Diaries of Court Ladies of Old Japan

by Murasaki Shikibu, Lady Sarashina, Izumi Shikibu

Because women in ancient Japan enjoyed high status, they were well-educated and reasonably independent. They also produced much of the country's best literature. Three of these amazing ladies wrote these diaries, among them the highly skilled writer Murasaki Shikibu (ca. 973-1025 a.d.). A lady-in-waiting to the Japanese Empress, she became very adept at observing the daily activities and attitudes of the upper classes. Her diary is a remarkable record of events staged with rare and exquisite taste. The Sarashina Diary, filled with an appreciation of nature, begins with a nine-year-old girl's dreams and ends with the grown woman's account of her husband's funeral (1009-1059 a.d.). Izumi Shikibu's diary is a delicately written work, with poetic thoughts characteristic of the lady's shy reserve. Brimming with poetry and understated social observations, all three provide an extraordinary glimpse of court life in old Japan. Unabridged republication of the edition originally published by Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston and New York, 1920. 2 color illustrations. 12 black-and-white illustrations. Appendix.

Genres: Japan, History, Nonfiction, Classics, Japanese Literature, Poetry, Biography

ebook

First published January 1, 1920

About the author

Murasaki Shikibu (Japanese: 紫式部), born around 978 in Heian-kyō (modern-day Kyoto), is widely celebrated as one of the most important and pioneering figures in Japanese literature. Though her real name is not definitively known, she is remembered by the sobriquet “Murasaki Shikibu,” a name derived from a combination of her most famous literary character, Murasaki, and her father’s official court position in the Bureau of Ceremonial (Shikibu-shō). This alias reflects both her literary contribution and her aristocratic lineage.
She was born into the prestigious Fujiwara family, though to a lesser branch that did not hold the most powerful positions in court. Her father, Fujiwara no Tametoki, was a scholar, poet, and provincial governor. Recognizing his daughter’s remarkable intellect, he allowed her to study Chinese classics, a field generally restricted to men in the Heian period. This early education proved foundational, setting her apart from many of her contemporaries and deeply influencing her literary style.
Murasaki married in her twenties, but her husband died shortly after their daughter was born. Following his death, she may have spent a period of seclusion before being summoned to court around 1005, where she entered the service of Empress Shōshi (also known as Fujiwara no Shōshi), the consort of Emperor Ichijō. In this environment of cultural refinement and political sophistication, Murasaki thrived, participating in the literary and poetic salons that were central to courtly life.
Her greatest and most enduring achievement is The Tale of Genji (Genji Monogatari), a monumental narrative often hailed as the world’s first novel. Written in the early 11th century during her time at court, the work consists of fifty-four chapters and follows the life, loves, and descendants of the nobleman Hikaru Genji. With rich psychological insight, a deep understanding of human emotion, and elegant prose interwoven with more than 800 waka poems, The Tale of Genji offers a vivid depiction of Heian court culture, aesthetics, and the complex interplay of personal ambition, desire, and fate. It remains one of the central pillars of classical Japanese literature.
In addition to The Tale of Genji, Murasaki also wrote The Diary of Lady Murasaki (Murasaki Shikibu Nikki), a work of non-fiction that offers unique glimpses into the daily life of the court and her own thoughts and experiences. Unlike her fiction, her diary is often introspective and frank, providing invaluable context for understanding Heian society, the role of women, and the tensions she faced as both a court insider and a perceptive, occasionally critical observer of her surroundings.
Despite the limitations placed upon women during her time, Murasaki Shikibu’s writings reflect a striking depth of knowledge, not only in poetry and prose but also in Chinese classics and Buddhist philosophy. Her work was deeply shaped by the refined aesthetics of the Heian period, especially the concept of mono no aware—the awareness of the impermanence of things—which permeates The Tale of Genji and gives it a profound emotional resonance.
Murasaki Shikibu’s influence transcended her own time. Her works continued to be read, studied, and copied in the centuries that followed. She has been commemorated in literature, art, and even in religious tradition, and is still celebrated today as a cultural icon. Statues and memorials honor her across Japan, and The Tale of Genji has inspired countless translations, adaptations, and scholarly studies worldwide.
Her legacy endures not only because of the historical significance of her writing but also because of the timeless insight she offered into the human condition. Murasaki Shikibu remains a symbol of literary brilliance, intellectual resilience, and artistic sensitivity—a voice from a millennium ago that continues to speak across the ages.

