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El gran espejo del amor entre hombres: Historias de samuráis
Colección de veinte episodios protagonizados por quienes decidieron recorrer el camino del nanshoku o «vía del amor viril», una senda que en el Japón antiguo y premoderno era tolerada y respetada. En sus páginas conviven la pasión y los juramentos de devoción eterna con violentos duelos de honor y venganzas sangrientas. Sacrificio y tragedia, elegancia y belleza aderezan estos relatos de amores ejemplares y heroicos que exaltan las principales virtudes del samurái: la lealtad, la sinceridad de corazón y la renuncia a la propia vida, y que Ihara Saikaku narra con pluma exquisita y sutil. Un esclarecedor prólogo, con las claves de comprensión del contexto social y cultural de la homosexualidad en el Japón del siglo XVII, y más de 20 grabados de la época, aportan una valiosa riqueza documental a esta obra, imprescindible para los interesados en la cultura japonesa y en el tratamiento universal del amor.
312 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 2013
About the author
Saikaku Ihara
81 books53 followersSaikaku Ihara (井原 西鶴) was a Japanese poet and creator of the "floating world" genre of Japanese prose (ukiyo-zōshi).
Born the son of the wealthy merchant Hirayama Tōgo (平山藤五) in Osaka, he first studied haikai poetry under Matsunaga Teitoku, and later studied under Nishiyama Sōin of the Danrin School of poetry, which emphasized comic linked verse. Scholars have described numerous extraordinary feats of solo haikai composition at one sitting; most famously, over the course of a single day and night in 1677, Saikaku is reported to have composed at least 16,000 haikai stanzas, with some rumors placing the number at over 23,500 stanzas.
Later in life he began writing racy accounts of the financial and amorous affairs of the merchant class and the demimonde. These stories catered to the whims of the newly prominent merchant class, whose tastes of entertainment leaned toward the arts and pleasure districts.
Born the son of the wealthy merchant Hirayama Tōgo (平山藤五) in Osaka, he first studied haikai poetry under Matsunaga Teitoku, and later studied under Nishiyama Sōin of the Danrin School of poetry, which emphasized comic linked verse. Scholars have described numerous extraordinary feats of solo haikai composition at one sitting; most famously, over the course of a single day and night in 1677, Saikaku is reported to have composed at least 16,000 haikai stanzas, with some rumors placing the number at over 23,500 stanzas.
Later in life he began writing racy accounts of the financial and amorous affairs of the merchant class and the demimonde. These stories catered to the whims of the newly prominent merchant class, whose tastes of entertainment leaned toward the arts and pleasure districts.
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May 3, 2020
An important historical gem.
Published in 1687 in Japan, "Comrade Loves of the Samurai" is a collection of thirteen stories centered around the theme of homosexual love among samurai, or among pages or court boys on their way of becoming a samurai and another samurai. In medieval Japan it was permitted and quite encouraged for the sons of samurai families to form homosexual alliances while youth lasted. These alliances ranged from highly platonic to sensual, passionate love.
However, don't come here expecting happy-go-lucky gay samurai love stories. I have rarely read a Japanese story that did not end in some kind of tragedy. This is the nation that raised suicide via hara-kiri/seppuku to the level of art, after all.
And speaking about hara-kiri, here is the total body count at the end of the 13 stories:
- Death of an MC by heartbreak: 1
- Death of an MC by hara-kiri or suicide: 7
- Death of an MC by murder: 2
Stories that end in HEA: 3
Enjoy :)
Published in 1687 in Japan, "Comrade Loves of the Samurai" is a collection of thirteen stories centered around the theme of homosexual love among samurai, or among pages or court boys on their way of becoming a samurai and another samurai. In medieval Japan it was permitted and quite encouraged for the sons of samurai families to form homosexual alliances while youth lasted. These alliances ranged from highly platonic to sensual, passionate love.
However, don't come here expecting happy-go-lucky gay samurai love stories. I have rarely read a Japanese story that did not end in some kind of tragedy. This is the nation that raised suicide via hara-kiri/seppuku to the level of art, after all.
And speaking about hara-kiri, here is the total body count at the end of the 13 stories:
- Death of an MC by heartbreak: 1
- Death of an MC by hara-kiri or suicide: 7
- Death of an MC by murder: 2
Stories that end in HEA: 3
Enjoy :)
February 25, 2016
Japonya'da savaşların son bulduğu Tokugawa Dönemi'nde(1603-1867) edebiyatta hafif bir geçişle değişikler yaşanmiştır. Öncelikle gelenekselliğe bir dönüş ve Konfüçyusçu bir anlayış hakim olmaya başlamıştır. Bu dönemin edebiyatında cinsel hikayelerin anlatımında bir rahatlama yaşandığı ve gerçeklikten doğan cinsel öykülerin yazıya aktarıldığı bilinmekte. Hatta erotik manganın ilk örneklerininde bu dönemde ortaya koyulduğu iddia ediliyor.
Bu dönemin içinde İhara Saikaku meydana çıkıyor. 1650'li yıllardan sonra yazmaya başlayan yazar günümüze ulaşan kült şair ve yazarlardan. Ancak o yıllarda yazınsal eser vermenin adabı günümüzdeki gibi değil elbette. Daha çok salt gerçekçi olan bu kitaplar, olanı aktarma ve kıssadan hisse verme çabası ile kaleme alınmış. Bu kitapta bu noktada önem kazanıyor.
Murathan Mungan kitaba yazdığı önsözde çok açıklayıcı ve güzel noktalara parmak basmış. 13 kısa öykünün olduğu bu kitabın elbette edebi yönü çok kuvvetli değil. Ancak belge tarihçisi bir bakış açısı ile bakıldığında çok önemli. Basitçe bu 13 öyküde samuraylar arasında yer alan eşcinsel aşklar konu alınmış. Aşk sözcüğünü özellikle kullandım zira eserine pornografiği geçin erotik olabilecek tarafı bile yok. Ancak samuray ve aşk sözcüğünü bir arada kullanmak bile oldukça iddialı. Zira samurayların savaşçı grubun en yüksek rütbesindeki, asil ve duygudan sıyrılmış insanları olarak tanımlanmıştır her zaman. Hetero bir aşk bile kendilerine sınırlandırılmışken eşcinsel bir aşk ve kendileri arasındaki bir aşk çok skandal gibi tınlamaktadır. Ancak belgeci bir anlayış ile yazan Saikaku'nun bunları kafasından uydurmadığı tarihi bir gerçektir. Zaten insanı olarak düşünüldüğünde ve tarihi olarak da incelendiğinde samuraylar arasında duygusal, cinsel ilişkilerin olmaması imkansız gibidir. Tapınma imgesi ile güçlenmiş, idealize edilmiş platonik aşklar aslında o dönem ki Japon ruhuna da çok uygundur. Saikuku'nun bu hikayeleri anlatırken, erken dönem batı edebiyatında olduğu gibi eşcinselliği trajik bir şey olarak görmemesi, hatta ailelerin desteklediği bir şey olarak göstermesi; tıpkı Osmanlı'da olan içoğlanlık gibi bir şeydir. Elbette İslam İmparatorluğu olan Osmanlı'dan çok daha ılımlı ve açık yaşanmıştır her şey Japonya'da. Osmanlı'da da olduğu gibi saklı tarih, gizli sosyal hayat çok önemlidir ve tarihin yanıltıcılığının da spesifik olarak en rahat görüldüğü noktalardandır.
Konuyu dağıtmazsam Toguva Döneminin en önemli şaiır ve yazarını okumak elbette güzel.
4/5
Bu dönemin içinde İhara Saikaku meydana çıkıyor. 1650'li yıllardan sonra yazmaya başlayan yazar günümüze ulaşan kült şair ve yazarlardan. Ancak o yıllarda yazınsal eser vermenin adabı günümüzdeki gibi değil elbette. Daha çok salt gerçekçi olan bu kitaplar, olanı aktarma ve kıssadan hisse verme çabası ile kaleme alınmış. Bu kitapta bu noktada önem kazanıyor.
