The Sarashina nikki

by Musume Sugawara No Takasue, Kochi Doi (Translation), William de Lange (Editor)

Sugawara no Takasue no Musume (1008-59), a lady-in-waiting to Princess Sukeko, is a typical exponent of Heian court culture-her sharp awareness of beauty only checked by her keen sense of its transitory nature. Inspired by Murasaki Shikibu's then already famous Genji monogatari , the author seeks to achieve the same romantic fulfillment of that work's hero and commits her thoughts, emotions, and experiences to a memoir she named the Sarashina nikki in an allusion to a much-loved poem from the Kokin wakashū . Perhaps the most evocative part of the Sarashina nikki is her three-month journey to the capital following her father's recall from his governorship of Kazusa, which offers rare descriptions of the more remote regions of Heian Japan-its blinding white beaches, its majestic mountains, its dark forests. Above all, the Sarashina nikki is a poignant record of a woman's deep romantic yearning.

192 pages, Paperback

Published December 15, 2020

Reviews

[Avery · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok yeah I complained about reading this whatever but while it was a little dry and distant (simply because I’m not familiar with this period of history) it was actually very moving at times to see how she mapped her personal literary journey and reflected on grief and friendship and nature through her poetry. She’s also so relatable like yeah I want to have a pet cat and read about my favorite character all the time too we want the same things

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

La figlia di Sugawara no Takasue è me e io sono la figlia di Sugawara Takasue... rip sarashina nyobo, avresti amato il booktok (la og bookboyfriend collector, la prima ad essere delusa dalla realtà...)