Reviews

[Laura]

Free download available at Project Gutenberg.

[Vishy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was in the mood for reading one of the Japanese classics, and so picked up this book, 'Diaries of Court Ladies of Old Japan'. It has the diaries of three women from the Heian era, Lady Sarashina, who is not very well known outside of this work, the legendary Murasaki Shikibu who wrote what is regarded as the world's first novel, 'The Tale of Genji', and Izumi Shikibu, one of the greatest Japanese poets. All these diaries were written at around 1000 CE (or AD, if you prefer that), and so they are more than 1000 years old.

There is good news and bad news. The good news first.

The introduction to the book by Amy Lowell is incredibly beautiful. It describes the historical backdrop to that era, tells us more about these three writers, and is a beautiful love letter to these three incredible women. It gives me goosebumps everytime I think about how the Heian era produced many great women writers and poets, all a 1000 years back! So amazing!

The footnotes in the book are wonderful, and they help us to learn about that era, in detail. I learnt a lot through the footnotes.

Lady Sarashina moves from a distant province to the capital Kyoto, and she describes that journey. That is how her diary starts. We learn a lot about Japanese geography and towns and villages and rivers of that time, and about many legends that people believed in. The diary covers a period of around 50 years, and so sometimes it just zips through a lot of years.

Murasaki Shikibu's diary starts after her husband passes away and while she is grieving, she is called to the court to serve the queen. The queen is going to have a baby, and Lady Murasaki describes the events surrounding that in detail and all the rituals and ceremonies that are a part of it. She also gives short portraits of some of the ladies in the court, which were very interesting. More about this in a little bit.

Izumi Shikibu's diary is about the affair she has with a prince. It is written in the third person. It has a lot of poems that the two write to each other. Towards the end, the prince asks her to move into the palace, and when she does, the prince's wife, the princess, gets offended and leaves the palace in a huff to go on a long trip.

Amy Lowell says something very interesting in her introduction, about Izumi Shikibu's diary. This is what she says –

"Izumi Shikibu is as unlike Murasaki Shikibu as could well happen. As different as the most celebrated poet of her time is likely to be from the most celebrated novelist, for Izumi Shikibu is the greatest woman poet which Japan has had...Passionate, provocative, enchanting, it is evident that Izumi Shikibu could never have been the discriminating observer, the critic of manners, which Murasaki Shikibu became. Life was powerless to mellow so vivid a personality; but neither could it subdue it. She gives us no suggestion of resignation. She lived intensely, as her Diary shows; she always had done so, and doubtless she always did. We see her as untamable, a genius compelled to follow her inclinations. Difficult to deal with, maybe, like strong wine, but wonderfully stimulating...the Diary seems to have been written solely to appease her mind, and to record the poems which passed between them and which Izumi Shikibu evidently regarded as the very essence of their souls."

This is what Amy Lowell says about Izumi Shikibu's poems –

"it is beyond the power of any translation to preserve the full effect of the original, but even in translation, Izumi Shikibu's poems are singularly beautiful and appealing. In her own country, they are considered never to have been excelled in freshness and freedom of expression."

I can vouch for this. I've read Izumi Shikibu's poems and they are incredibly beautiful.

Now, a little bit about Murasaki Shikibu's diary. The portraits she gives of contemporaries were very interesting. Of particular interest to me were her portraits of two other great literary women of that era, Sei Shōnagon and Izumi Shikibu. I've heard that there was something going on between Lady Murasaki and Sei Shōnagon and one of the reasons was probably that they were serving different queens. To this day, lovers of Heian literature have been keeping this rivalry alive, and are split into two camps, the Murasaki Shikibu camp and the Sei Shōnagon camp. I'm proud to say that I'm part of the Sei Shōnagon camp 😄🙈 Well, this is what Lady Murasaki has to say about Sei Shōnagon –

"Lady Sei Shōnagon. A very proud person. She values herself highly, and scatters her Chinese writings all about. Yet should we study her closely, we should find that she is still imperfect. She tries to be exceptional, but naturally persons of that sort give offence. She is piling up trouble for her future. One who is too richly gifted, who indulges too much in emotion, even when she ought to be reserved, and cannot turn aside from anything she is interested in, in spite of herself will lose self-control. How can such a vain and reckless person end her days happily!"

