ΠΑΟΥΝΤ CERTAIN NOBLE PLAYS OF JAPAN.doc

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Ezra Pound

Etext prepared by David Starner, Marlo Dianne, Charles Franks, and the

Online Distributed Proofreading ea!

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$n the series of books $ edit for !y sister $ /onfine !yself to those

that have $ believe so!e spe/ial value to $reland, no0 or in the future1

$ have asked Mr1 Pound for these beautiful plays be/ause $ think they

0ill help !e to explain a /ertain possibility of the $rish dra!ati/

!ove!ent1 $ a! 0riting these 0ords 0ith !y i!agination stirred by a visit

to the studio of Mr1 Dula/, the distinguished illustrator of the #rabian

%ights1 $ sa0 there the !ask and head2dress to be 0orn in a play of !ine by the player 0ho 0ill speak the part of Cu/hulain, and 0ho 0earing

this noble half23reek half2#siati/ fa/e 0ill appear perhaps like an i!age

seen in revery by so!e Orphi/ 0orshipper1 $ hope to have attained the

distan/e fro! life 0hi/h /an !ake /redible strange events, elaborate

0ords1 $ have 0ritten a little play that /an be played in a roo! for so

little !oney that forty or fifty readers of poetry /an pay the pri/e1

here 0ill be no s/enery, for three !usi/ians, 0hose see!ing sun2burned

fa/es 0ill $ hope suggest that they have 0andered fro! village to village

in so!e /ountry of our drea!s, /an des/ribe pla/e and 0eather, and at

!o!ents a/tion, and a//o!pany it all by dru! and gong or flute and

dul/i!er1 $nstead of the players 0orking the!selves into a violen/e of passion inde/orous in our sitting2roo!, the !usi/, the beauty of for! and



voi/e all /o!e to /li!ax in panto!i!i/ dan/e1

$n fa/t 0ith the help of these plays 4translated by Ernest Fenollosa and

finished by Ezra Pound4 $ have invented a for! of dra!a, distinguished,

indire/t and sy!boli/, and having no need of !ob or press to pay its

0ay22an aristo/rati/ for!1 .hen this play and its perfor!an/e run ass!oothly as !y skill /an !ake the!, $ shall hope to 0rite another of the

sa!e sort and so /o!plete a dra!ati/ /elebration of the life of Cu/hulain

planned long ago1 hen having given enough perfor!an/es for $ hope the

pleasure of personal friends and a fe0 s/ore people of good taste, $

shall re/ord all dis/overies of !ethod and turn to so!ething else1 $t is

an advantage of this noble for! that it need absorb no one4s life, that

its fe0 properties /an be pa/ked up in a box, or hung upon the 0alls

0here they 0ill be fine orna!ents1

$$

#nd yet this si!plifi/ation is not !ere e/ono!y1 For nearly three

/enturies invention has been !aking the hu!an voi/e and the !ove!ents of

the body see! al0ays less expressive1 $ have long been puzzled 0hy

passages, that are !oving 0hen read out or spoken during rehearsal, see!

!uffled or dulled during perfor!an/e1 $ have si!plified s/enery, having

4he +our 3lass4 for instan/e played no0 before green /urtains, no0 a!ong

those ad!irable ivory2/oloured s/reens invented by 3ordon Craig1 .ith

every si!plifi/ation the voi/e has re/overed so!ething of its i!portan/e

and yet 0hen verse has approa/hed in te!per to let us say 45ubla 5han,4

or 4he Ode to the .est .ind,4 the !ost typi/al !odern verse, $ have

still felt as if the sound /a!e to !e fro! behind a veil1 he stage2

opening, the po0erful light and shade, the nu!ber of feet bet0een

!yself and the players have destroyed inti!a/y1 $ have found !yself

thinking of players 0ho needed perhaps but to unroll a !at in so!e

Eastern garden1 %or have $ felt this only 0hen $ listened to

spee/h, but even !ore 0hen $ have 0at/hed the !ove!ent of a player or

heard singing in a play1 $ love all the arts that /an still re!ind !e of

their origin a!ong the /o!!on people, and !y ears are only /o!fortable

0hen the singer sings as if !ere spee/h had taken fire, 0hen he appears

to have passed into song al!ost i!per/eptibly1 $ a! bored and 0ret/hed,a li!itation $ greatly regret, 0hen he see!s no longer a hu!an being but

an invention of s/ien/e1 o explain hi! to !yself $ say that he has

be/o!e a 0ind instru!ent and sings no longer like a/tive !en, sailor or

/a!el driver, be/ause he has had to /o!pete 0ith an or/hestra, 0here the

loudest instru!ent has al0ays survived1 he hu!an voi/e /an only be/o!e

louder by be/o!ing less arti/ulate, by dis/overing so!e ne0 !usi/al sort

of roar or s/rea!1 #s poetry /an do neither, the voi/e !ust be freed

fro! this /o!petition and find itself a!ong little instru!ents, only

heard at their best perhaps 0hen 0e are /lose about the!1 $t should be

again possible for a fe0 poets to 0rite as all did on/e, not for the

printed page but to be sung1 &ut !ove!ent also has gro0n less expressive,!ore de/la!atory, less inti!ate1 .hen $ /alled the other day upon a



friend $ found !yself a!ong so!e dozen people 0ho 0ere 0at/hing a group

of Spanish boys and girls, professional dan/ers, dan/ing so!e national

dan/e in the !idst of a dra0ing2roo!1 Doubtless their training had been

long, laborious and 0eariso!e6 but no0 one /ould not be de/eived, their

!ove!ent 0as full of 7oy1 hey 0ere a!ong friends, and it all see!ed

but the play of /hildren6 ho0 po0erful it see!ed, ho0 passionate, 0hilean even !ore !ira/ulous art, separated fro! us by the footlights,

appeared in the /o!parison laborious and professional1 $t is 0ell to

be /lose enough to an artist to feel for hi! a personal liking, /lose

enough perhaps to feel that our liking is returned1

My play is !ade possible by a )apanese dan/er 0ho! $ have seen dan/e in a

studio and in a dra0ing2roo! and on a very s!all stage lit by an

ex/ellent stage2light1 $n the studio and in the dra0ing2roo! alone 0here

the lighting 0as the light 0e are !ost a//usto!ed to, did $ see hi! as

the tragi/ i!age that has stirred !y i!agination1 here 0here no

studied lighting, no stage2pi/ture !ade an artifi/ial 0orld, he 0as able,as he rose fro! the floor, 0here he had been sitting /rossed2legged or as

he thre0 out an ar!, to re/ede fro! us into so!e !ore po0erful life1

&e/ause that separation 0as a/hieved by hu!an !eans alone, he re/eded,

but to inhabit as it 0ere the deeps of the !ind1 One realised ane0,

at every separating strangeness, that the !easure of all arts4 greatness

/an be but in their inti!a/y1

$$$

#ll i!aginative art keeps at a distan/e and this distan/e on/e /hosen

!ust be fir!ly held against a pushing 0orld1 8erse, ritual, !usi/ and

dan/e in asso/iation 0ith a/tion re9uire that gesture, /ostu!e, fa/ial

expression, stage arrange!ent !ust help in keeping the door1 Our

uni!aginative arts are /ontent to set a pie/e of the 0orld as 0e kno0 it

in a pla/e by itself, to put their photographs as it 0ere in a plush or a

plain fra!e, but the arts 0hi/h interest !e, 0hile see!ing to separate

fro! the 0orld and us a group of figures, i!ages, sy!bols, enable us to

pass for a fe0 !o!ents into a deep of the !ind that had hitherto been too

subtle for our habitation1 #s a deep of the !ind /an only be approa/hed

through 0hat is !ost hu!an, !ost deli/ate, 0e should distrust bodilydistan/e, !e/hanis! and loud noise1