Murathan Mungan kitaba yazdığı önsözde çok açıklayıcı ve güzel noktalara parmak basmış. 13 kısa öykünün olduğu bu kitabın elbette edebi yönü çok kuvvetli değil. Ancak belge tarihçisi bir bakış açısı ile bakıldığında çok önemli. Basitçe bu 13 öyküde samuraylar arasında yer alan eşcinsel aşklar konu alınmış. Aşk sözcüğünü özellikle kullandım zira eserine pornografiği geçin erotik olabilecek tarafı bile yok. Ancak samuray ve aşk sözcüğünü bir arada kullanmak bile oldukça iddialı. Zira samurayların savaşçı grubun en yüksek rütbesindeki, asil ve duygudan sıyrılmış insanları olarak tanımlanmıştır her zaman. Hetero bir aşk bile kendilerine sınırlandırılmışken eşcinsel bir aşk ve kendileri arasındaki bir aşk çok skandal gibi tınlamaktadır. Ancak belgeci bir anlayış ile yazan Saikaku'nun bunları kafasından uydurmadığı tarihi bir gerçektir. Zaten insanı olarak düşünüldüğünde ve tarihi olarak da incelendiğinde samuraylar arasında duygusal, cinsel ilişkilerin olmaması imkansız gibidir. Tapınma imgesi ile güçlenmiş, idealize edilmiş platonik aşklar aslında o dönem ki Japon ruhuna da çok uygundur. Saikuku'nun bu hikayeleri anlatırken, erken dönem batı edebiyatında olduğu gibi eşcinselliği trajik bir şey olarak görmemesi, hatta ailelerin desteklediği bir şey olarak göstermesi; tıpkı Osmanlı'da olan içoğlanlık gibi bir şeydir. Elbette İslam İmparatorluğu olan Osmanlı'dan çok daha ılımlı ve açık yaşanmıştır her şey Japonya'da. Osmanlı'da da olduğu gibi saklı tarih, gizli sosyal hayat çok önemlidir ve tarihin yanıltıcılığının da spesifik olarak en rahat görüldüğü noktalardandır.
Konuyu dağıtmazsam Toguva Döneminin en önemli şaiır ve yazarını okumak elbette güzel.
4/5
November 25, 2017
Ihara Saikaku é um autor japonês do séc. 17, na era Endo. Este livro contêm contos homoeroticos (nanshoku = amor entre homens) entre samurais, monges budistas e atores do teatro Noh. Muitos destes contos sao tragédias amorosas de fazer inveja a Romeu e Julieta, com personagens cometendo harakiri em varios momentos.
"Até os corajosos e valentes samurais são vulneráveis quando amam; o amor é o grande Senhor que governa este mundo."
Este livro é citado no livro "Confissao de uma mascara", do Yukio Mishima que eu gostei bastante. Porém, o que me incomodou na literatura do Saikaku é a misoginia. Entretanto, se a gente tira-la da literatura e artes em geral nao sobra muita coisa, nao é mesmo? Entao vamos relevar.
Acho que é um livro importante para representatividade LGBTQIA na guerra, nas artes marciais e na religiao, areas em que predomina a ideia do macho-alfa-hétero valentao.
Os contos sao muito interessantes, falam sobre lealdade, respeito, honra, amor levado às ultimas consequencias e varios outros assuntos que o meu olhar ocidental do séc.21 nao compreende muito bem. 3.5/5
"Até os corajosos e valentes samurais são vulneráveis quando amam; o amor é o grande Senhor que governa este mundo."
Este livro é citado no livro "Confissao de uma mascara", do Yukio Mishima que eu gostei bastante. Porém, o que me incomodou na literatura do Saikaku é a misoginia. Entretanto, se a gente tira-la da literatura e artes em geral nao sobra muita coisa, nao é mesmo? Entao vamos relevar.
Acho que é um livro importante para representatividade LGBTQIA na guerra, nas artes marciais e na religiao, areas em que predomina a ideia do macho-alfa-hétero valentao.
Os contos sao muito interessantes, falam sobre lealdade, respeito, honra, amor levado às ultimas consequencias e varios outros assuntos que o meu olhar ocidental do séc.21 nao compreende muito bem. 3.5/5
May 21, 2020
Önsözde Murathan Mungan şöyle der: "Eşcinsel tarih, ister Japonya'da olsun, ister Osmanlı'da olsun, saklı tarihin önemli bir parçasıdır. Geçmişten devralınan, tarihin resmi evraklarında yer almayan eşcinselliğe ilişkin her çeşit belge, bilinen tarihe olan güveni sarsar, hikaye edilen ya da edilmeyen yanlarıyla nesnelliğine kuşku düşürerek onu bir kez daha güvenilmez kılar; tarihin yalnızca cinsellik alanında değil, diğer alanlar ve konularda da yalan söylediğini, söyleyebildiğini düşündürmeye başlar. Eşcinsel tarih, bu anlamda bilinen tarihleri okumada bir turnusol kağıdı işlevi görür. İnsanı, bir bilgi disiplini olarak tarihi yeniden gözden geçirmeye zorlar."
17. yy'dan "olağan" şeylerden bahseden bir kısa eser Samuraylar Arasında Aşk. Belki de bu yüzden her paragraf, olabildiğince sakin ve duru bir anlatımla meydana geliyor.
17. yy'dan "olağan" şeylerden bahseden bir kısa eser Samuraylar Arasında Aşk. Belki de bu yüzden her paragraf, olabildiğince sakin ve duru bir anlatımla meydana geliyor.
September 8, 2016
My review of this creaky little historical oddity:
http://www.openlettersmonthly.com/ste...
http://www.openlettersmonthly.com/ste...
June 3, 2024
" Un joven permanecía observando dos graciosas figuras. No podía ver sus caras y sentía curiosidad por saber a qué hermosos muchachos podían pertenecer. Sentía un gran deseo por ver sus deliciosas caras. Entonces, una vieja sirvienta salió de la tienda y las llamó: "Queridas doncellas, queridas Ofuji y Oyoshi". El joven quedó desilusionado al ver que las dos agraciadas personas eran mujeres y no muchachos..."
Historias cortas y muy interesantes que me recordaron (gratamente) al "Decamerón " en su versión gay. Son historias ligeras, divertidas y a veces trágicas. Lo recomiendo para conocer un poco sobre la visión de la homosexualidad en el Japón de 1600.
Historias cortas y muy interesantes que me recordaron (gratamente) al "Decamerón " en su versión gay. Son historias ligeras, divertidas y a veces trágicas. Lo recomiendo para conocer un poco sobre la visión de la homosexualidad en el Japón de 1600.
August 12, 2019
I thought the 13 stories and the 86 songs in this two-part book would have been normally translated from Japanese but it was my misunderstanding because the translated stories were in fact from a French translation by Ken Sato (pp. x, 98) and the 90 songs were “retranslated by E. Powers Mathers from Gaston Morphy's anthology Le Livre des Geisha" (p. xiv) and in his introductory note, the translator said, “I have selected some of my ninety from Le Livre des Geishas of Gaston Morphy, and the rest from Chansons des Geishas by Steinilber-Oberlin and Hidetake-Iwamura” (p. 103). Therefore, this is the first book originally written in Japanese, translated into French then English so I read its L3 version, not L2 as usual.
Having read and written my brief reviews on Saikaku Ihara’s “The Life of an Amorous Man” (Tuttle, 2001), “Five Women Who Loved Love” (Tuttle, 1956) and “The Life of an Amorous Woman” (New Directions, 1969), I instantly recalled comparing this book to the second title above as the characters’ romantic love in which the stories of the five women portrayed “five determined women in their always amorous and usually illicit adventures” (back cover). In contrast, this one in question has focused on “the theme of homosexual love: of samurai for samurai or samurai for court boy bent on becoming samurai” (back cover).
Nearly equally captivating, each story with at least two protagonists has revealed their fate, their renunciation, their pardon/admiration, etc., in other words, each case categorized as “deadly love” or not has depended on the lovers themselves. One of the reasons is that they have their own character as well as motive in which we can see how they have ultimately dictated those involved to a sad or surprising finale. For instance, I found the story (No. 12) on Jinnosuke Kasuda and Gonkuro Moriwaki admiringly touching due to their valor and comradeship. Of course, it was a tale of comrade love between Jinnosuke, a thirteen-year-old boy and his lover Gonkuro, a twenty-year-old samurai. When Jiinosuke was sixteen, another samurai named Ibei Hanzawa fell in love with him and tried to send him love-letters but in vain; so Ibei was so furious that he challenged him for a duel. Jinnosuke wrote a letter to Gonkoro, an excerpt as follows:
‘I have many other things with which to reproach you, but am feeling infinitely sad. And even now I cannot help loving you. I do nothing but weep for my unhappy passion …
‘I have still much to write, but evening is drawing near, and I must cease. To my dear Gokuro from his Jiinosuke. May 26th, in the seventh year of Kuanbun (A.D. 1667).’ (p. 88)
As for the songs, I think they should be ideally appreciated by means of listening to each one sung by a geisha in Japanese since they were primarily meant to be sung to entertain guests, not to be read like the haiku; therefore, knowing Japanese like native speakers is a must to the listeners. Moreover, any song translated into English might be doubly tough when one tries to understand and appreciate it. Again, the extracts from the translator’s note should be helpful in guiding us to see the light, “The following verses are definitely popular ones. They are folk-songs, almost music-hall songs, and are taken solely from the singing repertoire of Geishas. … It should be remembered, too, that practically all the Japanese poems with which we have been made familiar in English are classical and written to one or other of very strict rules, whereas these songs for the samisen are technically free. … ” (p. 103). Considering these three songs as our literary starter, we may eventually try browsing the following and see what we can cherish in mind, that is, identify any line you like and ask yourself why:
21. The Letter
If there were no moon
I would read it by the Winter snow light,
Or in Summer by the fireflies,
Or if there were no moon or snow or fireflies
I would read it by the light of my heart. (p. 112)
25. A Single Cry
A flight of flying cuckoos
Across the moon, a single cry.