Why Murasaki-San, Why? 😭 Sei Shōnagon is one of my all-time favourites, and if you read her book 'The Pillow Book', you'll fall in love with her too, and so it is very heartbreaking and disappointing to see Murasaki-San taking potshots at my favourite Shōnagon-San.

It doesn't stop here though. Murasaki-San then turns her attention to Izumi Shikibu, and decides to take potshots at her. Here is what she says –

"Lady Izumi Shikibu corresponds charmingly, but her behaviour is improper indeed. She writes with grace and ease and with a flashing wit. There is fragrance even in her smallest words. Her poems are attractive, but they are only improvisations which drop from her mouth spontaneously. Every one of them has some interesting point, and she is acquainted with ancient literature also, but she is not like a true artist who is filled with the genuine spirit of poetry. Yet I think even she cannot presume to pass judgment on the poems of others."

Why Murasaki-San, why? 😭 Izumi Shikibu is Japan's greatest female poet according to Amy Lowell, and this is what she gets for being that.

I admire these three ladies for what they've accomplished, but I've a special affection for Sei Shōnagon. She is the best. So it is very heartbreaking to see one great taking potshots against two of my favourites. This happens today all the time – writers and poets and literary figures take potshots against each other, mocking each other through articles, essays, interviews in the media, and in social media. But I thought that during ancient times, writers were more respectful and supportive of each other. But it looks like I was wrong and this throwing darts at each other has been happening for a long time. It is as old as time. It is sad.

If this is all good news, what is the bad news, then? The diaries were all interesting in parts, but overall I had mixed feelings about them. Their detailed description of everyday things of that era was good, but somehow the diaries didn't seem to rise above everyday narration. Somehow, something was missing. Maybe the ladies wrote for their own personal pleasure, and not for sharing with outsiders. They'd probably be shocked if they discovered that readers from other continents are reading their intimate thoughts 1000 years later.

And here I've to say that Sei Shōnagon's 'The Pillow Book' is also like a diary, and it is exquisite and it is a beautiful work of art. It is vastly superior to these three diaries and it is incredibly beautiful. So if you want to immerse yourself into that period, these three diaries are nice, but if you want to experience real literary beauty, you need to read Sei Shōnagon's work.

Have you read these diaries or Sei Shōnagon's 'The Pillow Book'? What do you think about them?

[Smiley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I decided to buy this three-diary hardcover at the Kitazawa Bookstore, Jinbocho, Tokyo (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jinb%C5...) hoping to do my own comparative reading with some Penguin copies I read; however, it’s a bit disappointing to find out only one title from my Japan Shelf that matches the first entitled “The Sarashina Diary”: the title being “As I Crossed a Bridge of Dreams: Recollections of a Woman in Eleventh Century Japan” (Penguins 1989) translated by Ivan Morris. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ivan_Mo...)

In general, I found reading the first diary as well as the other two, that is, “The Diary of Murasaki Shikibu” and “The Diary of Izumi Shikibu” reasonably enjoyable but relatively understandable due to, their unimaginably remote cultural, societal, political contexts – to name but a few -- around ten centuries ago in ancient Japan. Thus, there are some queries popping into my mind while reading the following:

1. “On the moon-hidden day of the Ever-growing month [March 30, 1023], I started for a certain person’s house to avoid the evil influence of the earth god. … “ (p. 22)
How did they tell the date precisely? [Amazing, 993 years ago (2016-1023).]

2. “Lady Sakyo offered the Queen sympathy, not knowing that she had doubled her undergarments, so people laughed secretly. Lady Chikuzen talked of the late King Enyu, who had visited this residence often. …” (p. 102)
I wonder if there was any King or Queen in Japan.

3. “It was on the seventeenth of the Frost month that the Queen went back to the palace. The time had been fixed for eight o’clock in the evening, but the night was far advanced. …” (p. 112)
What kind of instrument did they use to measure and show time?
From this query, the information from the first paragraph of the topic clocks and watches in the two-volume "Japan: An Illustrated Encyclopedia" (Kodansha 1993) should suffice in the meantime.

