de, shinin no kami no ke wo nuku to iu koto ga, soredake de sudeni yurusu bekarazaru aku deatta. Mochiron, genin wa, sakki made jibun ga, nusubito ni naru ki de ita koto nazo wa, tō ni wasurete iru nodearu. Sokode, genin wa, ryōashi ni chikara wo irete, ikinari hashigo kara ue e tobiagatta. Sōshite hijirizuka no tachi wo te ni kake nagara, oomata ni rōba no mae e ayumi yotta. Rōba ga odoroita nowa iu mademo nai. Rōba wa, hitome genin wo miruto, marude ishiyumi ni demo hajikareta yōni, tobiagatta.]

Of course, the servant had no idea why this old woman was pulling the corpse's hair out. Therefore, from a rational standpoint, he didn't know whether to judge it as good or evil. But for the servant, on this rainy night, in the upper floor of the Rashōmon gate, the very act of pulling the corpse's hair out was, in and of itself, an unforgivable evil. Of course, the servant had forgotten that just a moment ago, he had been planning to become a thief. So he braced his legs and suddenly leaped from the ladder to the floor above. Then, with his hand on the sword with the trident vajra shape at his waist, he strode toward the old woman. Needless to say, the old woman was startled. As soon as the old woman laid eyes on the servant, she jumped up as if flicked by a siege crossbow. From 羅生門[Rashōmon](The Rashōmon gate) by 芥川龍之介[Akutagawa Ryūnosuke](Novelist, 1892- July 24, 1927) Source: https://dl.ndl.go.jp/pid/1214737/1/9 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rashōmon_(short_story)

[konjaku]

大葉蜻蛉草[Oobanotonbosō] Platanthera minor

大葉[Ooba] : Large leaf

蜻蛉[Tonbo] : Dragonfly

草[Sō] : Grass

A species of the Orchid family, Orchidaceae.

It grows in slightly shaded areas, such as the edges of forests. It reaches around fifty centimeters in height, and the leaves near the ground are about ten centimeters long. But, since the flowers are also yellow-green, they blend in with other grasses even when in bloom, I sometimes overlook them. In the area where I live, the flowering season runs from June to July, so I found the one in the photo toward the end of the season.

The flower is about seven or eight millimeters in diameter, but the spur alone is about fifteen millimeters long. The shape of this flower looks like a dragonfly, which is the origin of its name. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ddGFZS2pFo

[konjaku]

高灯台[Takatōdai] Euphorbia lasiocaula

一つ火を忌むといつた思想の起りはまだ說明し得ぬが、兎も角に古い火に對する不信任は大きかつた。合火の忌と名づけて同じ火を以て、前に穢れある人の食物を調へたとわかれば早又自分も穢れて居る。喪のある家で飮食すれば乙の穢れ、喪に居る人と合火すれば丙の穢れとなつた。そこで別火と稱󠄁して新に火を作り、又は神の火を請󠄃ひうけて我家の燈火を點じ、もしくは歳の堺に火を取替へるなど、何れも古い火の穢れに對する忌だつたことを示して居る。

[Hitotsu-bi wo imu toitta shisō no okori wa mada setsumei shienu ga, tomokakuni furui hi ni taisuru fushinnin wa ookikatta. "Aibi no imi" to nazukete onaji hi wo motte, mae ni kegare aru hito no kuimono wo totonoeta to wakareba haya mata jibun mo kegarete iru. Mo no aru ie de inshoku sureba otsu no kegare, mo ni iru hito to aibi sureba hei no kegare to natta. Sokode "Bekka" to shōshite aratani hi wo tsukuri, matawa kami no hi wo koi-ukete wagaya no tōka wo tenji, moshikuwa toshi no sakai ni hi wo torikaeru nado, izuremo furui hi no kegare ni taisuru imi datta koto wo shimeshite iru.]

Although the origin of the belief in Hitotsu-bi(single fire) in avoiding remains unexplained, in any case, there was a deep non-confidence for the old fire. People called the sharing a fire with someone who was impure "Aibi no imi", if it was known that someone had used the same fire to prepare food for a person deemed impure, that person was considered already impure as well. Eating or drinking in a house in mourning constituted the Otsu(second) form of impurity, and using the same fire as a family member during the mourning period constituted the Hei(third) form of impurity. Therefore, people would kindle a new fire called Bekka(another fire), or request fire from a shrine or a Shinto priest, to light the lamps in their own homes, or replace the fire at the turn of the year. All of them are purification for the impurity associated with the old fire. From 忌と物忌の話[Imi to monoimi no hanashi](The topic of Mourning and Purifying oneself) by 柳田 国男[Yanagita Kunio](Folklorist, 1875-1962) Source: https://dl.ndl.go.jp/pid/9541756/1/168 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kunio_Yanagita

穢れ[Kegare] refers to spiritual impurity, not to physical impurity. Since this might be hard to image, to put it figuratively: even if you wash a dish that once contained feces as thoroughly as possible until it is spotless, you would not still feel a bit hesitant about eating or drinking from it. This might be close to how it feels. And it is 祓[Harae] included 禊[Misogi] what purify Kegare. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harae

And, Hitotsu-bi appears in Kojiki, the oldest books of classical history. In the anime I posted a few weeks ago, when the main character girl and her friends took a train to visit the home of the elder sister of the twin witch, they were greeted by a one-legged lantern and shown the way. In my personal interpretion, it is a Hitotsu-bi and the witch treats even those with such impurities without discrimination. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kojiki

[konjaku]

高灯台[Takatōdai] Euphorbia lasiocaula

高[Taka] : Tall, high

灯台[Tōdai] : Light stand; lighthouse

In this case, this 灯台 refers to a light stand used indoors.