Is the moon crying cuckoo?
Night pales slowly. Men are cruel
And women are not.
They weep and say over sorrow
For a small separation. (p. 113)
40. Green Willow
The breeze is so light
That when it soothes the green willow
It seems not to touch her.
Indistinct shadow.
We have set our two pillows
Very close in the bed.
Our mornings and our evenings.
And our useless little quarrels
And then our letters.
Is waiting or parting bitterer?
Let us not separate. (p. 118)
In summary, while reading this 13-love book by Ihara Saikaku, we can see the stories themselves seemingly have limited narration, in other words, they are obviously far less romantic, emotional and adventurous than his “Five Women Who Loved Love” in which we can admire some 17th-century illustrations by Yoshida Hambei, enjoy reading more dialogs as well as a background essay “Saikaku’s “Five Women”” by Richard Lane at Columbia University. Moreover, the songs added in this book could be randomly read, any one you like, as the basic step for some readers so that some might be eventually interested in studying Japanese, then ultimately and blissfully reread each song in its original version.
Having read and written my brief reviews on Saikaku Ihara’s “The Life of an Amorous Man” (Tuttle, 2001), “Five Women Who Loved Love” (Tuttle, 1956) and “The Life of an Amorous Woman” (New Directions, 1969), I instantly recalled comparing this book to the second title above as the characters’ romantic love in which the stories of the five women portrayed “five determined women in their always amorous and usually illicit adventures” (back cover). In contrast, this one in question has focused on “the theme of homosexual love: of samurai for samurai or samurai for court boy bent on becoming samurai” (back cover).
Nearly equally captivating, each story with at least two protagonists has revealed their fate, their renunciation, their pardon/admiration, etc., in other words, each case categorized as “deadly love” or not has depended on the lovers themselves. One of the reasons is that they have their own character as well as motive in which we can see how they have ultimately dictated those involved to a sad or surprising finale. For instance, I found the story (No. 12) on Jinnosuke Kasuda and Gonkuro Moriwaki admiringly touching due to their valor and comradeship. Of course, it was a tale of comrade love between Jinnosuke, a thirteen-year-old boy and his lover Gonkuro, a twenty-year-old samurai. When Jiinosuke was sixteen, another samurai named Ibei Hanzawa fell in love with him and tried to send him love-letters but in vain; so Ibei was so furious that he challenged him for a duel. Jinnosuke wrote a letter to Gonkoro, an excerpt as follows:
‘I have many other things with which to reproach you, but am feeling infinitely sad. And even now I cannot help loving you. I do nothing but weep for my unhappy passion …
‘I have still much to write, but evening is drawing near, and I must cease. To my dear Gokuro from his Jiinosuke. May 26th, in the seventh year of Kuanbun (A.D. 1667).’ (p. 88)
As for the songs, I think they should be ideally appreciated by means of listening to each one sung by a geisha in Japanese since they were primarily meant to be sung to entertain guests, not to be read like the haiku; therefore, knowing Japanese like native speakers is a must to the listeners. Moreover, any song translated into English might be doubly tough when one tries to understand and appreciate it. Again, the extracts from the translator’s note should be helpful in guiding us to see the light, “The following verses are definitely popular ones. They are folk-songs, almost music-hall songs, and are taken solely from the singing repertoire of Geishas. … It should be remembered, too, that practically all the Japanese poems with which we have been made familiar in English are classical and written to one or other of very strict rules, whereas these songs for the samisen are technically free. … ” (p. 103). Considering these three songs as our literary starter, we may eventually try browsing the following and see what we can cherish in mind, that is, identify any line you like and ask yourself why:
21. The Letter
If there were no moon
I would read it by the Winter snow light,
Or in Summer by the fireflies,
Or if there were no moon or snow or fireflies
I would read it by the light of my heart. (p. 112)
25. A Single Cry
A flight of flying cuckoos
Across the moon, a single cry.
Is the moon crying cuckoo?
Night pales slowly. Men are cruel
And women are not.
They weep and say over sorrow
For a small separation. (p. 113)
40. Green Willow
The breeze is so light
That when it soothes the green willow
It seems not to touch her.
Indistinct shadow.
We have set our two pillows
Very close in the bed.
Our mornings and our evenings.
And our useless little quarrels
And then our letters.
Is waiting or parting bitterer?
Let us not separate. (p. 118)
In summary, while reading this 13-love book by Ihara Saikaku, we can see the stories themselves seemingly have limited narration, in other words, they are obviously far less romantic, emotional and adventurous than his “Five Women Who Loved Love” in which we can admire some 17th-century illustrations by Yoshida Hambei, enjoy reading more dialogs as well as a background essay “Saikaku’s “Five Women”” by Richard Lane at Columbia University. Moreover, the songs added in this book could be randomly read, any one you like, as the basic step for some readers so that some might be eventually interested in studying Japanese, then ultimately and blissfully reread each song in its original version.
June 16, 2022
Ihara Saikaku (1642-1693), foi um romancista e poeta japonês, considerado um dos pais do conto e do romance no Japão. Com os seus livros da série "Mundo Flutuante", revolucionou a prosa japonesa, abordando temas populares e quotidianos, por vezes licenciosos e proibidos, numa linguagem simples e coloquial. Escrevia para vender e ganhar dinheiro, mais que para permitir a reflexão do leitor ou para o informar. As suas obras tiveram enorme sucesso comercial durante a sua vida, mas acabaram por ser esquecidas até ao final do século XIX, quando finalmente recomeçaram a despertar o interesse dos estudiosos. No entanto, devido ao seu conteúdo erótico, muitos contos e novelas continuaram censurados pelos governos militares que dominaram o Japão no início do século XX, e só após a II Guerra Mundial foram publicadas as suas Obras Completas. Yukio Mishima declarou uma vez que o seu livro, Confissões de uma Máscara, era a primeira obra importante a abordar o tema da homossexualidade no Japão depois de The Great Mirror of Male Love, de Saikaku.
Comrade Loves of the Samurai é uma seleção de contos de Saikaku que aborda o tema do amor entre samurais, traduzidos para o inglês por E. Powys Mathers, em 1928, a partir da tradução francesa por Ken Sato. São pequenas histórias ternas e cândidas de paixões devastadoras entre samurais, que terminam frequentemente em haraquiri, de acordo com o código de honra dos tradicionais guerreiros japoneses. O amor retratado tem, surpreendentemente, dada a distância geográfica e temporal entre as duas culturas, muitas semelhanças com o amor grego, surgindo frequentemente a figura tutelar do homem mais velho, que ama, aconselha e educa o jovem por cuja beleza se apaixona. Surpreendente é, também, a descoberta de que por detrás da frieza marcial e assassina que nos habituámos a associar aos míticos samurais japoneses existiam, na verdade, relações homossexuais de amor e ternura inesperadas.
Comrade Loves of the Samurai é uma seleção de contos de Saikaku que aborda o tema do amor entre samurais, traduzidos para o inglês por E. Powys Mathers, em 1928, a partir da tradução francesa por Ken Sato. São pequenas histórias ternas e cândidas de paixões devastadoras entre samurais, que terminam frequentemente em haraquiri, de acordo com o código de honra dos tradicionais guerreiros japoneses. O amor retratado tem, surpreendentemente, dada a distância geográfica e temporal entre as duas culturas, muitas semelhanças com o amor grego, surgindo frequentemente a figura tutelar do homem mais velho, que ama, aconselha e educa o jovem por cuja beleza se apaixona. Surpreendente é, também, a descoberta de que por detrás da frieza marcial e assassina que nos habituámos a associar aos míticos samurais japoneses existiam, na verdade, relações homossexuais de amor e ternura inesperadas.