(tokei) The earliest reference to a timepiece in Japan appears in the historical chronicle Nihon shoki (720), which mentions a water clock constructed in the year 670. The date of its first use corresponds to 10 June in the modern calendar and is commemorated in Japan as Toki no Kinembi (Time Day). (p. 209)

Moreover, there is one more thing I’ve found strange, not conforming to the general style of writing diaries, that is, Izumi Shikibu (Diary III) has written by using the third person pronouns while the diarist (Diary I) and Murasaki Shikibu (Diary II) have done by using the first person pronoun, for example:

It was still daylight, and he secretly called his servant Ukon-no-zo, who had usually been the medium by which the letters had reached the Prince, and said, “I am going somewhere.” The man understood and made preparations. (p. 156)

I became ill, and now it is the Province of Totomi. I had almost lost consciousness when I crossed the mountain pass of Sayo-no-Nakayama […]. I was quite exhausted, so when we came to the bank of the Tenryu River, we had a temporary dwelling built, and passed several days there, and I got better. … (p. 13)

There is a lady, Saemon-no-Naishi, who unreasonably cherished hatred of me. I was not at first aware of it, but later heard of much criticism of me in my absence. Once the King was listening to a reading of my Genji-monogatari, and said, “She is gifted, she must have read the Chronicle of Japan.” … (p. 138)

Therefore, we can see that Izumi Shikibu has placed herself as an observer who guides her readers to see and follow the characters and the scenes whereas Ladies I and II themselves have written as the true pioneering diarists.

[Orinoco Womble (tidy bag and all) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Much more readable than some of the modern translations of these works. Shelved as 1920s because that's when this Gutenberg translation was produced. At first I thought that the Lady Izumi's diary was more of a romance novel, as it sounded very much like the ladies in Shin Genji Monogatari who lived in the countryside and hoped against hope for a visit from their noble lovers. Then I realised that she is mentioned in the Lady Murasaki's diary as a "scandalous" woman given her affair with the prince and her going and coming to and from the court. It was also interesting to read passing mentions of Sei Shonagon and realise how admired she was--even if cattily by some of the court ladies. I can see this will be a good reread for evenings when I want to relax.

The book includes a few simple illustrations which reveal court dress and the layout of noble houses and palaces of the time. Modern editors please take note!

[Lizzie · Rating 4 out of 5]

There's nothing like a Heian lady's diary to remind you that people have always been people. Shout out the author of the Sarashina diary for demonstrating that even 1000 years ago teenagers were fantasising about fictional men

[Evie · Rating 5 out of 5]

The elegance and astute observations of daily life found within these journals really made me reflect on how we interact with one another now. Of course, I'm nowhere near Japan, nor do I have a real sense of what Japanese life is like away from fiction and pop culture representations. Still, I wonder where the refinement went. When did we stop writing little poems to each other to express and suggest our sentiments? Where do people dress themselves as an art form, rather than trying to make a pretentious statement? These women have such exquisite taste that it might seem a bit ridiculous, but there's something to be gained from reading it all. Japan has never surpassed this era's aesthetics. I don't think anyone has. Will we ever?

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very special book that will be appreciated greatly by a small proportion of readers. Readers who are interested in history and/or culture will find it fascinating, as will readers who can accept that a number of behaviors and attitudes that we now find reproachable were the norm at the time the diaries were written.

My one objection to the book is that I did not understand the significance of many entries. How would a contemporary of the authors have understood the actions described? Maybe there is no "so what" to the events that puzzled me. But, I would have appreciated more extensive annotations.

I was most impressed by the continuity I saw in Japanese culture. Many of the values reflected in the diaries are still highly prized today. Impressive.

[Rubí Santander · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 Me gustó a secas, creo que mi casi nula información sobre Japón hizo que no disfrutara de este libro del cual he oído y leído buenas críticas. No fue el libro creo que soy yo.

[Amy Beck · Rating 5 out of 5]

As an avid kdrama addict, Japanophile, and lover of Asian novels, sewer/fashionista and more, this book was right up my alley. While others might find it tedious, reading about the beautiful garments worn, the romance of poems, even court gossip and backstabbing had my attention fully captured. I had read Murasaki's Diary in the past because The Tale of Genji is one main factor that has had me enamored with all things Asian since my high school years...and I'm retired now! She is a heroine of mine.

Izumi Shikibu's diary frustrated me. There were so many entries of her waffling on whether or not to move to the court... However, the seemingly-endless back-and-forth poems filled with dew-stained sleeves and such still remained interesting to me.