幽異(靈)なしと難極事 天明二年の夏の初淺草新橋外の町家々(の)娘武家にて候哉町家にて候哉偕老のかたらひ有て圍ものといへる樣に其親元へ預置しが一子を產て產後より血勞の樣に煩し故右小兒は最寄の輕町家へ里子に遣し置けるが右女養生叶はずして身まかりけるが其夜彼男(里)子の元へ至り門口より會釋を(+せ)しまゝ里親は右小兒を寢せ付たりしが能被來玉へりと右里子を抱見せければ扨々可愛らしく成人致したりとて抱取色々介抱し扨々可愛らしく成たるものを捨別れんも殘念やと云し又(に?)里親夫婦心を付て、右女は大病のよし聞しに如何不審成事と存けれ共最早火も燈す時分人影も定かならざる折柄故火など燈しければ右女も挨拶などして立歸りけるが其翌日親元より右娘夜中病死せし由知せ越けるにぞ母子の情難捨心の殘りしも恩愛の哀成叓と同町の醫師田原子來り語りぬ

[Yūrei nashi to kiwame-gataki koto Tenmei ni-nen no natsu no hajime, asakusa atarashibashi soto no machiya no musume, buke mote sōrō ya, machiya nite sōrō ya, kairō no katarai arite, kakoimono to ieru yōni sono oyamoto e azukari okishi ga isshi wo umite sango yori chirō no yōni wazuraishi yue migi no shōni wa moyori no karuki machiya e satogo ni tsukawashi okeru ga, migi no onna yōjō kanawazu shite mimakari keru ga, sono yo ka no satogo no moto e itari kadoguchi yori eshaku wo seshi mama satooya wa migi no shōni wo nekasetsuketarishi ga, "yoku korare tamaeri" to migi no satogo wo daki mise kereba, "Sate-sate kawairashiku seijin itashitari" tote daki-tori iro-iro kaihō shi, "Sate-sate kawairashiku naritaru mono wo sute wakaren mo zannen ya" to iishi ni, satooya fūfu kokoro wo tsukite, "Migi no onna wa taibyō no yoshi kikishi ni, ikaga fushin naru koto" to zonji keredomo, mohaya hi mo tomosu jibun hitokage mo sadaka narazaru orikara yue, hi nado tomoshi kereba, migi no onna mo aisatsu nado shite tachi-kaeri keru ga, sono yokujitsu oyamoto yori migi no musume yonaka byōshi seshi yoshi shirase-koshi keru nizo, haha-ko no nasake sute-gataku kokoro no nokorishi mo on'ai no aware naru koto, to dō-chō no ishi tahara-shi kitari katarinu.]

The topic that it is difficult that Yūrei(ghosts) do not exist In the early summer of the year Tenmei two (1782), a young woman from a Machiya(town-house) near the Arata-bashi bridge in Asakusa, -- whether she was the daughter of a samurai family or a machiya family is unclear --, was set to marry a certain man but was treated more like a concubine and had been sent to live with her parents. She gave birth to a single child, but because she did not recover well after childbirth, the infant was placed in the care of a family of low social standing living in a Machiya. She was unable to recover and eventually died. That night, she visited the home where her foster child lived and gave a slight bow at the entrance. The foster parents were just putting the baby to sleep, said to her, "Thank you for coming", and lifted the child to show her. "Oh, how cute, you've grown so much," she said, cradling the child and doting on it. "Oh, it's such a pity to desert and part with this child who's become so adrable," she said. At that moment, the foster parents suddenly realized, "We heard this woman was suffering from a serious illness. —What's going on? This is strange." But since it was already time to light the lamps(sunset) and they couldn't make out her figure clearly, they lit the lamps, then the woman bid them farewell and left. The next day, news arrived from her parents' home that she had died of illness the previous night. "A mother's love for her child is hard to let go of, and it leaves a sense of regret, such affection is truly pitiable." said Mr. Tahara, a physician living in the same neighborhood as her, when he came to see me. From 耳嚢[Mimibukuro] by 藤原 守信[Fujiwara Morinobu](根岸 鎮衛[Negishi Yasumori], Magistrate, 1737-1815) in 随筆文学選集[Zuihitsu bungaku senshū](Selections of essays) Source: https://dl.ndl.go.jp/pid/1224596/1/169 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yūrei

[konjaku]