October 11, 2023
En estas historias de amor entre hombres, Ihara Saikaku nos habla de las relaciones en su mayoría entre Samurais. A lo largo del siglo XVI, estás historias de amor, no son mal vistas, los Samurais también lograron, disfrutar de su amor, pero siempre habiendo sacrificios.
Las historias aquí narradas tienen entre sus características principales el amor por hombres jóvenes que los consideran los más bellos, la aceptación de ese amor por parte de los samurai, y el mismo sacrificio de amor que hacen muchas de las parejas. Aunque en su mayoría las historias terminan con el final de la vida de los amantes, hay otras en dónde los personajes viven su amor o se separan, estos grandes sacrificios hacen que este libro de Saikaku sea delicioso en toda la extensión de la palabra.
En pocas paginas, logramos disfrutar del amor viril, y dónde el texto de manera respetuosa nos cuenta del amor de estos guerreros, que se enviaban misivas de amor declarando sus sentimientos y que nos muestra que en Japón , previo a la intromisión del exterior, esto no era mal visto. Aunque he de de decir que se resalta que el amor entre estos Samurais destaca diferencia de edad y también las diferencias sociales. Este es de esos libros que debe leerse lentamente para conocer de manera histórica y literaria parte de la literatura LGBT en Japón.
Las historias aquí narradas tienen entre sus características principales el amor por hombres jóvenes que los consideran los más bellos, la aceptación de ese amor por parte de los samurai, y el mismo sacrificio de amor que hacen muchas de las parejas. Aunque en su mayoría las historias terminan con el final de la vida de los amantes, hay otras en dónde los personajes viven su amor o se separan, estos grandes sacrificios hacen que este libro de Saikaku sea delicioso en toda la extensión de la palabra.
En pocas paginas, logramos disfrutar del amor viril, y dónde el texto de manera respetuosa nos cuenta del amor de estos guerreros, que se enviaban misivas de amor declarando sus sentimientos y que nos muestra que en Japón , previo a la intromisión del exterior, esto no era mal visto. Aunque he de de decir que se resalta que el amor entre estos Samurais destaca diferencia de edad y también las diferencias sociales. Este es de esos libros que debe leerse lentamente para conocer de manera histórica y literaria parte de la literatura LGBT en Japón.
October 8, 2009
At last, the book you've been waiting for - a book of gay samurai love stories! Woo-hoo! Hot Bushido love! Awwwwww yeah.....
No, seriously, it's short stories of gay samurai love.
You see, here's the thing - prior to the modern era of Japan, the attitude towards gay love was similar to that of ancient Greece. Women were fine for having children and securing alliances and building property, but if you want real passion, real true love, you needed a bright-eyed young boy. This kind of relationship between an older man and an adolescent boy, generally known as pederasty (which is often wrongly confused with pedophilia), was considered a natural and healthy bond in those days, and assuming that both parties acted honorably and respectfully, it was mutually beneficial.
As in many other world cultures, this kind of bond was a common one, especially amongst the religious and ruling classes - people who were less interested in breeding large families and more interested in the aesthetic aspects of romance and eroticism. It wasn't necessarily a lifelong bond, but it could be, and some of these pairings have inspired love stories as passionate and heartbreaking as any other.
This being Japan, of course, most of the love stories in this book don't end well. About half tend to finish with seppuku, ending the lives of the lovers and, occasionally, other people who are unlucky enough to be in the area. The story All Comrade-Lovers Die by Hara-Kiri is a case in point - it's the story of Ukyo, Uneme and Samanousuke, three youths bound together by a deep, passionate love. When Ukyo murders a romantic rival in order to prevent the deaths of his friends, he is ordered to kill himself to pay for it. His beloved Uneme joins him in death, and Samanousuke, unable to live without either of the men he loves, takes his own life soon after.
Then there's Love Vowed to the Dead, in which young Muranousuke fulfills the dying wish of his best friend Gorokitji by giving himself to Gorokitji's lost lover. In He Died to Save his Lover, young Korin allows himself to be tortured and executed by one lover to save the life of another, and of course, He Followed his Friend into the Other World, After Torturing him to Death, which is pretty much what it sounds like. Let it be said, though, that Sasanousuke didn't mean for Hayemon to freeze to death, it just kind of happened that way.
In my favorite, The Tragic Love of Two Enemies, a man, Senpatji, falls in love with the young son of the samurai that he had been ordered to kill many years before. The boy, Shynousuke, is ordered by his mother to kill Senpatji, and thus avenge his father, but the boy cannot bring himself to murder the man he loves - especially since Senpatji had been acting under the orders of his lord. He convinces his mother to give them one more night together, which she does, because she's not completely heartless. She finds them dead the next morning, both impaled through their hearts on Shynousuke's sword.
Who says the Japanese aren't romantic?
There are happy(ish) tales, too. Tales of constant dedication, of loyalty and hidden desires in the courtly world of the ruling classes of Edo-period Japan. Men and boys endure great hardships and risk their lives to be together, an on occasion get to spend the rest of their lives together.
These stories were all written back in the 17th century and the author gained great notoriety writing these kinds of soft romances. One of his books was titled, Glorious Tales of Pederasty, which I would really love to see on a bookshelf at Borders someday. Just to see the reactions.... There's a whole lot of, "They lay together through the night" kind of language, and a general avoidance of sordid detail. Still, they're well-written, and well-translated, so you can get a very good sense, in these short, short stories, of the kinds of relationships that popped up among the samurai class way back before Western prudishness got its claws into people. In the preface to Glorious Tales, Ihara says:
Speaking from an American perspective, I can't think of any situation where a relationship such as the ones in this book would ever be considered acceptable, despite the purity of the feelings involved. The characters in these stories, it must be noted, are not leches. They're not Herbert from Family Guy. But no matter how pure my intentions might be, if I were to start hanging around the arcades, chatting up fifteen year-old boys, my life as a respectable citizen would be effectively over.
Even assuming that a relationship built on pederasty can be mutually beneficial - and it could be argued that it can - it's still a) illegal in most places and b) massively creepy. So that makes it an interesting challenge to get into these stories. Life was different back then, after all. The extended childhood that we take for granted in our teenage years pretty much didn't exist. As soon as someone reached the age of sexual maturity, they were basically proto-adults, rather than lingering children, and were therefore fair game. So as much as I hate to invoke cultural relativism (because I find it wishy-washy and noncommittal), I have to just say, "It was a different time." In times gone by, pederastic relationships worked, but our culture has moved to a point now where even if it were legalized, the emotional and experiential gulf between the older and younger party would probably make it impossible to go beyond a relationship built on physical eroticism.
Still, the feelings in these stories are just as valid and pure as "traditional" romances, the obstacles they overcome and risks they take are just as real and just as difficult. If you can set aside your more judgmental self, you can appreciate the depth of feeling that existed in these relationships, and recognize the universal themes of all great love stories - discovery, love, loss, betrayal, redemption.... They're all here. So get reading.
No, seriously, it's short stories of gay samurai love.
You see, here's the thing - prior to the modern era of Japan, the attitude towards gay love was similar to that of ancient Greece. Women were fine for having children and securing alliances and building property, but if you want real passion, real true love, you needed a bright-eyed young boy. This kind of relationship between an older man and an adolescent boy, generally known as pederasty (which is often wrongly confused with pedophilia), was considered a natural and healthy bond in those days, and assuming that both parties acted honorably and respectfully, it was mutually beneficial.
As in many other world cultures, this kind of bond was a common one, especially amongst the religious and ruling classes - people who were less interested in breeding large families and more interested in the aesthetic aspects of romance and eroticism. It wasn't necessarily a lifelong bond, but it could be, and some of these pairings have inspired love stories as passionate and heartbreaking as any other.
This being Japan, of course, most of the love stories in this book don't end well. About half tend to finish with seppuku, ending the lives of the lovers and, occasionally, other people who are unlucky enough to be in the area. The story All Comrade-Lovers Die by Hara-Kiri is a case in point - it's the story of Ukyo, Uneme and Samanousuke, three youths bound together by a deep, passionate love. When Ukyo murders a romantic rival in order to prevent the deaths of his friends, he is ordered to kill himself to pay for it. His beloved Uneme joins him in death, and Samanousuke, unable to live without either of the men he loves, takes his own life soon after.
Then there's Love Vowed to the Dead, in which young Muranousuke fulfills the dying wish of his best friend Gorokitji by giving himself to Gorokitji's lost lover. In He Died to Save his Lover, young Korin allows himself to be tortured and executed by one lover to save the life of another, and of course, He Followed his Friend into the Other World, After Torturing him to Death, which is pretty much what it sounds like. Let it be said, though, that Sasanousuke didn't mean for Hayemon to freeze to death, it just kind of happened that way.