[Yani Daniele · Rating 3 out of 5]

Amo la cultura japonesa y es esto lo que me impulso a leer este libro que en realidad está formado por 3 libros independientes llamados diarios, cada uno escrito por una mujer que perteneció a la era Heian con personalidades muy distintas y una forma de expresarse aún más diferente. De los 3 diarios, me encantaron el primero y el tercero, pero el segundo fue una completa tortura y la razón de tan baja rating.

Una reseña más extensa en: Pensamientos Libres

[Matilda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Plus 3,5 étoiles.

[Dahny · Rating 5 out of 5]

The feeling that emerges from these three diaries is one of deep sadness combined with the poignant desire to transcend one's own unsatisfactory and limited existence. Fulfillment, found in the communion with the other, in the jointing of souls, proves to be unattainable, which pushes the individual to what is, essentially, a solitary life.
•
The Sarashina Diary is poetic and touching. The author’s personality is shown to be contemplative and fragile, pious and sensitive, prone to melancholy. (5/5 stars)

Lady Murasaki Shikibu's diary reveals that its writer is an astute observer of people and their daily life, a person who manifests a clear interest in the external world, but without neglecting the internal one. (4.5/5 stars)

Lady Izumi Shikibu's diary describes the anguish and levity that often accompany romantic love. (4/5 stars)

My rating: 4.5 stars

[Meghan Fidler · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book contains three Diaries of Court Ladies: The Sarashina Dairy: 更級日記 (Sarashina Nikki), The Diary of Murasaki Shikibu 紫式部日記 (Murasaki Shikibu Nikki), and The Dairy of Izumi Shikibu 和泉式部日記(Izumi Shikibu Nikki).
My favorite was Murasaki's diary. In its pages were not only deep descriptions of the rituals behind births at court, and the rituals of copying and giving books for gifts, but also the attitudes towards reading. As she describes returning to her apartment in her later years:
"On either side of the koto stands a lute [Japanese biwa]. A pair of big bookcases have in them all the books they can hold. In one of them are placed old poems and romances. They are the homes of worms which come frightening us when we turn the pages, so none ever wish to read them. [Perhaps her own writings, she speaks so slightingly of them.] As to the other cabinet, since the person [her husband was a scholar in Chinese literature. He did in 1001, its 1008] who places his own books [there] no hand has touched it. When I am bored to death I take out one or two of them; then my maids gather around me and say: ‘your life will not be favored with old age if you do such a thing! Why do you read Chinese? FOrmerely even the reading of the sutras was not encouraged for women.’ The rebuke me in the shade [i.e. behind my back]. I have heard of it and have wished to say, ‘it is far from certain that he who does no forbidden thing enjoys a long life,’ but it would be a lack of reserve to say it [to the maids]. Or deeds vary with our age and with the individual. Some are proud [to read books], other look over old cast-away writings because they are bored with having nothing to do. It would not be becoming ofr such a one to chatter away about religious thoughts, noisily shaking the rosary. I feel this, and before my women keep myself from doing what otherwise I could easily do. But after all, when I was among the ladies of the Court I did not say what I wanted to say either, for it was useless to talk with those who do not understand one and troublesome to talk with those who criticize from a feeling of superiority."

The last Dairy, The Dairy of Izumi Shikibu 和泉式部日記, bored me to death. Perhaps its because I become easily annoyed with female characters (it is written as if it is a fiction account of another woman's love affair whose entire being are subsumed under the whims of a man. ... Though it could be annoying because there is a tiny hidden secret part of me which reflects these narratives.
But, to give a synopsis and a snipet of annoyance, the diary follows this format: For many months I have been lamenting the world [‘yononaka,' i.e. love affairs]... Blah blah blah... the prince sees me, writes poems, comes, doesn’t come, writes, doesn’t write…

And the Snipet? The Prince hasn't visited her bed in months, so the write and don't write, whereupon...
"Toward the moon-hidden day she had another letter. After excusing himself for his late neglect he wrote:
I have an awkward thing to ask you. There is a lady with whom I have been secretly intimate. She is going away to a distant province and I want to send her a poem which will touch her heart deeply. Everything you write touches me, so please compose a poem for me.
She was unwilling conceitedl to carry out his wishes, but she thought it too prudish to refuse him, so she wrote the words: ‘how can I satisfy you?’
Her poem: In the tears of regret/ your image will linger long/ even after Chilly autumn has gone by.
It is painful for me to write a heartfelt letter in your place.
And on the margin she wrote: Leaving you, where can she go?/ For me no other life.
The prince wrote back: Very good poem is all that I can say. I cannot say that you have expressed my heart. Forsaking me she wanders away. So let it be./ Let me think of you, the unexcelled one./There is not another.

