More than three decades have passed since I visited Kinkakuji (金閣寺) last time.
This temple left a vivid image on my mind in a positive and negative way; I mean
that it was beautiful enough, bright and elegant, for please my eye, and at the same time it looked too shinny and flamboyant.
So, I wanted to see it again on a snowy day, in dim light.
However, it was a fine day when my husband invited me to go out, to go to Kyoto for example,
and I said to him, "How about to visit Kinkakuji?, despite myself.
Kinkakuji was there as it used to be, as if it will never be weathered.
It was more than fifteen years ago that I reread the novel, "Kinkakuji",「金閣寺」,
by Yukio Mishima.(三島由紀夫)
In the novel a young monk struggling with his ideal image of Kinkakuji
feels pressure from becoming a priest as well as from the existence of the temple.
Trying hard to overcome his own complex and to give his life for the temple, he failed
about them and ended up to determine arson on the temple for being free from his
ideal beauty.
This novel is based on the fact that Kinkakuji was set fire to by a student in 1950.
Five years later it was rebuilt and restored the structure that was arranged under
Shogunate Ashikaga in 14c.
Recently I read a tanka book including following one.
The contemporary tanka poet, Meiko Matsudaira, divorced and moved to France.
Then she released energetically some of her tanka poems that described her new life with her lover.
In the book we are also able to find some tanka poems regarding to her son and daughter whom Meiko had to leave.
They turn up in her dream repeatedly.
In her dream the stained glass window called rosette falls down more than once as well.
How the collapse of the symbol of the beauty and virtue works in the depth of her mind,
I wonder.
I wonder.
仰ぐとき薔薇窓の薔薇いっせいに崩落したりいくたびの夢 松平 盟子(1954~)
Looking up at the Cathedrale
and when I see the petals of glass
The rose of the rosette
starts to scatter over me,
I'm watching it again in my dream
Meiko Matsudaira
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| Rosette de Notre Dame from Website |
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| early and tiny bloom of cherry blossoms was seen near Kinkakuji |
22 件のコメント:
What a lovely place and a lovely post -- not to mention the intro' to a fascinating book. Thank you so much for this.
金閣寺を最後に訪れたのはいつだったのかさえ覚えていませんが、久しぶりに訪ねられていかがでしたか？三島由紀夫や水上勉の小説でもあまりに有名ですが、なぜか行きそびれていて・・・
「薔薇窓の薔薇いっせいに崩落したり」イメージがスローモーションの映像のように浮かびます。かなり強烈な印象ですね。
寒桜が美しいです。
Dave
Thank you very much!
The structure looked simpler than I imagined from my last visit, and it was shinning in early spring sun light.
cosmos
そう、あまりにも有名でかえって足が遠のきますよね。風邪や体調不良で籠っていたので、暖かな日に出歩くことが嬉しくて、金閣寺も思っていたよりすっきりした構造のお寺なんだと思いました。でもやはり少し派手かな？
松平さんの歌は、散った桜でも「石灰の匂いを立てて、、、」と詠むなどはっとさせられます。
Hello, haricot.
Your heartwarming works fascinates my heart.
Thank you for your kindness and support.
And i pray for you and yours peace.
Have a good week-end. ruma❃
こんにちわ。
金閣寺には随分前の夏に行きました。
とても暑かったことだけを鮮明に覚えています。
写真を撮るのさえ忘れるほどに・・・。
Such an interesting post about “beauty”, “destruction/collapse”, and human mind!
I share the same feeling about Kinkaku-ji with you, haricot. When I was a student, Kinkaku-ji was not the kind of temple that I liked for its extravagance of gold leaf over lacquer. But when I visited last year with my friend with the thought Kinkakuji would be one of must-sees in Japan for foreigners, I felt it so beautiful in the late afternoon glow and maybe with special emotion.
Since I read Mishima’s Kinkakuji right after his ritual suicide at SDF, I associated his idea of “beauty” and “death” with the beautiful Kinkakuji and its destruction though things in the novel is not such simple to me.
Magia
Thank you ! Felicitation!
ruma
Thank you for visiting. Hava a good weekend for you, too!
今、この一瞬を
夏の盛りの京都は暑いですよね。奈良もそうですが。コメントありがとうございます。
stardust
On that day I saw many foreigners who were enjoying sightseeing in Kyoto and at the Kinkakuji.
You spent a special moments with your friend, I suppose.
"though things in the novel is not such simple to me", I understand what you mention. I reread the novel because it was difficult to understand the main characters' acts and motives.
Not yet completely understood though...
That must have been interesting to revisit Kinkakuji after so many years. I wonder if Mishima's novel affected how you saw it. I followed your link and read about him--what a fascinating complex man and look into history.
The image of the falling petals of the rosettes is haunting.
Jen
I had different impression from that I felt when I visited there before. I don't know it's because my age or any other condition.
As you mention Mishima is a fascinating complex man even being aside from his political aspect.
Thank you for your thoughtful comment as usual.
こんばんわ。
近くても中々行けませんね。私はまだ一度も実際に見たことがないんです。私が行く生駒の美容院でカットをしてくれる美容師さんはとてもカメラが好きなのです。金閣寺を撮る時の場所は一か所だけだと言っておられました。そうなんですか？
私もいつか行ってみたいです。
しばらくパソコンから離れてまして遅い訪問になりました。Have a good day.
Tomoko
Red Rose
金閣寺を撮る場所ですが、確かにパンフレットなどでは松が邪魔することもなく撮られているので、その角度なのでしょうね。松は気になりつつも写してしまっってますが。
きっとtomokoさんが撮られると魅力的な金閣寺になると思いますよ。
まさに三寒四温ですね。お体に気をつけて。
金閣寺は最後に行ったのは、多分１０年位前です。平野神社の桜を見に行った後いきました。わびさびの銀閣寺に比べると華やかで金箔もたくさん使ってるのでしょうね。
また、いつか雪の日の金閣寺もみせて下さい。
Have a nice day!
sarah
平野神社は桜の種類が多いのですね。奇麗でしょうね。
朝は雪が積もっている日もすぐに溶けだすので、よほど早起きしないと撮れないのが難点。
ステンドグラス崩落と金閣寺炎上は驚くほどイメージが似ていますね。Haricotさん、さすがです！！
「金閣寺」若いときに読みましたが、三島由紀夫の小説はどれも難解ですね。滅びを見てしまうのは究極の愛なのでしょうか？
snowwhite
ネガティブなポストだったかなと思っていましたが、崩落と炎上のイメージの繋がりを良い方に解釈していただいて嬉しいです。
小説も寺社も、年齢や経験で少しづつ読み方見方が変わるのが面白いですね。
What a beautiful poem. I like the idea of the petals being the same as broken glass, two contrasting images. I think that the restored temple sounds like something unreal. Perhaps you can think of it as a concept. You cannot give something age if it is not old, but the concept of the temple is old, even though its physical structure was destroyed by fire.
絵葉書の金閣寺は思い出せませんけど、Haricotさんの金閣寺好きです。特に３番目の金閣寺をバックにして松が池に映ってるのは趣があると思います！
今年は桜の開花も早いそうです。楽しみですね。では又！
Tomoko
Jenny
Thank you! Your comment made me rethink about the temple itself and how I saw the restored one.
By the way cherry blossoms are of rose family. The precocious blossoms will start to scatter sooner.
Red Rose
Thank you very much, Tomoko san.
Lovely pictures...
Best regards from France,
Pierre
Pierre
Thank you for your stopping by.
Have a nice week!
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