In my favorite, The Tragic Love of Two Enemies, a man, Senpatji, falls in love with the young son of the samurai that he had been ordered to kill many years before. The boy, Shynousuke, is ordered by his mother to kill Senpatji, and thus avenge his father, but the boy cannot bring himself to murder the man he loves - especially since Senpatji had been acting under the orders of his lord. He convinces his mother to give them one more night together, which she does, because she's not completely heartless. She finds them dead the next morning, both impaled through their hearts on Shynousuke's sword.
Who says the Japanese aren't romantic?
There are happy(ish) tales, too. Tales of constant dedication, of loyalty and hidden desires in the courtly world of the ruling classes of Edo-period Japan. Men and boys endure great hardships and risk their lives to be together, an on occasion get to spend the rest of their lives together.
These stories were all written back in the 17th century and the author gained great notoriety writing these kinds of soft romances. One of his books was titled, Glorious Tales of Pederasty, which I would really love to see on a bookshelf at Borders someday. Just to see the reactions.... There's a whole lot of, "They lay together through the night" kind of language, and a general avoidance of sordid detail. Still, they're well-written, and well-translated, so you can get a very good sense, in these short, short stories, of the kinds of relationships that popped up among the samurai class way back before Western prudishness got its claws into people. In the preface to Glorious Tales, Ihara says:
Our eyes are soiled by the soft haunches and scarlet petticoats of women. These female beauties are good for nothing save to give pleasure to old men in lands where there is not a single good-looking boy. If a man is interested in women, he can never know the joys of pederasty.So that should give you an idea of the cultural divide you're working against when you pick up this book. It's tough for us modern folks, whose culture is dead set against cross-generational homosexual relationships, to really be comfortable reading stories like this. Usually when you hear stories about a grown man and a teenage boy, it's immediately classified as "abuse." Images of windowless panel vans, sweaty gym teachers, NAMBLA meetings rise up and.... Yeah.
Speaking from an American perspective, I can't think of any situation where a relationship such as the ones in this book would ever be considered acceptable, despite the purity of the feelings involved. The characters in these stories, it must be noted, are not leches. They're not Herbert from Family Guy. But no matter how pure my intentions might be, if I were to start hanging around the arcades, chatting up fifteen year-old boys, my life as a respectable citizen would be effectively over.
Even assuming that a relationship built on pederasty can be mutually beneficial - and it could be argued that it can - it's still a) illegal in most places and b) massively creepy. So that makes it an interesting challenge to get into these stories. Life was different back then, after all. The extended childhood that we take for granted in our teenage years pretty much didn't exist. As soon as someone reached the age of sexual maturity, they were basically proto-adults, rather than lingering children, and were therefore fair game. So as much as I hate to invoke cultural relativism (because I find it wishy-washy and noncommittal), I have to just say, "It was a different time." In times gone by, pederastic relationships worked, but our culture has moved to a point now where even if it were legalized, the emotional and experiential gulf between the older and younger party would probably make it impossible to go beyond a relationship built on physical eroticism.
Still, the feelings in these stories are just as valid and pure as "traditional" romances, the obstacles they overcome and risks they take are just as real and just as difficult. If you can set aside your more judgmental self, you can appreciate the depth of feeling that existed in these relationships, and recognize the universal themes of all great love stories - discovery, love, loss, betrayal, redemption.... They're all here. So get reading.
April 30, 2023
Se nota que se han esmerado con la edición de este volumen. El libro cuenta con una introducción extensa y muy interesante, de mano de Carlos Rubio, sobre la historia de la homosexualidad en el Japón feudal. La traducción es impecable. Las notas a pie de página son muy útiles y ayudan a comprender esos matices que se perderían para un lector tan alejado en tiempo y espacio de la obra.
Personalmente, este tipo de romances homosexuales entre samuráis era algo que desconocía hasta que me topé con este libro del siglo XVII. Encuentro que estos amoríos son algo que, a pesar de su normalización en el pasado feudal, se omite (conscientemente) en las obras de samurais más contemporáneas.
En cuanto a la antología, los relatos son muy curiosos, con mucha sangre, mucho honor y mucho mucho dramatismo. Los relatos siguen las historias de amor más tradicionales, perdidamente románticas, de una emocionalidad exacerbada y de una crueldad que quita el hipo. El amor y la sangre van de la mano en estas historias, con el culmen recurrente del honorable acto del suicidio por amor. Si hay espacio para el amor en estas hojas, el mismo espacio (o más) hay para la muerte y la tragedia.
La prosa de Saikaku es elegante y muchas veces se embarca en un preciosismo ajeno a la trama de romances que tiene su aquel. La narrativa japonesa del siglo XVII es muy distinta a lo que uno está acostumbrado, por lo que las historias a veces parece que vagan sin rumbo y se pierden en la ambientación, dejando de lado a los amantes con el filo en las manos para perderse en la belleza de las flores y los montes japoneses. Casi todos los relatos tienen su encanto, aunque muchas veces tomen rumbos similares. A pesar de ello, no se volvían monótonos, un logro teniendo en cuenta la brevedad de los relatos.
A mí lo que más me sorprende de todo «El gran espejo del amor entre hombres»y lo que hace que le tenga tanto cariño, es haber podido leer de primera mano historias románticas entre hombres escritas hace más de tres siglos. Se siente muy fresco poder leer historias de la edad moderna de algo que para occidente hubiera sido un tabú marcado por la culpa y un libro impublicable.
Para mí un libro de cabecera y uno muy importante para la historia de la literatura homosexual. Y bueno, también uno de mis libros favoritos.
Personalmente, este tipo de romances homosexuales entre samuráis era algo que desconocía hasta que me topé con este libro del siglo XVII. Encuentro que estos amoríos son algo que, a pesar de su normalización en el pasado feudal, se omite (conscientemente) en las obras de samurais más contemporáneas.
En cuanto a la antología, los relatos son muy curiosos, con mucha sangre, mucho honor y mucho mucho dramatismo. Los relatos siguen las historias de amor más tradicionales, perdidamente románticas, de una emocionalidad exacerbada y de una crueldad que quita el hipo. El amor y la sangre van de la mano en estas historias, con el culmen recurrente del honorable acto del suicidio por amor. Si hay espacio para el amor en estas hojas, el mismo espacio (o más) hay para la muerte y la tragedia.
La prosa de Saikaku es elegante y muchas veces se embarca en un preciosismo ajeno a la trama de romances que tiene su aquel. La narrativa japonesa del siglo XVII es muy distinta a lo que uno está acostumbrado, por lo que las historias a veces parece que vagan sin rumbo y se pierden en la ambientación, dejando de lado a los amantes con el filo en las manos para perderse en la belleza de las flores y los montes japoneses. Casi todos los relatos tienen su encanto, aunque muchas veces tomen rumbos similares. A pesar de ello, no se volvían monótonos, un logro teniendo en cuenta la brevedad de los relatos.
A mí lo que más me sorprende de todo «El gran espejo del amor entre hombres»y lo que hace que le tenga tanto cariño, es haber podido leer de primera mano historias románticas entre hombres escritas hace más de tres siglos. Se siente muy fresco poder leer historias de la edad moderna de algo que para occidente hubiera sido un tabú marcado por la culpa y un libro impublicable.
Para mí un libro de cabecera y uno muy importante para la historia de la literatura homosexual. Y bueno, también uno de mis libros favoritos.
March 13, 2016
Ihara Saikaku (1642-1693), foi um romancista e poeta japonês, considerado um dos pais do conto e do romance no Japão. Com os seus livros da série "Mundo Flutuante", revolucionou a prosa japonesa, abordando temas populares e quotidianos, por vezes licenciosos e proibidos, numa linguagem simples e coloquial. Escrevia para vender e ganhar dinheiro, mais que para permitir a reflexão do leitor ou para o informar. As suas obras tiveram enorme sucesso comercial durante a sua vida, mas acabaram por ser esquecidas até ao final do século XIX, quando finalmente recomeçaram a despertar o interesse dos estudiosos. No entanto, devido ao seu conteúdo erótico, muitos contos e novelas continuaram censurados pelos governos militares que dominaram o Japão no início do século XX, e só após a II Guerra Mundial foram publicadas as suas Obras Completas. Yukio Mishima declarou uma vez que o seu livro, Confissões de uma Máscara, era a primeira obra importante a abordar o tema da homossexualidade no Japão depois de The Great Mirror of Male Love, de Saikaku.