Thus I can live on."

ummm...yay?


I also enjoyed the first entry in the book, The Sarashina Dairy: 更級日記. It is much of a travel log, filled with the movements of a young girl in and out of the worlds presented by romance stories, court life, and family separations. Her love of books is one of my own familiars in life.
I loved her unadulterated joy upon receiving the some of her favorites:

"While my parents were shutting themselves up in Udzu-Masa [Buddhist retreat that was a custom to go to] Temple, I asked them for nothing except this romance, wishing to read it as soon as I could get it, but all in vain. I was inconsolable. One day I visited my aunt, who had recently come up from the country. She showed a tender interest in me and lovingly said I had grown up beautifully. On my return she said: “What shall I give you? You will not be interested in serious things: I will give you what you like best.” And she gave me more than fifty volumes of Genji-monogatari put in a case, as well as Isé-monogatari, Togimi, Serikawa, Shirara, and Asa-udzu [some of these not known now]. How happy I was when I came home carrying these books in a bag! Until then I had only read a volume here and there, and was dissatisfied because I could not understand the story. Now I could be absorbed in these stories, taking them out one by one, shutting myself in behind the kichō. To be a Queen were nothing compared to this!
All day and all night, as late as I could keep my eyes open, I did nothing but look at the books, setting a lamp close beside me."

Ahh, what a nice image.

[Michael Arnold · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting stuff.

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Un libro lleno de historia, cultura, poesía y tradición; fenomenal. No se trata de una historia de ficción, si no de la vivencia de estas mujeres, los días en la corte o en sus respectivas casas, todo esto contado desde su perspectiva, con su propia forma de sobrellevar el dolor, de entender y aceptar "su destino" o la lucha con sus "deberes espirituales". Además, contiene mucha información de estudiosos de esta cultura y la Era Heian en particular.

[Kathryn · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my all-time favorite books, found by accident while browsing the library shelves at college. I recently decided I needed to own it, and found two first editions in reasonable condition via Alibris. Joy!

[Jane Potter · Rating 2 out of 5]

3 very different women. Really learned a lot about those times. The last diary- the love affair with the Prince was crap! He]s a jerk! I started to loose respect for her because she didn]t tell the Prince to get lost- and even after he made her write a poem for this other women he]s in love with!

[Lia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Passionate Japanese woman, her thoughts, her dreams, her pain and sorrow. Such a beautiful world of old Japan.

[Nymeria · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book shows us three diaries, written by three women with very different personalities (and, therefore, perspectives): Izumi Shikibu, Murasaki Shikibu and Lady Sarashina. Each diary is unique and it is complicated to say which one is the best, so I will remark what I have enjoyed the most about each one.

Poetry in Izumi Shikibu's diary is quite delicious. Even though it looks like a novel written by a third person, the poems fit very well the reputation that Izumi herself earned as a poet. However, I have found the story of this diary a bit simple and it is the one I have enjoyed the least.

Criticism is a word that looks suitable when we talk about Murasaki Shikibu (who is not a relative of Izumi, since Shikibu is not a surname, but a rank). Sometimes, she looks resentful towards her contemporaries (like Sei Shonagon or Izumi Shikibu herself), which may lead to the conclusion that these authors might have criticized Murasaki's literary work. Despite this straightforward tone, I feel I have connected very well with the ideas that Murasaki transmits. Personally, I have felt very isolated in certain moments of my life and this has made me develop some critical thoughts. Just as Murasaki did. The only thing that annoyed me in certain passages are her descriptions (mainly, the ones which involved the number of uchikis that every single character wore...).

Lady Sarashina's diary has been my favourite one: it includes good poems, an interesting story and a main character who shows her feelings in a way which allows the reader to connect easily with her. Plus, we can appreciate Lady Sarashina's evolution, since her diary follows up a significative period of her life.