$t !ay be 0ell if 0e go to s/hool in #sia, for the distan/e fro! life in

European art has /o!e fro! little but diffi/ulty 0ith !aterial1 $n half2

#siati/ 3ree/e 5alli!a/hos /ould still return to a stylisti/ !anage!ent

of the falling folds of drapery, after the naturalisti/ drapery of

Phidias, and in Egypt the sa!e age that sa0 the village +ead2!an /arved

in 0ood for burial in so!e to!b 0ith so /o!plete a naturalis! sa0, set up

in publi/ pla/es, statues full of an august for!ality that i!plies

traditional !easure!ents, a philosophi/ defen/e1 he spiritual painting

of the :;th /entury passed on into intoretto and that of 8elas9uez into!odern painting 0ith no sense of loss to 0eigh against the gain, 0hile



the painting of )apan, not having our European Moon to /hurn the 0its,

has understood that no styles that ever delighted noble i!aginations have

lost their i!portan/e, and /hooses the style a//ording to the sub7e/t1

$n literature also 0e have had the illusion of /hange and progress, the

art of Shakespeare passing into that of Dryden, and so into the prose

dra!a, by 0hat has see!ed 0hen studied in its details unbroken progress1+ad 0e been 3reeks, and so but half2European, an honourable !ob 0ould

have !artyred though in vain the first !an 0ho set up a painted s/ene, or

0ho /o!plained that solilo9uies 0ere unnatural, instead of repeating 0ith

a sigh, 40e /annot return to the arts of /hildhood ho0ever beautiful14

Only our lyri/ poetry has kept its #siati/ habit and rene0ed itself at

its o0n youth, putting off perpetually 0hat has been /alled its progress

in a series of violent revolutions1

herefore it is natural that $ go to #sia for a stage2/onvention, for

!ore for!al fa/es, for a /horus that has no part in the a/tion and

perhaps for those !ove!ents of the body /opied fro! the !arionette sho0sof the :;th /entury1 # !ask 0ill enable !e to substitute for the fa/e of

so!e /o!!on2pla/e player, or for that fa/e repainted to suit his o0n

vulgar fan/y, the fine invention of a s/ulptor, and to bring the audien/e

/lose enough to the play to hear every infle/tion of the voi/e1 # !ask

never see!s but a dirty fa/e, and no !atter ho0 /lose you go is still a

0ork of art6 nor shall 0e lose by staying the !ove!ent of the features,

for deep feeling is expressed by a !ove!ent of the 0hole body1 $n

poeti/al painting < in s/ulpture the fa/e see!s the nobler for la/king

/uriosity, alert attention, all that 0e su! up under the fa!ous 0ord of

the realists 4vitality14 $t is even possible that being is only possessed

/o!pletely by the dead, and that it is so!e kno0ledge of this that

!akes us gaze 0ith so !u/h e!otion upon the fa/e of the Sphinx or &uddha1

.ho /an forget the fa/e of Chaliapine as the Mogul 5ing in Prin/e $gor,

0hen a !ask /overing its upper portion !ade hi! see! like a Phoenix at

the end of its thousand 0ise years, a0aiting in /ondes/ension the burning

nest and 0hat did it not gain fro! that i!!obility in dignity and in

po0er=

$8

"ealis! is /reated for the /o!!on people and 0as al0ays their pe/uliar

delight, and it is the delight to2day of all those 0hose !inds edu/ated

alone by s/hool2!asters and ne0spapers are 0ithout the !e!ory of beauty

and e!otional subtlety1 he o//asional hu!orous realis! that so !u/h

heightened the e!otional effe/t of Elizabethan ragedy, Cleopatra4s old

!an 0ith an asp let us say, /arrying the tragi/ /risis by its /ontrast

above the tide2!ark of Corneille4s /ourtly theatre, 0as !ade at the

outset to please the /o!!on /itizen standing on the rushes of the floor6

but the great spee/hes 0ere 0ritten by poets 0ho re!e!bered their patrons

in the /overed galleries1 he fanati/ Savonarola 0as but dead a /entury,

and his la!entation in the frenzy of his rhetori/, that every prin/e of the Chur/h or State throughout Europe 0as 0holly o//upied 0ith the fine



arts, had still its !oiety of truth1 # poeti/al passage /annot be

understood 0ithout a ri/h !e!ory, and like the older s/hool of painting

appeals to a tradition, and that not !erely 0hen it speaks of 4'ethe4s

.harf4 or 4Dido on the 0ild sea2banks4 but in rhyth!, in vo/abulary6 for

the ear !ust noti/e slight variations upon old /aden/es and /usto!ary

0ords, all that high breeding of poeti/al style 0here there is nothingostentatious, nothing /rude, no breath of parvenu or 7ournalist1

'et us press the popular arts on to a !ore /o!plete realis!, for that

0ould be their honesty6 and the /o!!er/ial arts de!oralise by their

/o!pro!ise, their in/o!pleteness, their idealis! 0ithout sin/erity

or elegan/e, their preten/e that ignoran/e /an understand beauty1 $n the

studio and in the dra0ing2roo! 0e /an found a true theatre of beauty1

Poets fro! the ti!e of 5eats and &lake have derived their des/ent only

through 0hat is least de/la!atory, least popular in the art of

Shakespeare, and in su/h a theatre they 0ill find their habitual

audien/e and keep their freedo!1 Europe is very old and has seen !anyarts run through the /ir/le and has learned the fruit of every flo0er and

kno0n 0hat this fruit sends up, and it is no0 ti!e to /opy the East and

live deliberately1

8

4(e shall not, 0hile ye tarry 0ith !e, taste

Fro! unrinsed barrel the diluted 0ine

Of a lo0 vineyard or a plant illpruned,

&ut su/h as an/iently the #egean $sles

Poured in libation at their sole!n feasts*

#nd the sa!e goblets shall ye grasp e!bost

.ith no vile figures of loose languid boors,

&ut su/h as 3ods have lived 0ith and have led14

he %oh theatre of )apan be/a!e popular at the /lose of the :;th /entury,

gathering into itself dan/es perfor!ed at Shinto shrines in honour of

spirits and gods or by young nobles at the /ourt, and !u/h old lyri/

poetry, and re/eiving its philosophy and its final shape perhaps fro!

priests of a /onte!plative s/hool of &uddhis!1 # s!all dai!io or feudallord of the an/ient /apital %ara, a /onte!porary of Chau/er4s, 0as the

author, or perhaps only the stage2!anager, of !any plays1 +e brought the!