大葉擬宝珠[Oobagibōshi] Hosta sieboldiana var. sieboldiana

大葉[Ooba] : Large leaf

擬宝珠[Gibōshi|Giboshi|Gibōshu] : Ornamental cap on a bridge post

晝でも死んでゐる水は、風を含まぬ夜の影に壓し付けられて、見渡す限り平かである。動かぬは何時の事からか。靜かなる水は知るまい。百年の昔に掘つた池ならば、百年以來動かぬ、五十年の昔ならば、五十年以來動かぬとのみ思はれる水底から、腐つた蓮の根がそろ／＼靑い芽を吹きかけて居る。泥から生れた鯉と鮒が、闇を忍んで緩やかに腭を働かしてゐる。イルミネーションは高い影を逆まにして、二丁餘の岸を、尺も殘さず眞赤になつて此靜かなる水の上に倒れ込む。黑い水は死につゝもぱつと色を作す。泥に潜む魚の鰭は燃える。 濕える燄は、一抹に岸を伸して、明かに向側へ渡る。行く道に橫はる凡てのものを染め盡して已まざるを、ぷつりと截つて長い橋を西から東へ懸る。白い石に野羽玉の波を跨ぐアーチの數は二十、欄に盛る擬寶珠は悉く夜を照らす白光の珠である。

[Hiru demo shinde iru mizu wa, kaze wo fukumanu yoru no kage ni oshitsukerarete, miwatasu kagiri tairaka dearu. Ugokanu nowa itu no koto kara ka. Shizuka naru mizu wa shirumai. Hyaku-nen no mukashi ni hotta ike naraba, hyaku-nen irai ugokanu, gojū-nen no mukashi naraba, gojūnen irai ugokaku to nomi omowareru minasoko kara, kusatta hasu no ne ga soro-soro aoi me wo fukikakete iru. Doro kara umareta koi to funa ga, yami wo shinonde yuruyakani agito wo hatarakashite iru. Iruminēshon wa takai kage wo sakasama ni shite, ni-chō-yo no kishi wo, shaku mo nokosazu makka ni natte kono shizukanaru mizu no ue ni taorekomu. Kuroi mizu wa shinitsutsumo pat to iro wo nasu. Doro ni hisomu uo no hire wa moeru. Uruoeru honoo wa, ichimatsu ni kishi wo noshite, akirakani mukōgawa e wataru. Yuku michi ni yokotawaru subete no mono wo some tsukushite yamazaru wo, putsuri to kitte nagai hashi wo nishi kara higashi e kakeru. Shiroi ishi ni nubatama no nami wo matagu āchi no kazu wa nijū, ran ni moru giboshu wa kotogotoku yo wo terasu hakukō no tama dearu.]

Even during the day, the dead water is pressed down by the shadows of a windless night, and is flat as far as the eye can see. When did it stop moving? The still water has no way of knowing. If the pond was dug one hundred years ago, it hasn't moved for one hundred years; if it was dug fifty years ago, it hasn't moved for fifty years; from the bottom of the water can only be thought as such, the rotten roots of Hasu(lotus, Nelumbo nucifera) are about to sprout green shoots. The Koi(common carp, Cyprinus carpio) and Funa(crucian carp, Carassius spp.) born in the mud stay quietly in the darkness and move their jaws slowly. That illumination inverts the tall shadow, and it(the shadow) dyes the shoeline, which stretches seamlessly for over two hundredmeters, a shade of red, and it collapses onto the surface of this still water. The black water, even as it dies, instantly makes that color. The fins of fish lurking in the mud appear a fiery red. The moist flame sweeps across the shoreline as if applying a single, hazy stroke of color, then crosses to the opposite shoe, growing brighter. The long bridge spans from west to east, abruptly cutting off that flame, which never ceases to dye everything in its path. The white stone bridge, built to straddle the Nubatama(pitch-black) waves, has twenty arches, and each Giboshis adorning its railings are like precious stones of white light illuminating the night. From 虞美人草[Gubijinsō](The Field Poppy; Papaver rhoeas) by 夏目 漱石[Natsume Sōseki](Novelist, 1867-1916) Source: https://dl.ndl.go.jp/pid/1883210/1/123

[konjaku]

山百合[Yamayuri] Lilium auratum

It produces the largest flowers among lilies in our country. Some have a diameter exceeding twenty centimeters. And, it emits a strong fragrance.

Now, I will share 第一夜[Dai ichi-ya](The first night) from the short story collection 夢十夜[Yume jū-ya](Ten nights of dreams) by 夏目 漱石[Natsume Sōseki](Novelist, 1867-1916). For convenience, I splited it into four parts. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ten_Nights_of_Dreams

こんな夢を見た。 腕組をして枕元に坐つて居ると、仰向に寢た女が、靜かな聲でもう死にますと云ふ。女は長い髮を枕に敷いて、輪郭の柔らかな瓜實顏を其の中に橫たへてゐる。眞白な頬の底に溫かい血の色を(が)程よく差して、唇の色は無論赤い。到底死にさうには見えない。然し女は靜かな聲で、もう死にますと判然云つた。自分も確にこれは死ぬなと思つた。そこで、さうかね、もう死ぬのかね、と上から覗き込󠄁む樣にして聞いて見た。死にますとも、と云ひながら、女はぱつちりと眼を開けた。大きな潤のある眼で、長い睫に包まれた中は、只一面に眞黑であつた。その眞黑な眸の奧に、自分の姿が鮮に浮かんでゐる。 自分は透き徹る程深く見える此の黑眼の色澤を眺めて、是でも死ぬのかと思つた。それで、ねんごろに枕の傍へ口を付けて、死ぬんぢやなからうね、大丈夫だらうね、と又聞き返した。すると女は黑い眼を眠さうに睜た儘、矢張り靜かな聲で、でも、死ぬんですもの、仕方がないわと云つた。 ぢや、私の顏が見えるかいと一心に聞くと、見えるかいつて、そら、そこに、寫つてるぢやありませんかと、にこりと笑つて見せた。自分は默つて、顏を枕から離した。腕組をしながら、どうしても死ぬのかなと思つた。