Comrade Loves of the Samurai é uma seleção de contos de Saikaku que aborda o tema do amor entre samurais, traduzidos para o inglês por E. Powys Mathers, em 1928, a partir da tradução francesa por Ken Sato. São pequenas histórias ternas e cândidas de paixões devastadoras entre samurais, que terminam frequentemente em haraquiri, de acordo com o código de honra dos tradicionais guerreiros japoneses. O amor retratado tem, surpreendentemente, dada a distância geográfica e temporal entre as duas culturas, muitas semelhanças com o amor grego, surgindo frequentemente a figura tutelar do homem mais velho, que ama, aconselha e educa o jovem por cuja beleza se apaixona. Surpreendente é, também, a descoberta de que por detrás da frieza marcial e assassina que nos habituámos a associar aos míticos samurais japoneses existiam, na verdade, relações homossexuais de amor e ternura inesperadas.
Comrade Loves of the Samurai é uma seleção de contos de Saikaku que aborda o tema do amor entre samurais, traduzidos para o inglês por E. Powys Mathers, em 1928, a partir da tradução francesa por Ken Sato. São pequenas histórias ternas e cândidas de paixões devastadoras entre samurais, que terminam frequentemente em haraquiri, de acordo com o código de honra dos tradicionais guerreiros japoneses. O amor retratado tem, surpreendentemente, dada a distância geográfica e temporal entre as duas culturas, muitas semelhanças com o amor grego, surgindo frequentemente a figura tutelar do homem mais velho, que ama, aconselha e educa o jovem por cuja beleza se apaixona. Surpreendente é, também, a descoberta de que por detrás da frieza marcial e assassina que nos habituámos a associar aos míticos samurais japoneses existiam, na verdade, relações homossexuais de amor e ternura inesperadas.
February 22, 2019
Interesting little book from the 1600s - a bunch of short stories around homosexual love, but more in the Greek sense of between a young and an older man (one story hints that such love between similarly-aged men was weird). As it is typical for older Japanese literature, a lot of these stories focus on life at court, intrigues, and ultimately sacrifice either in battle or in suicide (except for one hilarious story about two old guys who decided to stick together after their youthful 'affair', happily shouting at 'disgusting' women in their old age).
I mean, how often do you read descriptions like this?
The second part is a collection of Geisha songs - these are relatively simple and I guess the translation is not too flowery, so they're nowhere close to famous Haiku. But those stand out to me in two texts: one a relatively simple description of new love (haven't felt that in a while!), and one for this awesome formulation:
*shakes fist at moon*
I mean, how often do you read descriptions like this?
Korin was very beautiful: his young, untroubled face was like a serene moon in the autumn sky; his black hair was lotus, and his voice had the love-murmuring of the nightingale amid young peach blossoms.
The second part is a collection of Geisha songs - these are relatively simple and I guess the translation is not too flowery, so they're nowhere close to famous Haiku. But those stand out to me in two texts: one a relatively simple description of new love (haven't felt that in a while!), and one for this awesome formulation:
The moon is disgustingly modest
under a great cloud
When I am waiting,
And when he comes
She spitefully breaks forth
*shakes fist at moon*
December 18, 2016
"Erkekler arasında aşk,kadınla erkek arasındaki aşktan temelde farklıdır;bu yüzdendir ki bir prens,güzel bir prensesle evli bile olsa içoğlanlarını unutamaz.Kadın tamamen önemsiz bir yaratıktır;gerçek aşk erkekler arasındaki içten aştır" bu dizelerin sahibi İhara Saikaku 1642-93 yılları arasında yaşamış bir edebiyatçı..Günümüzle gerek konu gerek işleniş açısından kıyaslanınca oldukça farklı bir noktada duruyor "Samuraylar Arasında Aşk"..
Murathan Mungan ise kitap için yazdığı önsözde sadelikle anlatıyor: "Bir devlet biçimi olarak imparatorluk kadar,bir ideoloji olarak erkeklik imparatorluğu da önemlidir..Eril kültürün,temel ayin nesnesi olan erkeklik kültü,yalnızca olunmak istenen imgeyi üretmez,aynı zamanda onu bir arzu nesnesi kılar."
Kısa ama etkili..
Murathan Mungan ise kitap için yazdığı önsözde sadelikle anlatıyor: "Bir devlet biçimi olarak imparatorluk kadar,bir ideoloji olarak erkeklik imparatorluğu da önemlidir..Eril kültürün,temel ayin nesnesi olan erkeklik kültü,yalnızca olunmak istenen imgeyi üretmez,aynı zamanda onu bir arzu nesnesi kılar."
Kısa ama etkili..
July 12, 2016
Todos los relatos de este libro se resumen en un: [drama intensifies]
March 26, 2020
Este libro, escrito en el Japón del período Edo (siglo XVII), retrata a través de breves relatos el wakashudo o “vía del joven hombre” término utilizado para denominar las relaciones homosexuales estructurada por la edad, prevalentes en la sociedad samurái, entre parejas constituidas por un hombre de mayor edad (nenja) y uno más joven (shudo). Las historias que aquí se relatan tienen como elemento central el bushido o código de honor samurái lo que tiñe el romanticismo concentrado en sus páginas con violencia y sed de venganza.
Excelente libro, con una prosa que pese a su antigüedad, resulta entretenida y fácil de leer. Todo bellamente acompañado de grabados de la época y útiles notas al pie de página.
Excelente libro, con una prosa que pese a su antigüedad, resulta entretenida y fácil de leer. Todo bellamente acompañado de grabados de la época y útiles notas al pie de página.
October 8, 2011
Lo comencé a leer hace varios años, pero creo que nunca lo terminé, me debn faltar dos o tres relatos. De todos modos, el conjunto es bastante bueno,y la introducción que establece el contexto histórico es de lo más interesante. Cuando lo retome y lo complete, seguramente escriba su correspondiente reseña. Eso sí, lo recomiendo como imprescindible para entender Los caballeros del Zodíaco y series similares.
January 1, 2023
My first read of 2023! Bought in 2021, primarily for the brilliant title.
A man unknowingly falls in love with his father's murderer. A man beggars himself, following a page he loves around the countryside. A Buddhist priest is helpless in the throes of love and his lover agrees to meet him. Three men form a polyamorous relationship. A man sends a love note in a fish. Two men are repulsed by women. A man and his mother are impoverished and on the brink of suicide when they are saved by food brought to them every day by a little dog; later it turns out, the dog is sent by another man who loves the impoverished man. A man falls in love with a particular scent in a druggist's shop, and the druggist's son falls in love with this man and secretes some of the incense in his sleeve pocket. (Reminds me of lady Shonagon's The Pillow Book where nobles hang their clothes over racks under which burns incense to imbue them with aroma -- a lovely lost custom).
This is a collection of short tales about m/m lovers, most of them samurai, gathered together from four different late 17th-century collections by this author. The stories are pleasant to read although there is a lot more hara-kiri, beheading and brutal murder in them than I expected - although the focus on the military caste of the 'samurai' might have given me a hint. Indeed, the lovers seem to express the height of their passion and commitment to each other primarily by a) killing someone else out of jealousy or honour, or b) killing themselves.
There is much emphasis on youth, beauty, elegance and nobility. However, one charming story is about two lovers who have grown old together and are now both in their sixties, one of them still doing his partner's hair up in the style of a youth. Another story concerns a man who dies and sends his lover to the dead man's former lover, a man who is now old, requesting him to love the old man in his stead; the surviving lover is somewhat repulsed by the old man but loves him for the sake of his dead lover and his honour. A monster badger attacks guests at a party. A jealous man taunts his lover by locking him outside in the snow and making him be naked to prove his love; the naked man dies.
There is an emphasis on letter-writing, and it seems it was the done thing to confess one's admiration via an elegantly-worded letter (shades of the lady Murasaki's The Tale of Genji).
A flavour from the Buddhist priest's epistle to a friend:
'I was indeed surprised to see so beautiful a page in such a remote district as the Western Province of Higo. I was greatly troubled by him. Formerly I had become very weary of the luxurious and artificial life of our capital; but at that moment, in this distant country, I felt a temptation which disturbed all the peace of my spirit. My soul was quite thrown into confusion, and my heart begat to beat violently with desire. ... My love became so violent that it seemed to me that my soul was breaking into a thousand pieces; and it was, indeed, torn.' (71)
An entirely unconnected collection of 86 short poems or 'music-hall songs', entitled 'Songs of the Geishas', is appended. They seem to be thrown together in this one volume solely for reasons of perhaps illicit love? More on this below. I liked two of the poems in particular, and hope that they are, indeed, written by women:
71.