to the /ourt of the Shogun at 5ioto1 Fro! that on the Shogun and his

/ourt 0ere as busy 0ith dra!ati/ poetry as the Mikado and his 0ith lyri/1

.hen for the first ti!e +a!let 0as being played in 'ondon %oh 0as !ade a

ne/essary part of offi/ial /ere!onies at 5ioto, and young nobles and

prin/es, forbidden to attend the popular theatre in )apan as else0here

a pla/e of !i!i/ry and naturalis! 0ere en/ouraged to 0itness and to

perfor! in spe/ta/les 0here spee/h, !usi/, song and dan/e /reated an

i!age of nobility and strange beauty1 .hen the !odern revolution /a!e,

%oh after a brief unpopularity 0as played for the first ti!e in /ertain/ere!onious publi/ theatres, and :>?@ a battleship 0as na!ed akasago,



after one of its !ost fa!ous plays1 So!e of the old noble fa!ilies are

to2day very poor, their !en it !ay be but servants and labourers, but

they still fre9uent these theatres1 4#//o!plish!ent4 the 0ord %oh !eans,

and it is their a//o!plish!ent and that of a fe0 /ultured people 0ho

understand the literary and !ythologi/al allusions and the an/ient lyri/s

9uoted in spee/h or /horus, their dis/ipline, a part of their breeding1he players the!selves, unlike the despised players of the popular

theatre, have passed on proudly fro! father to son an elaborate art, and

even no0 a player 0ill publish his fa!ily tree to prove his skill1 One

player 0rote in :?AB in a business /ir/ular22$ a! 9uoting fro! Mr1

Pound4s reda/tion of the %otes of Fenollosa22that after thirty

generations of nobles a 0o!an of his house drea!ed that a !ask 0as

/arried to her fro! heaven, and soon after she bore a son 0ho be/a!e a

player and the father of players1 +is fa!ily he de/lared still possessed

a letter fro! a :th /entury Mikado /onferring upon the! a theatre2

/urtain, 0hite belo0 and purple above1

here 0ere five fa!ilies of these players and, forbidden before the

"evolution to perfor! in publi/, they had re/eived grants of land or

salaries fro! the state1 he 0hite and purple /urtain 0as no doubt to

hang upon a 0all behind the players or over their entran/e door for the

%oh stage is a platfor! surrounded upon three sides by the audien/e1 %o

4naturalisti/4 effe/t is sought1 he players 0ear !asks and found their

!ove!ents upon those of puppets* the !ost fa!ous of all )apanese

dra!atists /o!posed entirely for puppets1 # s0ift or a slo0 !ove!ent and

a long or a short stillness, and then another !ove!ent1 hey sing as !u/h

as they speak, and there is a /horus 0hi/h des/ribes the s/ene and

interprets their thought and never be/o!es as in the 3reek theatre a

part of the a/tion1 #t the /li!ax instead of the disordered passion of

nature there is a dan/e, a series of positions < !ove!ents 0hi/h !ay

represent a battle, or a !arriage, or the pain of a ghost in the &uddhist

purgatory1 $ have lately studied /ertain of these dan/es, 0ith )apanese

players, and $ noti/e that their ideal of beauty, unlike that of 3ree/e

and like that of pi/tures fro! )apan and China, !akes the! pause at

!o!ents of !us/ular tension1 he interest is not in the hu!an for! but in

the rhyth! to 0hi/h it !oves, and the triu!ph of their art is to express

the rhyth! in its intensity1 here are fe0 s0aying !ove!ents of ar!s or

body su/h as !ake the beauty of our dan/ing1 hey !ove fro! the hip,keeping /onstantly the upper part of their body still, and see! to

asso/iate 0ith every gesture or pose so!e definite thought1 hey /ross

the stage 0ith a sliding !ove!ent, and one gets the i!pression not of

undulation but of /ontinuous straight lines1

he Print "oo! of the &ritish Museu! is no0 /losed as a 0ar2e/ono!y, so $

/an only 0rite fro! !e!ory of theatri/al /olour2prints, 0here a ship is

represented by a !ere skeleton of 0illo0s or osiers painted green, or a

fruit tree by a bush in a pot, and 0here a/tors have tied on their !asks

0ith ribbons that are gathered into a bun/h behind the head1 $t is a

/hild4s ga!e be/o!e the !ost noble poetry, and there is no observation of life, be/ause the poet 0ould set before us all those things 0hi/h 0e feel



and i!agine in silen/e1

Mr1 Ezra Pound has found a!ong the Fenollosa !anus/ripts a story

traditional a!ong )apanese players1 # young !an 0as follo0ing a stately

old 0o!an through the streets of a )apanese to0n, and presently she

turned to hi! and spoke* 4.hy do you follo0 !e=4 4&e/ause you are sointeresting14 4hat is not so, $ a! too old to be interesting14 &ut he

0ished he told her to be/o!e a player of old 0o!en on the %oh stage1 4$f

he 0ould be/o!e fa!ous as a %oh player she said, he !ust not observe

life, nor put on an old voi/e and stint the !usi/ of his voi/e1 +e

!ust kno0 ho0 to suggest an old 0o!an and yet find it all in the heart14

8$

$n the plays the!selves $ dis/over a beauty or a subtlety that $ /an

tra/e perhaps to their threefold origin1 he love2sorro0s, the love of father and daughter, of !other and son, of boy and girl, !ay o0e their

nobility to a /ourtly life, but he to 0ho! the adventures happen, a

traveller /o!!only fro! so!e distant pla/e, is !ost often a &uddhist

priest6 and the o//asional intelle/tual subtlety is perhaps &uddhist1 he

adventure itself is often the !eeting 0ith ghost, god or goddess at so!e

holy pla/e or !u/h2legended to!b6 and god, goddess or ghost re!inds

!e at ti!es of our o0n $rish legends and beliefs, 0hi/h on/e it !ay be

differed little fro! those of the Shinto 0orshipper1

he feather2!antle, for 0hose la/k the !oon goddess, or should 0e /all

her fairy= /annot return to the sky, is the red /ap 0hose theft /an keep

our fairies of the sea upon dry land6 and the ghost2lovers in 4%ishikigi4

re!ind !e of the #ran boy and girl 0ho in 'ady 3regory4s story /o!e to

the priest after death to be !arried1 hese )apanese poets too feel for

to!b and 0ood the e!otion, the sense of a0e that our 3aeli/ speaking

/ountry people 0ill so!e ti!es sho0 0hen you speak to the! of Castle

+a/kett or of so!e +oly .ell6 and that is 0hy perhaps it pleases the! to

begin so !any plays by a raveller asking his 0ay 0ith !any 9uestions, a

/onvention agreeable to !e6 for 0hen $ first began to 0rite poeti/al

plays for an $rish theatre $ had to put a0ay an a!bition of helping to

bring again to /ertain pla/es, their old san/tity or their ro!an/e1 $/ould lay the s/ene of a play on &aile4s Strand, but $ found no pause in

the hurried a/tion for des/riptions of strand or sea or the great ye0

tree that on/e stood there6 and $ /ould not in 4he 5ing4s hreshold4

find roo!, before $ began the an/ient story, to /all up the shallo0 river

and the fe0 trees and ro/ky fields of !odern 3ort1 &ut in the 4%ishikigi4

the tale of the lovers 0ould lose its pathos if 0e did not see that

forgotten to!b 0here 4the hiding fox4 lives a!ong 4the or/hids and the

/hrysanthe!u! flo0ers14 he !en 0ho /reated this /onvention 0ere !ore

like ourselves than 0ere the 3reeks and "o!ans, !ore like us even than

are Shakespeare and Corneille1 heir e!otion 0as self2/ons/ious and

re!inis/ent, al0ays asso/iating itself 0ith pi/tures and poe!s1 hey!easured all that ti!e had taken or 0ould take a0ay and found their



delight in re!e!bering /elebrated lovers in the s/enery pale passion

loves1 hey travelled seeking for the strange and for the pi/tures9ue* 4$

go about 0ith !y heart set upon no parti/ular pla/e, no !ore than a

/loud1 $ 0onder no0 0ould the sea be that 0ay, or the little pla/e 5efu

that they say is stu/k do0n against it14 .hen a traveller asks his 0ay of

girls upon the roadside he is dire/ted to find it by /ertain pine trees,0hi/h he 0ill re/ognise be/ause !any people have dra0n the!1