[Konna yume wo mita. Udegumi wo shite makuramoto ni suwatte iru to, aomuki ni neta onna ga, shizukana koe de "Mō shinimasu" to iu. Onna wa nagai kami wo makura ni shiite, rinkaku no yawarakana urizanegao wo sono naka ni yokotaete iru. Masshirona hoho no soko ni atatakai chi no iro wo hodoyoku sashite, kuchibiru no iro wa muron akai. Tōtei shinisō niwa mienai. Shikashi onna wa shizukana koe de, "Mō shinimasu" to hakkiri itta. Jibun mo "Tashikani kore wa shinu na" to omotta. Sokode, "Sōkane, mō shinunokane" to ue kara nozokikomu yōni shite kiite mita. "Shinimasu tomo," to iinagara, onna wa patchirito me wo aketa. Ookina uruoi no aru me de, nagai matsuge ni tsutsumareta naka wa, tada ichimen ni makkuro deatta. Sono makkurona hitomi no oku ni, jibun no sugata ga azayakani ukande iru. Jibun wa sukitooru hodo fukaku mieru kono kurome no tsuya wo nagamete, "Kore demo shinuno ka?" to omotta. Sorede, nengoroni makura no soba e kuchi wo tsukete, "Shinunja nakarō ne? Daijōbu darō ne?" to mata kiki-kaeshita. Suruto onna wa kuroi me wo nemusōni mihatta mama, yappari shizukana koe de, "Demo, shinundesu mono, shikata ga nai wa" to itta. "ja, watashi no kao ga mieru kai?" to isshinni kiku to, "Mieru kai, tte sora, soko ni, utsutte iru ja arimasen ka" to, nikorito waratte miseta. Jibun wa damatte, kao wo makura kara hanashita. Udegumi wo shinagara, "Dōshitemo shinuno kana?" to omotta.]

I had a dream that goes as follows. As I was sitting with my arms crossed by the pillow (of the bed), the woman lying on her back there said in a quiet voice, "I'm going to die soon." She lays her long hair on the pillow, and her oval face with soft outline lays among it. Her white cheeks have a warm, healthy flush, and naturally, her lips are red. She doesn't look like she is about to die at all. Yet, she clearly said in a quiet voice, "I'm going to die soon." I, too, thought, "Indeed, she is going to die." So, I looked down at her above and asked, "Is that true? Are you really going to die soon?" As she said, "I'm definitely going to die," opened her eyes wide. Inside those large, moist eyes, surrounded by long eyelashes, everything was pitch black. Deep in those pitch black eyes, my own reflection is flowing vividly. Looking at the sheen of these black eyes, which seems so deep they are almost transparent, I wondered, "Is she really going to die?" So I leaned close to her pillow and asked again, "You're not going to die, are you? You'll be okay, right?" Then, keeping those black eyes half-open as if she were sleepy, said in the same quiet voice, "But I'm going to die. It's inevitable." "So, can you see my face?" I asked wholeheartedly. "Can I see it? Well, look, you are clearly reflected right there," she said and showed me her smile. Without saying a word, I pulled my face away from the pillow. With my arm crossed, I wondered, "Is she really going to die for sure?"

しばらくして、女が又かう云つた。 「死んだら、埋めて下さい。大きな眞珠貝で穴を掘つて。さうして天から落ちて來る星の破片を墓標に置いて下さい。さうして墓の傍に待つてゐて下さい。又逢ひに來ますから」 自分は、何時逢ひに來るかねと聞いた。 「日が出るでせう。それから日が沈むでせう。それから又出るでせう、そうして又沈むでせう。――赤い日が東から西へ、東から西へと落ちて行くうちに、――あなた、待つてゐられますか」 自分は默つて首肯た。女は靜かな調子を一段張り上げて、 「百年待つてゐて下さい」と思ひ切た聲で云つた。 「百年、私の墓の傍に坐つて待つてゐて下さい。屹度逢ひに來ますから」 自分は只待つていると答えた。すると、黑い眸のなかに鮮に見えた自分の姿が、ぼうつと崩れて來た。靜かな水が動いて寫る影を亂した樣に、流れ出したと思つたら、女の眼がぱちりと閉ぢた。長い睫の間から淚が頬へ垂れた。――もう死んで居た。

[Shibaraku shite, onna ga mata kō itta. "Shindara, umete kudasai. Ookina shinjugai de ana wo hotte. Sōshite ten kara ochite kuru hoshi no kake wo hakajirushi ni oite kudasai. Sōshite haka no soba ni matte ite kudasai. Mata ai ni kimasu kara" Jibun wa, "Itsu ai ni kuru kane?" to kiita. "Hi ga deru deshō. Sorekara hi ga shizumu deshō. Sorekara mata deru deshō, sōshite mata shizumu deshō. ―― Akai hi ga higashi kara nishi e, higashi kara nishi eto ochite yuku uchi ni, ―― anata, matte iraremasu ka?" Jibun wa damatte unazuita. Onna wa shizukana chōshi wo ichidan hariagete, "Hyaku-nen matte ite kudasai" to omoikitta koe de itta. "Hyaku-nen, watakushi no haka no soba ni suwatte matte ite kudasai. Kitto ai ni kimasu kara" Jibun wa tada "Matte iru" to kotaeta. Suruto, kuroi hitomi no naka ni azayakani mieta jibun no sugata ga, bōtto kuzurete kita. Shizukana mizu ga ugoite utsuru kage wo midashita yōni, nagare-dashita to omottara, onna no me ga pachirito tojida. Nagai matsuge no aida kara namida ga hoho e tareta. ―― Mō shinde ita.]