As a whole, the reality shown in these diaries might look strange and exotic. Sometimes it seems a bit weird and too elegant, but these features are the ones who make Heian-period literature a great ally to disconnect from our frenetic everyday life.

[Karla Baldeon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review on Spanish.

Es importante leer literatura asiática, el contraste de pensamiento y de épocas dispares nos otorga un asidero para infinitas posibilidades que nuestras miradas atentas deben seguir. Y es mucho más importante cuando, como mujer, lees literatura clásica de mujeres y puedes atisbar el pensamiento oculto tras milenios de silencio. Es una lectura lenta y minuciosa, con mucho transfondo de por medio que un lector sin previos saberes encontrará difícil de asimilar, pero que una vez que se te hace comprensible es infinitamente satisfactorio y recomendable.
En otras palabras, no es lectura sencilla a menos que tengas un estudio previo de la cultura y de la simbología y costumbres de sus ceremonias, pero una vez que las dominas, es sumamente interesante y educativa. Ya me había adaptado a este tipo de lecturas con La historia de Genji de Murasaki, pero volver a sus recuerdos y con nuevas voces de diferentes esferas de la aristocracia de principios del primer milenio ha sido una nueva experiencia por demás bella. Experiencia que me ha dejado improvisando poemas a modo de cartas de contestación como las hacían sus protagonistas por aquella era.
Como los árboles en el Otoño,
también las hojas de aquellos recuerdos llegan a su fin.
Resurgen como jilgueros
Las voces de elegantes damas.

[María Eva · Rating 5 out of 5]

3 mujeres distintas pertenecientes a la época Heian. A pesar de la diferencia de años (y de cultura), sus palabras no parecen sentir el desgaste del tiempo. Mujeres con opiniones fuertes, marcadas por el dolor y el pasar de los días en la corte. El Diario de Sarashina tiene pasajes hermosos en relación a la naturaleza, por otro lado en diario de Izumi Shikibu se siente algo "raro" ya que se encuentra en tercera persona (lo cual ha llevado a dudar de su veracidad), mientras que el de Murasaki me ha parecido genial con todas las críticas que hace a las damas de la corte.

[Sjervey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Diaries from Murasaki Shikubu, Japan's first novelist, Izumi Shikubu, one of Japan's greatest poets and the Lady Sarashina provide an extraordinary and delicate view of court life in Heian Japan. A wonderful collection. The difficult social situation of court women of the time provides a quick introduction. For a fuller picture, read Murasaki's Tale of Genji, which I think can be fairly described as a picture of how one Heian lady would like Heian gentlemen to behave. .

[Marcela Gutiérrez · Rating 3 out of 5]

Es una buena lectura cuando se quiere tener una mejor contexto de la cultura literaria de la cultura nipona. Es una lectura algo lenta, cuesta un poco entenderla, pues siento que la poesía compartida en este libro necesita de mucho contexto y de una comprensión demasiado redonda de la sociedad japonesa. Ofrece datos muy interesantes del japones como lenguaje y de la cultura política del japón de esa época.

[Tiff · Rating 3 out of 5]

read murasaki & izumi's entries a while back, then finished the sarashina diary today. of these i like sarashina's most; much slower paced and more melancholy than the pillow book, less focused on court matters but still poignant. lady sarashina's dreams of a fairytale romance, then, decades later, the eventual despair of a life unfulfilled, really hits home.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5 stars

A very interesting look into life in Japan during the 11th century! I think my consistent favorite of the diaries was the very first, the Sarashina Diary. It was really fascinating, however, to see each author's different insights and styles.

[Ocean G]

An interesting collection. I can't really give it a rating. My favorite (and the one most resembling a diary, albeit a disjointed one) was Lady Sarashina's. But they were each different and singular. I don't know why the collection wouldn't include The Gossamer years, but there you go.

[Yesenia · Rating 4 out of 5]

absolutely beautiful.
written around 1000 c.e., these three diaries are breathtakingly beautiful. lovely

[Jennifer Booth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great glimpse of another time and culture

I love it. The stories of the stately courts of pre-Edo Japan with great footnotes was a way taking peek into a forgotten time.

[Rosalynd · Rating 4 out of 5]

No es competencia.

[Aminah Aminah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely beautiful imagery. I love this collection. Would definitely read again. I read this book in kindle format and will be ordering a hard copy soon. It’s worth keeping.