$ 0onder a! $ fan/iful in dis/overing in the plays the!selves fe0

exa!ples have as yet been translated and $ !ay be !isled by a//ident or

the idiosyn/rasy of so!e poet a playing upon a single !etaphor, as

deliberate as the e/hoing rhyth! of line in Chinese and )apanese

painting1 $n the 4%ishikigi4 the ghost of the girl2lover /arries the

/loth she 0ent on 0eaving out of grass 0hen she should have opened the

/ha!ber door to her lover, and 0oven grass returns again and again in

!etaphor and in/ident1 he lovers, no0 that in an aery body they !ust

sorro0 for un/onsu!!ated love, are 4tangled up as the grass patterns aretangled14 #gain they are like an unfinished /loth* 4these bodies, having

no 0eft, even no0 are not /o!e together, truly a sha!eful story, a tale

to bring sha!e on the gods14 &efore they /an bring the priest to the to!b

they spend the day 4pushing aside the grass fro! the overgro0n 0ays in

5efu,4 and the /ountry!an 0ho dire/ts the! is 4/utting grass on the

hill64 < 0hen at last the prayer of the priest unites the! in !arriage

the bride says that he has !ade 4a drea!2bridge over 0ild grass, over the

grass $ d0ell in64 and in the end bride and bridegroo! sho0 the!selves

for a !o!ent 4fro! under the shado0 of the love2grass14

$n 4+agoro!o4 the feather2!antle of the fairy 0o!an /reates also its

rhyth! of !etaphor1 $n the beautiful day of opening spring 4the plu!age

of +eaven drops neither feather nor fla!e,4 4nor is the ro/k of earth

over2!u/h 0orn by the brushing of the feathery skirt of the stars14 One

half re!e!bers a thousand )apanese paintings, or 0hi/hever /o!es first

into the !e!ory1 hat s/reen painted by 5orin, let us say, sho0n lately

at the &ritish Museu!, 0here the sa!e for! is e/hoing in 0ave and in

/loud and in ro/k1 $n European poetry $ re!e!ber Shelley4s /ontinually

repeated fountain and /ave, his broad strea! and solitary star1 $n

negle/ting /hara/ter 0hi/h see!s to us essential in dra!a, as do their

artists in negle/ting relief and depth, 0hen they arrange flo0ers in avase in a thin ro0, they have !ade possible a hundred lovely intri/a/ies1

8$$

hese plays arose in an age of /ontinual 0ar and be/a!e a part of the

edu/ation of soldiers1 hese soldiers, 0hose natures had as !u/h of

.alter Pater as of #/hilles /o!bined 0ith &uddhist priests and 0o!en

to elaborate life in a /ere!ony, the playing of football, the drinking of

tea, and all great events of state, be/o!ing a ritual1 $n the painting

that de/orated their 0alls and in the poetry they re/ited one dis/oversthe only sign of a great age that /annot de/eive us, the !ost vivid and



subtle dis/ri!ination of sense and the invention of i!ages !ore po0erful

than sense6 the /ontinual presen/e of reality1 $t is still true that the

Deity gives us, a//ording to +is pro!ise, not +is thoughts or +is

/onvi/tions but +is flesh and blood, and $ believe that the elaborate

te/hni9ue of the arts, see!ing to /reate out of itself a superhu!an life

has taught !ore !en to die than oratory or the Prayer &ook1 .e only believe in those thoughts 0hi/h have been /on/eived not in the brain but

in the 0hole body1 he Minoan soldier 0ho bore upon his ar! the shield

orna!ented 0ith the dove in the Museu! at Crete, or had upon his head the

hel!et 0ith the 0inged horse, kne0 his role in life1 .hen %obuzane

painted the /hild Saint 5obo, Daishi kneeling full of s0eet austerity

upon the flo0er of the lotus, he set up before our eyes ex9uisite life

and the a//eptan/e of death1

$ /annot i!agine those young soldiers and the 0o!en they loved pleased

0ith the ill2breeding and theatri/ality of Carlyle, nor $ think 0ith the

!agnilo9uen/e of +ugo1 hese things belong to an industrial age, a!e/hani/al se9uen/e of ideas6 but 0hen $ re!e!ber that /urious ga!e 0hi/h

the )apanese /alled, 0ith a /onfusion of the senses that had see!ed

typi/al of our o0n age, 4listening to in/ense,4 $ kno0 that so!e a!ong

the! 0ould have understood the prose of .alter Pater, the painting or

Puvis de Chavannes, the poetry of Mallar!e and 8erlaine1 .hen herois!

returned to our age it bore 0ith it as its first gift te/hni/al

sin/erity1

8$$$

For so!e 0eeks no0 $ have been elaborating !y play in 'ondon 0here alone

$ /an find the help $ need, Mr1 Dula/4s !astery of design and Mr1 $to4s

genius of !ove!ent6 yet it pleases !e to think that $ a! 0orking for !y

o0n /ountry1 Perhaps so!e day a play in the for! $ a! adapting for

European purposes shall a0ake on/e !ore, 0hether in 3aeli/ or in English,

under the slope of Slieve2na2!on or Croagh Patri/k an/ient !e!ories6 for

this for! has no need of s/enery that runs a0ay 0ith !oney nor of a

theatre2building1 (et $ kno0 that $ only a!use !yself 0ith a fan/y6 for

though !y 0ritings if they be sea20orthy !ust put to sea, $ /annot tell

0here they !ay be /arried by the 0ind1 #re not the fairy2stories of Os/ar .ilde, 0hi/h 0ere 0ritten for Mr1 "i/ketts and Mr1 Shannon and for a fe0

ladies, very popular in #rabia=

.1 &1 (eats, #pril :?:B1

%$S+$5$3$



%$S+$5$3$, # P'#( $% .O #CS &( MOO5$(O1

PE"SO%S OF +E P'#(

+E .#5$ # priest

+E S+$E, O" +E"O 3host of the lover

S"E 3host of the 0o!an6 they have both been long

dead, and have not yet been united1

C+O"S

he 4%ishikigi4 are 0ands used as a love /har!1

4+osonuno4 is the na!e of a lo/al /loth 0hi/h the

0o!an 0eaves1

%$S+$5$3$

Part First

.#5$

here never 0as anybody heard of Mount Shinobu but had a kindly feeling

for it6 so $, like any other priest that !ight 0ant to kno0 a little bit

about ea/h one of the provin/es, !ay as 0ell be 0alking up here along the

!u/h travelled road1

$ have not yet been about the east /ountry, but no0 $ have set !y !ind to

go as far as the earth goes6 and 0hy shouldn4t $, after all= seeing that

$ go about 0ith !y heart set upon no parti/ular pla/e 0hatsoever, and0ith no other !an4s flag in !y hand, no !ore than a /loud has1 $t is a

flag of the night $ see /o!ing do0n upon !e1 $ 0onder no0, 0ould the sea

be that 0ay, or the little pla/e 5efu that they say is stu/k do0n against

it=

S+$E to sure

i!es out of !ind a! $ here setting up this bright bran/h, this silky

0ood 0ith the /har!s painted in it as fine as the 0eb you4d get in the

grass2/loth of Shinobu, that they4d be still selling you in this

!ountain1

S+$E #%D S"E



angled, 0e are entangled1 .hose fault 0as it, dear= tangled up as the

grass patterns are tangled up in this /oarse /loth, or as the little

Mushi that lives on and /hirrups in dried sea20eed1 .e do not kno0 0here

are to2day our tears in the undergro0th of this eternal 0ilderness1 .e

neither 0ake nor sleep, and passing our nights in a sorro0 0hi/h is in

the end a vision, 0hat are these s/enes of spring to us= his thinking insleep of so!eone 0ho has no thought of you, is it !ore than a drea!= and