A little while later, again, she said. "When I die, please bury me. Dig a hole with a large pearl oyster shell. Then, place a fragment of a star falling from the sky on its top as a gravestone. And please wait by that grave. I'll come to see you again." I asked, "When will you come to see me?" "The sun will rise. Then the sun will set. Then it will rise again, and it will set again. ―― As the red sun sinks from east to west, from east to west, ―― can you keep waiting for me all that time?" I nodded without saying a word. Raising her usually quiet tone even higher, she said in a resolute voice, "Please wait for me for a hundred years." "Please wait for me sitting by my grave for a hundred years. I will definitely come to see you." I replied simply, "I'll wait." Then, my own image, which had been vividly reflected in her black eyes, began to blur and lose that shape. It was as if still water had stirred, disturbing the reflection of the object on its surface, and just as I thought my own image was beginning to flow away, her eyes shut. From between her long eyelashes, a tear trickled down her cheek. ―― She was already dead.

自分は夫れから庭へ下りて、眞珠貝で穴を掘つた。眞珠貝は大きな滑かな緣の銳どい貝であつた。土をすくふ度に、貝の裏に月の光が差してきら／＼した。濕つた土の匂もした。穴はしばらくして掘れた。女を其の中へ入れた。さうして柔らかい土を、上からそつと掛けた。掛ける每に眞珠貝の裏に月の光が差した。 それから星の破片の落ちたのを拾つて來て、かろく土の上へ乘せた。星の破片は丸かつた。長い間大空を落ちてゐる間に、角が取れて滑かになつたんだらうと思つた。抱き上げて土の上へ置くうちに、自分の胸と手が少し暖くなつた。 自分は苔の上に坐つた。是から百年の間かうして待つてゐるんだなと考へながら、腕組をして、丸い墓石を眺めてゐた。そのうちに、女の云つた通り日が東から出た。大きな赤い日であつた。それが又女の云つた通り、やがて西へ落ちた。赤いまんまでのつと落ちて行つた。一つと自分は勘定した。 しばらくすると又唐紅の天道がのそりと上つて來た。さうして默つて沈んで仕舞つた。二つと又勘定した。

[Jibun wa sorekara niwa e orite, shinjugai de ana wo hotta. Shinjugai wa ookina namerakana fuchi no surudoi kai deatta. Tsuchi wo sukuu tabi ni, kai no urani tsuki no hikari ga sashite kira-kira shita. Shimetta tsuchi no nioi mo shita. Ana wa shibaraku shite horeta. Onna wo sono naka e ireta. Sōshite yawarakai tsuchi wo, ue kara sotto kaketa. Kakeru tabi ni shinjugai no ura ni tsuki no hikari ga sashita. Sorekara hoshi no kake no ochita nowo hirotte kite, karoku tsuchi no ue e noseta. Hoshi no kake wa marukatta. Nagai aida oozora wo ochite iru ma ni, kado ga torete namerakani nattandarō to omotta. Dakiagete tsuchi no ue e oku uchi ni, jibun no mune to te ga sukoshi atatakaku natta. Jibun wa koke no ue ni suwatta. "Korekara hyaku-nen no aida kōshite matte irundana" to kangae nagara, udegumi wo shite, marui hakaishi wo nagamete ita. Sonouchi ni, onna no itta toori hi ga higashi kara deta. Ookina akai hi deatta. Sore ga mata onna no itta toori, yagate nishi e ochita. Akai manma de not'to ochite itta. "Hitotsu" to jibun wa kanjō shita. Shibaraku suruto mata karakurenai no tentō ga nosorito nobotte kita. Sōshite damatte shizunde shimatta. "Futatsu" to mata kanjō shita.]

After that, I went down to the garden and dug a hole with a pearl oyster shell. The pearl oyster shell was large, smooth, and had sharp edges. Every time I scooped up soil with it, moonlight shone on the underside of the shell, making it glitter. I could also smell the damp soil. After a while, I was able to finish digging the hole. I placed her inside. And, I gently covered her with soft soil. Everytime I covered the soil, moonlight shone on the underside of the pearl oyster shell. Then, I picked up a fallen fragment of a star and gently put it on the soil. The star fragment was spherical. I thought that its edges must have been smoothed out while it was falling through the firmament for a long time. As I held it up in my arms and placed it on the soil, my chest and hands became slightly warm. I sat down on the moss. With my arms crossed, I gazed at the spherical gravestone, thinking, "So this is how I'll be waiting here from now on for the next hundred years." Before long, just as she had said, the sun rose from the east. It was a large, red sun. And just as she had said, the it eventually fell in the west. it remained red was falling like "Not"(silently and heavily; onomatopoeia). I counted, "One." After a while, another crimson sun slowly rose again. And it sank quietly. I counted, "Two."