I want to send him a letter
But do not know what to write.
Tell me something,
White paper.
84.
This first snow
Is very white
Like first love.
My maid asks from the doorstep:
'Where shall I throw
The tea-leaves?'
Now to the edition. This is a 1972 re-issue of a 1928 translation of the stories. However, the translation by E. Powys Mathers was a translation not from Japanese but from a French translation by Ken Sato. So who knows the filters this passed through especially as the 1928 book was for subscribers only and possibly not marketed with a view to literary accuracy; it was part of an anthology called 'Eastern Love'.
The preface to this 1972 book is penned by one Terence Barrow Ph.D. This is probably Terence Tui Barrow, a New Zealand museum curator with a Cambridge doctorate in Pacific anthropology who married a Japanese woman. Kudos to Barrow for admiring these tales and commenting on them but oh dear, oh dear:
'The idea of homosexuality', writes Barrow in his intro, 'is traditionally much more acceptable to Orientals than to Westerners. One reason for this may be the lesser physical differentiation of the sexes in the Mongoloid race (Japanese women and men have relatively sparse body hair, while women's breasts and buttocks are small compared to those of average Caucasian women.) Also the East viewed sexual love detached from Western-style notions of sin.' (xiii-xiv)
It is salutary to read such words and to remind myself that 1972 is not all that long ago, that I grew up with this kind of shit in the culture all around me.
This fits into the #JanuaryinJapan reading challenge on Instagram. It also fulfils a prompt on the #52bookclub reading challenge, hosted by @the52bookclub: 'A second-hand book'.
A man unknowingly falls in love with his father's murderer. A man beggars himself, following a page he loves around the countryside. A Buddhist priest is helpless in the throes of love and his lover agrees to meet him. Three men form a polyamorous relationship. A man sends a love note in a fish. Two men are repulsed by women. A man and his mother are impoverished and on the brink of suicide when they are saved by food brought to them every day by a little dog; later it turns out, the dog is sent by another man who loves the impoverished man. A man falls in love with a particular scent in a druggist's shop, and the druggist's son falls in love with this man and secretes some of the incense in his sleeve pocket. (Reminds me of lady Shonagon's The Pillow Book where nobles hang their clothes over racks under which burns incense to imbue them with aroma -- a lovely lost custom).
This is a collection of short tales about m/m lovers, most of them samurai, gathered together from four different late 17th-century collections by this author. The stories are pleasant to read although there is a lot more hara-kiri, beheading and brutal murder in them than I expected - although the focus on the military caste of the 'samurai' might have given me a hint. Indeed, the lovers seem to express the height of their passion and commitment to each other primarily by a) killing someone else out of jealousy or honour, or b) killing themselves.
There is much emphasis on youth, beauty, elegance and nobility. However, one charming story is about two lovers who have grown old together and are now both in their sixties, one of them still doing his partner's hair up in the style of a youth. Another story concerns a man who dies and sends his lover to the dead man's former lover, a man who is now old, requesting him to love the old man in his stead; the surviving lover is somewhat repulsed by the old man but loves him for the sake of his dead lover and his honour. A monster badger attacks guests at a party. A jealous man taunts his lover by locking him outside in the snow and making him be naked to prove his love; the naked man dies.
There is an emphasis on letter-writing, and it seems it was the done thing to confess one's admiration via an elegantly-worded letter (shades of the lady Murasaki's The Tale of Genji).
A flavour from the Buddhist priest's epistle to a friend:
'I was indeed surprised to see so beautiful a page in such a remote district as the Western Province of Higo. I was greatly troubled by him. Formerly I had become very weary of the luxurious and artificial life of our capital; but at that moment, in this distant country, I felt a temptation which disturbed all the peace of my spirit. My soul was quite thrown into confusion, and my heart begat to beat violently with desire. ... My love became so violent that it seemed to me that my soul was breaking into a thousand pieces; and it was, indeed, torn.' (71)
An entirely unconnected collection of 86 short poems or 'music-hall songs', entitled 'Songs of the Geishas', is appended. They seem to be thrown together in this one volume solely for reasons of perhaps illicit love? More on this below. I liked two of the poems in particular, and hope that they are, indeed, written by women:
71.
I want to send him a letter
But do not know what to write.
Tell me something,
White paper.
84.
This first snow
Is very white
Like first love.
My maid asks from the doorstep:
'Where shall I throw
The tea-leaves?'
Now to the edition. This is a 1972 re-issue of a 1928 translation of the stories. However, the translation by E. Powys Mathers was a translation not from Japanese but from a French translation by Ken Sato. So who knows the filters this passed through especially as the 1928 book was for subscribers only and possibly not marketed with a view to literary accuracy; it was part of an anthology called 'Eastern Love'.
The preface to this 1972 book is penned by one Terence Barrow Ph.D. This is probably Terence Tui Barrow, a New Zealand museum curator with a Cambridge doctorate in Pacific anthropology who married a Japanese woman. Kudos to Barrow for admiring these tales and commenting on them but oh dear, oh dear:
'The idea of homosexuality', writes Barrow in his intro, 'is traditionally much more acceptable to Orientals than to Westerners. One reason for this may be the lesser physical differentiation of the sexes in the Mongoloid race (Japanese women and men have relatively sparse body hair, while women's breasts and buttocks are small compared to those of average Caucasian women.) Also the East viewed sexual love detached from Western-style notions of sin.' (xiii-xiv)
It is salutary to read such words and to remind myself that 1972 is not all that long ago, that I grew up with this kind of shit in the culture all around me.
This fits into the #JanuaryinJapan reading challenge on Instagram. It also fulfils a prompt on the #52bookclub reading challenge, hosted by @the52bookclub: 'A second-hand book'.
February 9, 2024
It's difficult to review this collection, because I know I'm getting such a small sliver of the material. These stories were originally published in 1687, then translated from Japanese to French, and then those French versions were translated into English, so the gulf between me and the original work is significant. What's here is fascinating, however, and frequently beautiful. I would be very interested in a newer annotated translation directly from Japanese to English.
December 16, 2020
Los capítulos introductorios son bastante informativos, desconocía la herencia homosexual de Japón.
Las historias son breves, todas exaltan el amor y el honor de los samurais, e incluso la cosmovisión de la vida.
Aunque no son profundas, son bonitas.
Las historias son breves, todas exaltan el amor y el honor de los samurais, e incluso la cosmovisión de la vida.
Aunque no son profundas, son bonitas.
February 7, 2022
No diría que es una mala lectura, es un compendio d muchas y pequeñas historias curiosas, pero es todo tan turbio y odioso que sinceramente no he podido disfrutarlo…
April 29, 2022
Muy interesante y, como esperaba, lleno drama y suicidios.
April 28, 2023
I had a really hard time reading this. Even before starting the first sentence I knew that this book would feature heavily ... how to call it... friends of the playground and cradle robbers.
Why this book is so praised is a mistery to me, especially since people do not notice the obvious:
1) the book starts with lamenting that once boys are off age they are no longer young.
2) Jinnosuke in the first story is said to be 11 years old when even the gods are fond of him because of his beauty. And he is in his "13th autumn" when that daymyo is in love with him.
3) even later it is only his 16th year
4) it is kept secret and so doesn't point towards the claimed acceptance, which is a good thing btw.
and keep in mind 11 years might be 10 years by our current time counting.
The book stated quite clearly that the "boy love" blossomed while the love between man and woman decreased... sickening... this pedo stuff. And yes, it is pedophilic, the story makes it clear that Junnosuke was 11 when everyone started to want him, at most 13 (probably 12) when that one samurai wanted him and died at 16 (possibly 15).
Now idea how old the boy in the second story is supposed to be, it is only stated that he is a page, but in the two stories prior the boys were stated to be 13 and 16. And sorry, this here sounds more like romanticization than anything else. Why also so many reviewers of this book have no problem with the pedophilic aspects is a mystery to me.
Maybe one story is an exception as the here the two are only two years apart, 16 and 18, that is the only acceptable relationship here so far, and clearly an oddity. 16 is way too old for the other pederasts/pedophiles here. And trust me, that is old. The stories constantly talk of boy, lad, page, youth, none is ever described to be older than 16, several 12 or 13 years. I couldn't take this pederastic shit anymore!!!! And neither should anyone else. It was clear to me that I know these stories by the author already and I am sick of them, I was it last summer, I am sick of it now. This is just sick. This is MAP territory and so many don't care. Luckily I found that book and never paid a single cent for it, so it can go into the trashbin where it belongs!!!