yet surely it is the natural 0ay of love1 $n our hearts there is !u/h and

in our bodies nothing, and 0e do nothing at all, and only the 0aters of

the river of tears flo0 9ui/kly1

C+O"S

%arro0 is the /loth of 5efu, but 0ild is that river, that torrent of the

hills, bet0een the beloved and the bride1

he /loth she had 0oven is faded, the thousand one hundred nights 0ere

night2trysts 0at/hed out in vain1

.#5$ not re/ognizing the nature of the speakers

Strange indeed, seeing these to0n2people here1

hey see! like !an and 0ife,

#nd the lady see!s to be holding so!ething

'ike a /loth 0oven of feathers,

.hile he has a staff or a 0ooden s/eptre

&eautifully ornate1

&oth of these things are strange6

$n any /ase, $ 0onder 0hat they /all the!1

S"E

his is a narro0 /loth /alled 4+osonuno,4

$t is 7ust the breadth of the loo!1

S+$E

#nd this is !erely 0ood painted,

#nd yet the pla/e is fa!ous be/ause of these things1

.ould you /are to buy the! fro! us=

.#5$(es, $ kno0 that the /loth of this pla/e and the la/9uers are fa!ous

things1 $ have already heard of their glory, and yet $ still 0onder 0hy

they have su/h great reputation1

S"E

#h 0ell no0, that4s a disappoint!ent1 +ere they /all the 0ood %ishikigi,4

and the 0oven stuff 4+osonuno,4 and yet you /o!e saying that you have

never heard 0hy, and never heard the story1 $s it reasonable=

S+$E

%o, no, that is reasonable enough1 .hat /an people be expe/ted to kno0 of these affairs 0hen it is !ore than they /an do to keep abreast of their



o0n=

&O+ to the Priest

#h 0ell, you look like a person 0ho has abandoned the 0orld6 it is

reasonable enough that you should not kno0 the 0orth of 0ands and /loths

0ith love4s signs painted upon the!, 0ith love4s !arks painted and dyed1

.#5$

hat is a fine ans0er1 #nd you 0ould tell !e then that %ishikigi and

+osonuno are na!es bound over 0ith love=

S+$E

hey are na!es in love4s list surely1 Every day for a year, for three

years /o!e to their full, the 0ands %ishikigi 0ere set up, until there

0ere a thousand in all1 #nd they are in song in your ti!e, and 0ill be1

4Chidzuka4 they /all the!1

S"E

hese na!es are surely a by20ord1

#s the /loth +osonuno is narro0 of 0eft,

More narro0 than the breast,

.e /all by this na!e any 0o!an

.hose breasts are hard to /o!e nigh to1

$t is a na!e in books of love1

S+$E

4is a sad na!e to look ba/k on1

S"E

# thousand 0ands 0ere in vain1

# sad na!e, set in a story1

S+$E

# seed2pod void of the seed,

.e had no !eeting together1

S"E

'et hi! read out the story1

C+O"S

$

#t last they forget, they forget1

he 0ands are no longer offered,

he /usto! is faded a0ay1

he narro0 /loth of 5efu

.ill not !eet over the breast1

4is the story of +osonuno,

his is the tale*

hese bodies, having no 0eft,Even no0 are not /o!e together1



ruly a sha!eful story,

# tale to bring sha!e on the gods1

$$

%a!es of love,

%o0 for a little spell,For a faint /har! only,

For a /har! as slight as the binding together

Of pine2flakes in $0ashiro,

#nd for saying a 0ish over the! about sunset,

.e return, and return to our lodging1

he evening sun leaves a shado01

.#5$

3o on, tell out all the story1

S+$Ehere is an old /usto! of this /ountry1 .e !ake 0ands of !editation, and

de/k the! 0ith sy!bols, and set the! before a gate, 0hen 0e are suitors1

S"E

#nd 0e 0o!en take up a 0and of the !an 0e 0ould !eet 0ith, and let the

others lie, although a !an !ight /o!e for a hundred nights, it !ay be, or

for a thousand nights in three years, till there 0ere a thousand 0ands

here in the shade of this !ountain1 .e kno0 the funeral /ave of su/h a

!an, one 0ho had 0at/hed out the thousand nights6 a bright /ave, for they

buried hi! 0ith all his 0ands1 hey have na!ed it the 4Cave of the !any

/har!s14

.#5$

$ 0ill go to that love2/ave,

$t 0ill be a tale to take ba/k to !y village1

.ill you sho0 !e !y 0ay there=

S+$E

So be it, $ 0ill tea/h you the path1

S"Eell hi! to /o!e over this 0ay1

&O+

+ere are the pair of the!

3oing along before the traveller1

C+O"S

.e have spent the 0hole day until dusk

Pushing aside the grass

Fro! the over2gro0n 0ay at 5efu,

#nd 0e are not yet /o!e to the /ave1O you there, /utting grass on the hill,



Please set your !ind on this !atter1

4(ou4d be asking 0here the de0 is

4.hile the frost4s lying here on the road1

4.ho4d tell you that no0=4

8ery 0ell then don4t tell us,

&ut be sure 0e 0ill /o!e to the /ave1

S+$E

here4s a /old feel in the autu!n1

%ight /o!es1111

C+O"S

#nd stor!s6 trees giving up their leaf,

Spotted 0ith sudden sho0ers1

#utu!n our feet are /logged

$n the de02dren/hed, entangled leaves1

he perpetual shado0 is lonely,he !ountain shado0 is lying alone1

he o0l /ries out fro! the ivies

hat drag their 0eight on the pine1

#!ong the or/hids and /hrysanthe!u! flo0ers

he hiding fox is no0 lord of that love2/ave,

%ishidzuka,

hat is dyed like the !aple4s leaf1

hey have left us this thing for a saying1

hat pair have gone into the /ave1

sign for the exit of Shite and sure

Part Se/ond

he .aki has taken the posture of sleep1 +is respe/tful visit to the

/ave is beginning to have its effe/t1

.#5$ restless

$t see!s that $ /annot sleep

For the length of a pri/ket4s horn1

nder O/tober 0ind, under pines, under night$ 0ill do servi/e to &utsu1

he perfor!s the gestures of a ritual

S"E

#ie honoured priest

(ou do not dip t0i/e in the river

&eneath the sa!e tree4s shado0

.ithout bonds in so!e other life1

+ear sooth2say,

%o0 is there !eeting bet0een us,

&et0een us 0ho 0ere until no0$n life and in after2life kept apart1



# drea!2bridge over 0ild grass,

Over the grass $ d0ell in1

O honoured do not a0ake !e by for/e1

$ see that the la0 is perfe/t1

S+$E supposedly invisible$t is a good servi/e you have done, sir,

# servi/e that spreads in t0o 0orlds,

#nd binds up an an/ient love

hat 0as stret/hed out bet0een the!1

$ had 0at/hed for a thousand days1

ake !y thanks,

For this !eeting is under a diffi/ult la01

#nd no0 $ 0ill sho0 !yself in the for! of %ishikigi1

$ 0ill /o!e out no0 for the first ti!e in /olour1

he /hara/ters announ/e or explain their a/ts, as these are !ostly

sy!boli/al1 hus here the Shite, or Sh4te, announ/es his /hange of /ostu!e, and later the dan/e1