自分はかう云ふ風に一つ二つと勘定して行くうちに、赤い日をいくつ見たか分らない。勘定しても、勘定しても、しつくせない程赤い日が頭の上を通り越して行つた。それでも百年がまだ來ない。仕舞には、苔の生えた丸い石を眺めて、自分は女に欺されたのではなからうかと思ひ出した。 すると石の下から斜に自分の方へ向いて靑い莖が伸びて來た。見る間に長くなつて丁度自分の胸のあたり迄來て留まつた。と思ふと、すらりと搖ぐ莖の頂に、心持首を傾けてゐた細長い一輪の蕾が、ふつくらと瓣を開いた。眞白な百合が鼻の先で骨に徹へる程匂つた。そこへ遥の上から、ぽたりと露が落ちたので、花は自分の重みでふら／＼と動いた。自分は首を前へ出して冷たい露の滴る、白い花瓣に接吻した。自分が百合から顏を離す拍子に思はず、遠い空を見たら、曉の星がたつた一つ瞬いてゐた。 「百年はもう來ていたんだな」と此の時始めて氣が付いた。

[Jibun wa kōiu fū ni "Hitotsu, futatsu" to kanjō shite yuku uchi ni, akai hi wo ikutsu mitaka wakaranai. Kanjō shitemo, kanjō shitemo, shitsukusenai hodo akai hi ga atama no ue wo toorikoshite itta. Soredemo hyaku-nen ga mada konai. Shimai niwa, koke no haeta marui ishi wo nagamete, "Jibun wa onna ni damasareta nodewa nakarōka" to omoi dashita. Suruto ishi no shita kara hasu ni jibun no hō e muite aoi kuki ga nobite kita. Mirumani nagaku natte chōdo jibu no mune no atari made kite tomatta. To omouto, surarito yuragu kuki no itadaki ni, kokoromochi kubi wo katamukete ita hosonagai ichirin no tsubomi ga, fukkurato hanabira wo hiraita. Masshirona yuri ga hana no saki de hone ni kotaeru hodo niotta. Soko e haruka no ue kara, potari to tsuyu ga ochita node, hana wa jibun no omoimi de fura-furato ugoita. Jibun wa kubi wo mae e dashite tsumetai tsuyu no shitataru, shiroi hanabira ni seppun shita. Jibun ga yuri kara kao wo hanasu hyōshi ni omowazu, tooi sora wo mitara, akatsuki no hoshi ga tatta hitotsu matataite ita. "Hyaku-nen wa mō kite itanda na" to kono toki hajimete ki ga tsuita.]

As I continued counting like this, "one, two", I lost track of how many red suns I had seen. So many red suns passed over my head that no matter how much I counted, I could never keep up. But, those hundred years haven't come yet. Last of all, as I gazed at the round moss-covered stone, I began to wonder, "Was I tricked by her?" Then, a green stem began to grow toward me from under the stone. Before my very eyes, it grew longer and stopped just at my chest. The moment thought that, at the tip of the gracefully swaying stem, a single slender bud, which had been tilting its head slightly, plumply unfurled its petals. The fragrance of that pure white lily was so strong right under my nose that I could feel it in my (nasal) bone. At that moment, a dew drop fell from far above, causing the flower to sway unsteadily under its own weight. I leaned my head forward and kissed the white petal from which the cold dew was dripping. As I pulled my face away from the lily, I happened to look up at the distant sky and saw a single twinkling star of the dawn. It was only then that I realized, "That hundred years had already come." Source: https://dl.ndl.go.jp/pid/14462762/1/16

[konjaku]

紫酢漿草|紫片喰[Murasakikatabami] Oxalis debilis

紫[Murasaki] : Purple

酢漿草|片喰[Katabami] : Wood sorrel, O. corniculata

One afternoon of a few days ago, as I rode my motorcycle down a narrow mountain path, noticed a few small vivid reddish-purple flowers blooming in the shade of the forest, just before reaching the hamlet at the foot of the mountain. Amid the deep greenery, those flowers blooming in the dappled sunlight looked beautiful despite their small size, so I got closer to take a look, I realized they were Murasakikatabami. Some of them growing in that hamlet were likely carried there and sprouted. I posted about this species earlier this month, but they were impressive, so posted it again.

Because plants of the genus Oxalis grow vigorously and are difficult to eradicate, the crest 片喰紋[Katabami-mon], designed with those leaves as its motif, is one of the ten major family crests. https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/家紋の一覧

By the way, Yagyū clan, a feudal lordo family that served as swordsmanship instructors, had two family crests: 地楡に雀[Waremokō ni suzume](Burnets,Sanguisorba officinalis, with two tree sparrows) and 柳生笠[Yagyū-gasa](Two straw hats). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yukiko_Nikaido https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yv2iIoYlH2k

[konjaku]

苗代苺[Nawashiroichigo] Rubus parvifolius

苗代[Nawashiro] : Rice nursery

苺[Ichigo] : 木苺[Kiichigo], raspberry; 野苺[Noichigo], wild strawberry; when simply called as ichigo, it means strawberry

A deciduous creeping shrub. It commonly grows along rice paddy ridges or at the edges of woods. It has hook-like spines.