Why this book is so praised is a mistery to me, especially since people do not notice the obvious:
1) the book starts with lamenting that once boys are off age they are no longer young.
2) Jinnosuke in the first story is said to be 11 years old when even the gods are fond of him because of his beauty. And he is in his "13th autumn" when that daymyo is in love with him.
3) even later it is only his 16th year
4) it is kept secret and so doesn't point towards the claimed acceptance, which is a good thing btw.
and keep in mind 11 years might be 10 years by our current time counting.
The book stated quite clearly that the "boy love" blossomed while the love between man and woman decreased... sickening... this pedo stuff. And yes, it is pedophilic, the story makes it clear that Junnosuke was 11 when everyone started to want him, at most 13 (probably 12) when that one samurai wanted him and died at 16 (possibly 15).
Now idea how old the boy in the second story is supposed to be, it is only stated that he is a page, but in the two stories prior the boys were stated to be 13 and 16. And sorry, this here sounds more like romanticization than anything else. Why also so many reviewers of this book have no problem with the pedophilic aspects is a mystery to me.
Maybe one story is an exception as the here the two are only two years apart, 16 and 18, that is the only acceptable relationship here so far, and clearly an oddity. 16 is way too old for the other pederasts/pedophiles here. And trust me, that is old. The stories constantly talk of boy, lad, page, youth, none is ever described to be older than 16, several 12 or 13 years. I couldn't take this pederastic shit anymore!!!! And neither should anyone else. It was clear to me that I know these stories by the author already and I am sick of them, I was it last summer, I am sick of it now. This is just sick. This is MAP territory and so many don't care. Luckily I found that book and never paid a single cent for it, so it can go into the trashbin where it belongs!!!
October 16, 2016
So real quick:
1. I thought this was a non-fiction work that would explain the subject of comradeship between samurai... in a romantic context. I've seen quite a few hints at such relationships reading history and court life dramas, so it should be interesting to pick it apart. Didn't know this was a collection of short stories though.
2. I keep seeing the word pederasty, and that made me shift a bit. I ran to Google in order to distinguish it from paedophilia, but I still have not made any progress in differentiating the two. Are the two really the same thing?
3. I am aware I need to brush up on my reading -- particularly in old Japan's court life -- so I must be missing a lot of cultural cues. For example, why does a samurai who confesses his love for another samurai, gets jilted, declares it an insult and immediately calls for a duel so that one can die?
.... I thought you said you loved him?
4. Every few minutes it's like a whiplash of emotions for the characters. They adore, they betray and kill themselves in almost laughable swiftness. Can I really be blamed for finding everything so sudden and incomprehensible?
5. I had one or two questions before I started this book and at the end of it I feel like I have opened a whole can of worms. Between the court lifestyle and pederasty, bushido and Japanese poetry -- man, I can't take all that lying down.
P/S: Shocking chauvinism also included. Line verbatim from one story: "Woman is a creature of absolutely no importance, but sincere pederastic love is true love."
1. I thought this was a non-fiction work that would explain the subject of comradeship between samurai... in a romantic context. I've seen quite a few hints at such relationships reading history and court life dramas, so it should be interesting to pick it apart. Didn't know this was a collection of short stories though.
2. I keep seeing the word pederasty, and that made me shift a bit. I ran to Google in order to distinguish it from paedophilia, but I still have not made any progress in differentiating the two. Are the two really the same thing?
3. I am aware I need to brush up on my reading -- particularly in old Japan's court life -- so I must be missing a lot of cultural cues. For example, why does a samurai who confesses his love for another samurai, gets jilted, declares it an insult and immediately calls for a duel so that one can die?
.... I thought you said you loved him?
4. Every few minutes it's like a whiplash of emotions for the characters. They adore, they betray and kill themselves in almost laughable swiftness. Can I really be blamed for finding everything so sudden and incomprehensible?
5. I had one or two questions before I started this book and at the end of it I feel like I have opened a whole can of worms. Between the court lifestyle and pederasty, bushido and Japanese poetry -- man, I can't take all that lying down.
P/S: Shocking chauvinism also included. Line verbatim from one story: "Woman is a creature of absolutely no importance, but sincere pederastic love is true love."
June 7, 2015
I came across a gorgeous 1920s version of this for sale in Any ammount of books. It had rag paper and hand coloured illustrations. It was beautifull small press edition. At a time when homosexuality was still illegal in this country I like to think that this edition was treasured. The stories did have the gay stereotype that most of the stories ended up with the characters death, but that was more to do with Samauri honour requiring they kill themselves, rather than because they were gay. One story had a couple living togeterh in old age, which was sweet, except they were terrible misogynists. Normally I much prefer Chinese literature to Japanese literature, the prizing of scholars over warriors, but I really enjoyed these stories.
The version I read also contain poemsof the geishas which surprisingly I also enjoyed. They were translations of translations but I really liked their simplicity and beauty.
The version I read also contain poemsof the geishas which surprisingly I also enjoyed. They were translations of translations but I really liked their simplicity and beauty.
July 9, 2020
Short stories of love between samourais.
The writing is not very consistent : sometimes very poetic, at other times terribly rigid.
However, regardless of the writing style (which may have been lost in translation), I really appreciated the short stories for the insight they gave into japanese culture of the XVIIth century. It's incredible to know that male lovers were leading lives together, normally, accepted by society back then.
The stories in themselves are rather quaint. Some are merely okay, others are quite lovely and poetic...
More interesting however, was the cultural differences that permeates these tales. These stories, the message they hold, the values they uplift are so different from those of the western world. Clearly, these are stories that would never have been written by a western author and it's fascinating to see really.
This really sharpened my interest for "foreign" literature.
The writing is not very consistent : sometimes very poetic, at other times terribly rigid.
However, regardless of the writing style (which may have been lost in translation), I really appreciated the short stories for the insight they gave into japanese culture of the XVIIth century. It's incredible to know that male lovers were leading lives together, normally, accepted by society back then.
The stories in themselves are rather quaint. Some are merely okay, others are quite lovely and poetic...
More interesting however, was the cultural differences that permeates these tales. These stories, the message they hold, the values they uplift are so different from those of the western world. Clearly, these are stories that would never have been written by a western author and it's fascinating to see really.
This really sharpened my interest for "foreign" literature.
Want to read
May 12, 20121) Love Vowed to the Dead
2) All Comrade-Lovers die by Harakiri
3) He followed his Friend into the Other World, after Torturing him to Death
4) He Died to Save his Lover
5) The Soul of a Young Man smitten with Love follows his Lover on a journey
6) The Tragic Love of Two Enemies
7) They love Each Other even to Extreme Old Age
8) A Samurai becomes a Beggar through his Love for a Page
9) An Actor loved his Patron, even as a Flint Seller
10) Letter from a Buddhist Priest telling his Friend that his Lover comes to him
11) At last Rewarded for his Constancy
12) He rids himself of his Foes with the Help of his Lover
13) Love long Concealed
14) Songs of the Geishas
2) All Comrade-Lovers die by Harakiri
3) He followed his Friend into the Other World, after Torturing him to Death
4) He Died to Save his Lover
5) The Soul of a Young Man smitten with Love follows his Lover on a journey
6) The Tragic Love of Two Enemies
7) They love Each Other even to Extreme Old Age
8) A Samurai becomes a Beggar through his Love for a Page
9) An Actor loved his Patron, even as a Flint Seller
10) Letter from a Buddhist Priest telling his Friend that his Lover comes to him
11) At last Rewarded for his Constancy
12) He rids himself of his Foes with the Help of his Lover
13) Love long Concealed
14) Songs of the Geishas
December 12, 2022
Una gran compilación de historias. Todas, cortas en realidad, te permiten conocer como eran las relaciones sociales en el Japón de hace unos siglos. La sociedad de aquella época veía la unión entre hombres de forma distinta a la actualidad, sin prejuicios, ni tabúes. Es un gran libro de la literatura japonés y un buen espejo de lo que era Japón.
October 12, 2014
Ce qu'on retiendra avant tout, c'est que le rapport anal consomme moins de Yang que le rapport vaginal, ce qui permet de mieux préserver l'équilibre entre ses énergies. Les chakras s'en portent mieux et tout le monde est heureux.
January 29, 2016
Um conjunto de treze extraordinárias narrativas, curtas mas intensas, sobre o amor entre samurais mas sobretudo sobre os seus códigos de valores e de conduta. Uma obra rara e preciosa, que a Index ebooks traz para a língua portuguesa, numa tradução bela e irrepreensível.
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