C+O"S

he three years are over and past*

#ll that is but an old story1

S+$E

o drea! under drea! 0e return1

hree years1111 #nd the !eeting /o!es no0

his night has happened over and over,

#nd only no0 /o!es the tryst1

C+O"S

'ook there to the /ave

&eneath the ste!s of the Suzuki1

Fro! under the shado0s of the love2grass,

See, see ho0 they /o!e forth and appear

For an instant1111 $llusion

S+$E

here is at the root of hell %o distin/tion bet0een prin/es and /o!!ons6

.ret/hed for !e 4tis the saying1

.#5$

Strange, 0hat see!ed so very old a /ave

$s all glittering2bright 0ithin,

'ike the fli/ker of fire1

$t is like the inside of a house1

hey are setting up a loo!,

#nd heaping up /har!2sti/ks1 %o,

he hangings are out of old ti!e1$s it illusion, illusion=



S"E

Our hearts have been in the dark of the falling sno0,

.e have been astray in the flurry1

(ou should tell better than 0e

+o0 !u/h is illusion6(ou 0ho are in the 0orld1

.e have been in the 0hirl of those 0ho are fading1

S+$E

$ndeed in old ti!es %arihira said,

22and he has vanished 0ith the years22

4'et a !an 0ho is in the 0orld tell the fa/t14

$t is for you, traveller,

o say ho0 !u/h is illusion1

.#5$'et it be a drea!, or a vision,

Or 0hat you 0ill, $ /are not1

Only sho0 !e the old ti!es over2past and sno0ed under22

%o0, soon, 0hile the night lasts1

S+$E

'ook then, the old ti!es are sho0n,

Faint as the shado02flo0er sho0s in the grass that bears it6

#nd you4ve but a !oon for lanthorn1

S"E

he 0o!an has gone into the /ave1

She sets up her loo! there

For the 0eaving of +osonuno,

hin as the heart of #utu!n1

S+$E

he suitor for his part, holding his /har!2sti/ks,

5no/ks on a gate 0hi/h 0as barred1

S"E$n old ti!e he got ba/k no ans0er,

%o se/ret sound at all

Save1111

S+$E

he sound of the loo!1

S"E

$t 0as a s0eet sound like katydids and /ri/kets,

# thin sound like the #utu!n1

S+$E



$t 0as 0hat you 0ould hear any night1

S"E

5iri1

S+$E+atari1

S"E

Cho1

S+$E

Cho1

C+O"S !i!i/king the sound of /ri/kets

5iri, hatari, /ho, /ho,

5iri, hatari, /ho, /ho1he /ri/ket se0s on at his old rags,

.ith all the ne0 grass in the field6 sho,

Churr, isho, like the 0hir of a loo!* /hurr1

C+O"S antistrophe

'et be, they !ake grass2/loth in 5efu,

5efu, the land4s end, !at/hless in the 0orld1

S+$E

hat is an old /usto!, truly,

&ut this priest 0ould look on the past1

C+O"S

he good priest hi!self 0ould say*

Even if 0e 0eave the /loth, +osonuno,

#nd set up the /har!2sti/ks

For a thousand, a hundred nights,

Even then our beautiful desire 0ill not pass,

%or fade nor die out1

S+$EEven to2day the diffi/ulty of our !eeting is re!e!bered,

#nd is re!e!bered in song1

C+O"S

hat 0e !ay a/9uire po0er,

Even in our faint substan/e,

.e 0ill sho0 forth even no0,

#nd though it be but in a drea!,

Our for! of repentan/e1

explaining the !ove!ent of the Shite and sure

here he is /arrying 0ands,#nd she has no need to be asked1



See her 0ithin the /ave,

.ith a /ri/ket2like noise of 0eaving1

he grass2gates and the hedge are bet0een the!6

hat is a sy!bol1

%ight has already /o!e on1

no0 explaining the thoughts of the !an4s spirit'ove4s thoughts are heaped high 0ithin hi!,

#s high as the /har!2sti/ks,

#s high as the /har!2sti/ks, on/e /oloured,

%o0 fading, lie heaped in this /ave1

#nd he kno0s of their fading1 +e says*

$ lie a body, unkno0n to any other !an,

'ike old 0ood buried in !oss1

$t 0ere a fit thing

hat $ should stop thinking the love2thoughts1

he /har!2sti/ks fade and de/ay,

#nd yet,he ru!our of our love

akes foot and !oves through the 0orld1

.e had no !eeting

&ut tears have, it see!s, brought out a bright blosso!