It seems to have gotten its name because the fruits ripen during the rice seedling bed season, from April to early May, but in the area where I live, they do a little later.

The flower has five pink petals that wrap the stamens and do not open, but it is charming in its own way. The fruit is about one centimeter in diameter. It is slightly sweet and slightly tart.

木苺や 山紫陽花の 咲くほとり

[Kiichigo ya yamaajisai no saku hotori] Kiichigo is ripening around Yamaajisai(Hydrangea serrata) in bloom By 河東 碧梧桐[Kawahigashi Hekigotō](Haiku poet, 1873-1937)

[konjaku]

額紫陽花[Gakuajisai] Hydrangea macrophylla f. normalis

I guess this is a cultivar 隅田の花火[Sumidanohanabi](Fireworks on the Sumida river), but there are similar ones among other cultivars, so I am not confident in my identification.

Ajisai is also called as 七変化[Shichi-henge](lit. seven shapeshiftings) because the color of its flowers changes to seven different colors depending on the environment. This Shichi-henge derives from one of the techniques of Kabuki. It refers to the act that the actor quickly changes his costumes seven times. And, when 変化 is read as henka, it means change or transformation; if read as henge, it means shapeshifting or apparition. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yōkai#Types

Ajisai looks wonderful in the rain. Compared to Yamaajisai(H. serrata), Gakuajisai grows near the sea, and thrives relatively well even in direct sunlight, yet the flowers blooming in the rain still seem happy and exude a sense of calm.

The rainy season before summer has not ended yet in the Kantō region where I live, but it should be over soon. It has already ended in the western regions. With that season, the peak blooming season for flowers of Ajisai is also drawing to a close.

By the way, people say that today, 7月16日[Shichi-gatsu jūroku-nichi](July 16), is The Seven Colors Day because 7(nana), 1(i, from ichi) and 6(ro, from roku) sound like Nana-iro(seven colors). And, in Kyoto in the Kinki region(Osaka, Kōbe, etc.), the Yoiyama festivities of the Gion Matsuri are held. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pM_qs2JMHFI

[konjaku]

大葉蛇の鬚[Oobajanohige] Ophiopogon planiscapus

大葉[Ooba] : Large leaf

蛇[Ja] : Snake

鬚[Hige] : beard; 髭[Hige], whisker

The stems, leaves, and flowers are all thicker than those of Janohige(O. japonicus). The flower is less than one centimeter in diameter.

Janohige was formerly called 尉の鬚. It is because its leaves looks like the beard of 尉[Jō](Elderly man) Noh mask. This name was corrupted into 蛇の鬚 and 竜の鬚. 竜|龍[Ryū] means dragon. But since snakes do not have whiskers, I think Ryūnohige alone is better.

In the Anime My Neighbor Totoro, Satsuki and Mei received Donguri(acorns), wrapped in Sasa(bamboo leaves, Sasa veitchii) and tied with Ryūnohige, from Totoro, and I imagined if the leaves of Oobajanohige were used because they are sturdier and longer than those of Janohige.

Now, this is a continuation from yesterday's post.

One rainy day, something smelly and filthy came into the bathhouse. The main character girl and the elder girl who took care of her tried to wash it, then, they discovered it was a giant dragon, which was thought to be the lord of some great river. It was wearing a smiling Jō mask.

Smiling Jō masks are a symbol of happiness. The wrinkles on a person's face reflect the way they have lived their life. The smiling Jō masks capture the expression on the face of a man who lived his life with a constant smile, even amid battle and hard labor, as he neared the end of his life.

It turned pure white and flew off into the sky. However, I felt something was off about its appearance. Considering a dragon, its hands and legs were short and its body was rather stocky. I imagined it like this, perhaps, the great river where that dragon lived had been dammed and its banks reinforced, forcing it to live in cramped conditions.

It has long been believed that the spirits of dragons and snakes dwell in the water, such as rivers and marshes.

The main character girl and the dragon boy came to the bank of a place with no water. That was the place where a river was once planned to be built. Was this drying up a natural phenomenon, or did someone, fearing that he, who had remembered his real name, might draw energy from the water and take some kind of action driven by the strong feelings he harbored in his heart, turned it off? Either way, it had not become a river yet. Perhaps, could it...?

When they parted, he said, "Don't look back until you've exited the tunnel," and was watching her went away. Part of the reason was probably that he did not want her to see the kinds of places she had been and the kinds of creatures she had lived and eaten with up until then. And, there is one other thing that comes to mind.

In Arashiyama, west of Kyoto, there is a bridge called 渡月橋[Togetsu-kyō] across the Ooigawa river. According to legend, children who have received wisdom at a temple on the opposite bank will lose that wisdom if they look back before crossing the bridge. Could it be that the wisdom and experience she gained while living in that world would not be lost, was also reflected in this legend. https://maps.app.goo.gl/xEcn3MKjByLdJd867

It is often said that this film also depicts elements that evoke death. What strongly evokes that image is a lot of chicks in taking a bath. It is thought that they are all males, who do not lay eggs. And, about the fat raddish with a Sakazuki(sake-cup) hat and an Etchū-fundoshi, I would mention it some other time.

These are, after all, just my personal reaction to the movie.

[konjaku]

田代蘭[Tashiroran] Epipogium roseum

田代[Tashiro] : Family name

蘭[Ran] : Orchid, Orchidaceae

While taking a walk through the forest after the rain, I found many Tashiroran growing among wet fallen leaves. These in the photo are some of them. Bathed in the soft sunlight filtering through the trees, I saw several faint, white shapes, so went closer to take a look, and these were what I found. Since they lack chloroplasts, they are white, and light seems to shine through their translucent parts, such as the petals.

The plants grow to a height about twenty to forty centimeters, and some apparently grow even taller. A few days after the flowers finish blooming, the entire plant turns brown, then eventually withers and disappears. That might be the reason why it is called "Ghost orchid" in English.

In the natural world, there are many things, like this plant, that eventually disappear, and there are likely countless other things we know nothing about.

Now, this is a continuation from yesterday's post.

Also in that movie, there appear many translucent people and human-like, yet mysterious beings. They were all outside the public bathhouse. When the main character young girl found herself lost in this world, her body had begun to turn translucent, and she was saved by the dragon boy.

The witch, the owner of the bathhouse, was a twin and had an elder sister. She did not get along with her younger sister, and lived a quiet life in a place far away. It is thought that she controlled the vast area surrounding the bathhouse, and those translucent people and beings were in that area. She left them be, as if to say that whether they lived or vanished was entirely up to them.

When the main character girl was on the train on the way to meet her, a lot of neon signs of entertainment districts glowed over the twilight sea. That area, too, was likely under her control. The elderly man who operated the bath boiler had several old, partially train tickets. A long time ago, he might have used it to go somewhere. Somewhere.

He said that trains these days run only in one direction. It was probably because many people sought freedom rather than a life where they had no worries about food, clothing, or shelter, but were confined.

On the blue night, the white fox girl said, "Someday, I'll definitely go to that town." It must also have been somewhere within the area the sister witch controled. Even if the girl went there or somewhere else, there was no guarantee the situation would improve or she might disappear. Even so, I suppose she wanted a place where she could express her abilities more freely, even if it meant taking a risk.

On the platform of a small station at dusk, a little girl, looking like a shadow, was standing alone, waiting for someone to come back. There was a life there, too. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qSNi0kYQH8Q

[konjaku]

狐の牡丹[Kitsunenobotan] Ranunculus silerifolius

狐[Kitsune] : Fox

牡丹[Botan] : Tree peony(Paeonia suffruticosa)

Continuing from the previous post.

There is an elder girl who, unlike other workers, does not look down on the main character young girl and becomes her ally and looks out for the young girl. According to the setting, the elder girl is supposed to be a white fox, but that is not all that important to the story. What is more important here is that highly capable young person, while feeling unfulfilled among her less capable superiors and seniors, fail to realize, because of her youth, that she is being recognized by those with a discerning eye.

She was assigned to work on the largest bathtub with the young girl. She complained to her superior that she had been assigned to the wrong task, but she still did her job diligently. Later, when she and the young girl cleaned up a guest who was in a terrible state of filth and distress, she looked dissatisfied because only the young girl was evaluated for it.

Throughout the story, her efficiency can be seen. When she sprinkled Konpeitō candy evenly. When she quickly flipped over her attendance wooden tag. When she quickly tied the rope in hot water of the bathtab. And, when she took the young girl to the station. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Konpeitō

The boat she was rowing is called 盥舟[Tarai-bune](Washbasin boat). Originally a washbasin, it has a very flat cylindrical shape, so not only is the bottom flat, but it also has no prow. That is why people say it is quite difficult to row it the way the rower wants. Yet she did it with ease. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tarai-bune

One night, as she ate a manjū and gazed at the moonlit blue night sky and the lights of the town across the sea, she told the young girl, "Someday, I'll definitely go to that town. I'm going to quit this lousy place!" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manjū

However, she was able to go to the upper floors of the building. She could even go to the boiler room, which could be called the heart of the building, and speak directly to the elderly man who operated it. I think these are evidence that she was allowed a great deal of freedom. That is how much the witch, the owner of this building, trusted her. But, she does not realize that.

Now, since ancient times, Kitsune has been regarded as a creature with a mysterious side. Some plants with that name also evoke a sense of mystery. This Kitsunenobotan is one such plant. When the young girl and her parents went through the tunnel and returned to their original world, there were many flowers that looked very much like Wasuregusa(Hemerocallis) by the tunnel and their car. I think those were probably 狐の剃刀[Kitsunenokamisori](lit. fox's razor, Lycoris sanguinea), not Wasuregusa. The members of Lycoris, including 彼岸花[Higanbana](Spider lily, L. radiata), also has a mysterious air about them. Both Lycoris and Kitsunenobotan, which belongs to the family Ranunculaceae, are poisonous.

Incidentally, people sometimes talk about how the color and material of the tunnel seems to have changed between when the young girl and her parents entered and when they returned. But, the plot of "they were already unde a spell by that time" was sometimes seein in stories since long ago. So, when did that happen for them? It was probably around the time they passed by the area where the small stone shrines that had been enshrined here and there had been abandoned en masse to make way for the land development. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=if4nuougNdg