pon the dyed tree of love1

S+$E

ell !e, /ould $ have foreseen

Or kno0n 0hat a heap of !y 0ritings

Should lie at the end of her shaft2ben/h=

C+O"S

# hundred nights and !ore

Of t0isting, en/u!bered sleep,

#nd no0 they !ake it a ballad,

%ot for one year or for t0o only

&ut until the days lie deep

#s the sand4s depth at 5efu,

ntil the year4s end is red 0ith #utu!n,

"ed like these love20ands,

# thousand nights are in vain1#nd $ stand at this gate2side1

(ou grant no ad!ission, you do not sho0 yourself

ntil $ and !y sleeves are faded1

&y the de02like ge!!ing of tears upon !y sleeve,

.hy 0ill you grant no ad!ission=

#nd 0e all are doo!ed to pass,

(ou, and !y sleeves and !y tears1

#nd you did not even kno0 0hen three years had /o!e to an end1

Cruel, ah /ruel

he /har!2sti/ks1111

S+$E



.ere set up a thousand ti!es6

hen, no0, and for al0ays1

C+O"S

Shall $ ever at last see into that roo! of hers, 0hi/h no other sight has

traversed=

S+$E

+appy at last and 0ell2starred,

%o0 /o!es the eve of betrothal*

.e !eet for the 0ine2/up1

C+O"S

+o0 glorious the sleeves of the dan/e,

hat are like sno020hirls

S+$Eread out the dan/e1

C+O"S

read out the dan/e and bring !usi/1

his dan/e is for %ishikigi1

S+$E

his dan/e is for the evening plays,

#nd for the 0eaving1

C+O"S

For the tokens bet0een lover and lover*

$t is a refle/ting in the 0ine2/up1

C+O"S

#ri2aki,

he da0n

Co!e, 0e are out of pla/e6

'et us go ere the light /o!es1

to the .aki

.e ask you, do not a0ake,.e all 0ill 0ither a0ay,

he 0ands and this /loth of a drea!1

%o0 you 0ill /o!e out of sleep,

(ou tread the border and nothing

#0aits you* no, all this 0ill 0ither a0ay1

here is nothing here but this /ave in the field4s !idst1

o2day4s 0ind !oves in the pines6

# 0ild pla/e, unlit, and unfilled1



+#3O"OMO

+#3O"OMO, # P'#( $% O%E #C1

PE"SO%S OF +E P'#(

+E P"$ES +akuryo

# F$S+E"M#%

# E%%$%

C+O"S

+#3O"OMO

he plot of the play 4+agoro!o, the Feather2!antle4 is as follo0s1 he

priest finds the +agoro!o, the !agi/al feather2!antle of a ennin, an

aerial spirit or /elestial dan/er, hanging upon a bough1 She de!ands

its return1 +e argues 0ith her, and finally pro!ises to return it, if she

0ill tea/h hi! her dan/e or part of it1 She a//epts the offer1 he Chorus

explains the dan/e as sy!boli/al of the daily /hanges of the !oon1 he

0ords about 4three, five and fifteen4 refer to the nu!ber of nights in

the !oon4s /hanges1 $n the finale, the ennin is supposed to disappear

like a !ountain slo0ly hidden in !ist1 he play sho0s the relation of the

early %oh to the 3od2dan/e1

P"$ES

.indy road of the 0aves by Mi0o,S0ift 0ith ships, loud over steers!en4s voi/es1

+akuryo, taker of fish, head of his house,

D0ells upon the barren pine20aste of Mi0o1

# F$S+E"M#%

pon a thousand heights had gathered the inexpli/able /loud, s0ept by the

rain1 he !oon is 7ust /o!e to light the lo0 house1 # /lean and pleasant

ti!e surely1 here /o!es the breath2/olour of spring6 the 0aves rise in a

line belo0 the early !ist6 the !oon is still delaying above, though 0e4ve

no skill to grasp it1 +ere is a beauty to set the !ind above itself1

C+O"S



$ shall not be out of !e!ory

Of the !ountain road by 5iyo!i,

%or of the parted grass by that bay,

%or of the far2seen pine20aste

Of Mi0o of 0heat stalks1

'et us go a//ording to /usto!1 ake hands against the 0ind here, for it

presses the /louds and the sea1 hose !en 0ho 0ere going to fish are

about to return 0ithout laun/hing1 .ait a little, is it not spring= 0ill

not the 0ind be 9uiet= this 0ind is only the voi/e of the lasting pine2

trees, ready for stillness1 See ho0 the air is soundless, or 0ould be,

0ere it not for the 0aves1 here no0, the fisher!en are putting out 0ith

even the s!allest boats1

P"$ES

%o0 $ a! /o!e to shore at Mi0o2no6 $ dise!bark in Subara6 $ see all that

they speak of on the shore1 #n e!pty sky 0ith !usi/, a rain of flo0ers,strange fragran/e on every side6 all these are no /o!!on things, nor is

this /loak that hangs upon the pine2tree1 #s $ approa/h to inhale its

/olour $ a! a0are of !ystery1 $ts /olour2s!ell is !ysterious1 $ see that

it is surely no /o!!on dress1 $ 0ill take it no0 and return and !ake it a

treasure in !y house, to sho0 to the aged1

E%%$%

hat /loak belongs to so!eone on this side1 .hat are you proposing to do

0ith it=

P"$ES

his= this is a /loak pi/ked up1 $ a! taking it ho!e, $ tell you1

E%%$%

hat is a feather2!antle not fit for a !ortal to bear,

%ot easily 0rested fro! the sky2traversing spirit,

%ot easily taken or given1

$ ask you to leave it 0here you found it1

P"$ES

+o0, is the o0ner of this /loak a ennin= so be it1 $n this do0n/ast age$ should keep it, a rare thing, and !ake it a treasure in the /ountry, a

thing respe/ted1 hen $ should not return it1

E%%$%

Pitiful, there is no flying 0ithout the /loak of feathers, no return

through the ether1 $ pray you return !e the !antle1

P"$ES

)ust fro! hearing these high 0ords, $, +akuryo have gathered !ore and yet

!ore for/e1 (ou think, be/ause $ 0as too stupid to re/ognise it, that $

shall be unable to take and keep hid the feather2robe, that $ shall giveit ba/k for !erely being told to stand and 0ithdra0=



E%%$%

# ennin 0ithout her robe,

# bird 0ithout 0ings,

+o0 shall she /li!b the air=

P"$ES

#nd this 0orld 0ould be a sorry pla/e for her to d0ell in=

E%%$%

$ a! /aught, $ struggle, ho0 shall $=111

P"$ES

%o, +akuryo is not one to give ba/k the robe1

E%%$%

Po0er does not attain1111

P"$ES

o get ba/k the robe1

C+O"S

+er /oronet G:H 7e0elled as 0ith the de0 of tears, even the flo0ers that

de/orated her hair drooping, and fading, the 0hole /hain of 0eaknesses

GIH of the dying ennin /an be seen a/tually before the eyes1 Sorro0

GFootnote :* 8ide exa!ples of state head2dress of kingfisher feathers, in

the South 5ensington Museu!1H

GFootnote I* he /hain of 0eaknesses, or the five ills, diseases of the

ennin* na!ely, the hanakadzusa 0ithers6 the +agoro!o is stained6 s0eat

/o!es fro! the body6 both eyes 0ink fre9uently6 she feels very 0eary of

her pala/e in heaven1H

E%%$%

$ look into the flat of heaven, peering6 the /loud2road is all hidden and

un/ertain6 0e are lost in the rising !ist6 $ have lost the kno0ledge of

the road1 Strange, a strange sorro0

C+O"S

Enviable /olour of breath, 0onder of /louds that fade along the sky that

0as our a//usto!ed d0elling6 hearing the sky2bird, a//usto!ed and 0ell

a//usto!ed, hearing the voi/es gro0 fe0er, the 0ild geese fe0er and fe0er

along the high0ays of air, ho0 deep her longing to return1 Plover and

seagull are on the 0aves in the offing1 Do they go, or do they return=

She rea/hes out for the very blo0ing of the spring 0ind against heaven1

P"$ES to the ennin

.hat do you say= no0 that $ /an see you in your sorro0, gra/ious, of heaven, $ bend and 0ould return you your !antle1



E%%$%

$t gro0s /learer1 %o, give it this side1

P"$ES

First tell !e your nature, 0ho are you, ennin= give pay!ent 0ith thedan/e of the ennin, and $ 0ill return you your !antle1

E%%$%

"eadily and gladly, and then $ return into heaven1 (ou shall have 0hat

pleasure you 0ill, and $ 0ill leave a dan/e here, a 7oy to be ne0 a!ong

!en and to be !e!orial dan/ing1 'earn then this dan/e that /an turn the

pala/e of the !oon1 %o, /o!e here to learn it1 For the sorro0s of the

0orld $ 0ill leave this ne0 dan/ing 0ith you for sorro0ful people1 &ut

give !e !y !antle, $ /annot do the dan/e rightly 0ithout it1

P"$ES %ot yet, for if you should get it, ho0 do $ kno0 you4ll not be off to

your pala/e 0ithout even beginning your dan/e, not even a !easure=

E%%$%

Doubt is fitting for !ortals6 0ith us there is no de/eit1

P"$ES

$ a! again asha!ed1 $ give you your !antle1

C+O"S

he young !aid no0 is arrayed6 she assu!es the /urious !antle6 0at/h ho0

she !oves in the dan/e of the rainbo02feathered gar!ent1

P"$ES

he heavenly feather2robe !oves in a//ord 0ith the 0ind1

E%%$%

he sleeves of flo0ers are being 0et 0ith the rain1

P"$ES

he 0ind and the sleeve !ove together1

C+O"S

$t see!s that she dan/es1

hus 0as the dan/e of pleasure,

Suruga dan/ing, brought to the sa/red east1

hus 0as it 0hen the lords of the everlasting

rod the 0orld,

hey being of old our friends1

pon ten sides their sky is 0ithout li!it,

hey have na!ed it on this a//ount, 4the enduring14

E%%$%



he 7e0elled axe takes up the eternal rene0ing, the pala/e of the !oon2

god is being rene0ed 0ith the 7e0elled axe, and this is al0ays re/urring1

C+O"S /o!!enting on the dan/e

he 0hite kiro!o, the bla/k kiro!o,

hree, five into fifteen,he figure that the ennin is dividing1

here are heavenly ny!phs, #!aoto!e, GJH

One for ea/h night of the !onth,

#nd ea/h 0ith her deed assigned1

GFootnote J* Cf1 4Paradiso,4 xxiii, I1 4Kuale nei plenilunii sereni

rivia ride tra le ninfe eterne14H

E%%$%

$ also a! heaven2born and a !aid, #!aoto!e1 Of the! there are !any1 his

is the dividing of !y body, that is fruit of the !oon4s tree, 5atsu!a1G;H his is one part of our dan/e that $ leave to you here in your 0orld1

GFootnote ;* # tree so!ething like the laurel1H

C+O"S

he spring !ist is 0idespread abroad6 so perhaps the 0ild olive4s flo0er

0ill blosso! in the infinitely unrea/hable !oon1 +er flo0ery head2

orna!ent is putting on /olour6 this truly is sign of the spring1 %ot sky

is here, but the beauty6 and even here /o!es the heavenly, 0onderful

0ind1 O blo0, shut the a//usto!ed path of the /louds1 O, you in the for!

of a !aid, grant us the favour of your delaying1 he pine20aste of Mi0o

puts on the /olour of spring1 he bay of 5iyo!i lies /lear before the

sno0 upon Fu7i1 #re not all these presages of the spring= here are but

fe0 ripples beneath the piny 0ind1 $t is 9uiet along the shore1 here is

naught but a fen/e of 7e0els bet0een the earth and the sky, and the gods

0ithin and 0ithout, GH beyond and beneath the stars, and the !oon

un/louded by her lord, and 0e 0ho are born of the sun1 his alone

intervenes, here 0here the !oon is unshado0ed, here in %ippon, the sun4s

field1

GFootnote * 4.ithin and 0ithout,4 gei, gu, t0o parts of the te!pleH

E%%$%

he plu!age of heaven drops neither feather nor fla!e to its o0n

di!inution1

C+O"S

%or is this ro/k of earth over2!u/h 0orn by the brushing of that feather2

!antle, the feathery skirt of the stars* rarely, ho0 rarely1 here is a

!agi/ song fro! the east, the voi/es of !any and !any* and flute and

shae, filling the spa/e beyond the /loud4s edge, seven2stringed6 dan/e

filling and filling1 he red sun blots on the sky the line of the /olour2dren/hed !ountains1 he flo0ers rain in a gust6 it is no ra/king stor!



that /o!es over this green !oor, 0hi/h is afloat, as it 0ould see!, in

these 0aves1 .onderful is the sleeve of the 0hite /loud, 0hirling

su/h sno0 here1

E%%$%

Plain of life, field of the sun, true foundation, great po0er

C+O"S

+en/e and for ever this dan/ing shall be /alled, 4a revel in the east14

Many are the robes thou hast, no0 of the sky4s /olour itself, and no0 a

green gar!ent1

SEM$2C+O"S

#nd no0 the robe of !ist, presaging spring, a /olour2s!ell as this

0onderful !aiden4s skirt22left, right, left he rustling of flo0ers, the

putting2on of the feathery sleeve6 they bend in air 0ith the dan/ing1

SEM$2C+O"S

Many are the 7oys in the east1 She 0ho is the /olour2person of the !oon

takes her !iddle2night in the sky1 She !arks her three fives 0ith this

dan/ing, as a shado0 of all fulfil!ents1 he /ir/led vo0s are at full1

3ive the seven 7e0els of rain and all of the treasure, you 0ho go fro!

us1 #fter a little ti!e, only a little ti!e, /an the !antle be upon the

0ind that 0as spread over Matsubara or over #shilaka the !ountain,

though the /louds lie in its heaven like a plain a0ash 0ith sea1 Fu7i is

gone6 the great peak of Fu7i is blotted out little by little1 $t !elts

into the upper !ist1 $n this 0ay she the ennin is lost to sight1

5M#S#5#

5M#S#5#, # P'#( $% .O #CS &( )$%O&, #DOPED SO% OF

MOO5$)O1

PE"SO%S OF +E P'#(

# P"$ES

F$"S S+$E, O" +E"O he apparition of 5u!asaka in the for! of an old

priest

SECO%D S+$E he apparition of 5u!asaka in his true for!1



S+$E saying first a 0ord or t0o

$f you pray for hi!,22

C+O"S /ontinuing the senten/e

$f you pray 0ith the prayer of 4Exeat4 he 0ill be thankful, and you neednot be a0are of his na!e1 hey say that prayer /an be heard for even the

grass and the plants, for even the sand and the soil here6 and they 0ill

surely hear it, if you pray for an unkno0n !an1

S+$E

.ill you enter= his is !y /ottage1

P"$ES

his is your house= 8ery 0ell, $ 0ill hold the servi/e in your house6 but

$ see no pi/ture of &uddha nor any 0ooden i!age in this /ottage, nothing

but a long spear on one 0all and an iron sti/k in pla/e of a priest4s0and, and !any arro0s1 .hat are these for=

S+$E thinking

(es, this priest is still in the first stage of faith1 aloud #s you

see, there are !any villages here* -orii, #0ohaka, and #kasaka1 &ut the

tall grass of #0o2no2ga2kara gro0s round the roads bet0een the!, and the

forest is thi/k at 5oyasu and #0ohaka, and !any robbers /o!e out under

the rains1 hey atta/k the baggage on horseba/k, and take the /lothing of

!aids and servants 0ho pass here1 So $ go out 0ith this spear1

P"$ES

hat4s very fine, isn4t it=

C+O"S

(ou 0ill think it very strange for a priest to do this6 but even &uddha

has the sharp s0ord of Mida, and #i7en Mio0o has arro0s, and a!on,

taking his long spear, thro0s do0n the evil spirits1

S+$E

he deep love1

C+O"S

22is ex/ellent1 3ood feeling and keeping order are !u/h !ore ex/ellent

than the love of &osatsu1 4$ think of these !atters and kno0 little of

anything else1 $t is fro! !y o0n heart that $ a! lost, 0andering1 &ut if

$ begin talking $ shall keep on talking until da0n1 3o to bed, good

father6 $ 0ill sleep too14 +e see!ed to be going to his bedroo!, but

suddenly his figure disappeared, and the /ottage be/a!e a field of grass1

he priest passes the night under the pine trees1

P"$ES

$ /annot sleep out the night1 Perhaps if $ held !y servi/e during thenight under this pine tree1111



+e begins his servi/e for the dead !an1

L L L L L

Part Se/ond

SECO%D S+$E

here are 0inds in the east and south6 the /louds are not /al! in the

0est6 and in the north the 0ind of the dark evening blusters6 and under

the shade of the !ountain22

C+O"S

here is a rustling of boughs and leaves1

SECO%D S+$EPerhaps there 0ill be !oon2shine to2night, but the /louds veil the sky6

the !oon 0ill not break up their shado01 4+ave at the!4 4+o there4

4Dash in4 hat is the 0ay $ 0ould shout, /alling and ordering !y !en

before and behind, !y bo0!en and horse!en1 $ plundered !en of their

treasure, that 0as !y 0ork in the 0orld, and no0 $ !ust go on6 it is

sorry 0ork for a spirit1

P"$ES

#re you 5u!asaka Chohan= ell !e the tale of your years1

SECO%D S+$E no0 kno0n as 5u!asaka

here 0ere great !er/hants in San7o, (oshitsugu, and %obutaka6 they

/olle/ted treasure ea/h year6 they sent ri/h goods up to Oku1 $t 0as then

$ assailed their trains1 .ould you kno0 0hat !en 0ere 0ith !e=

P"$ES

ell !e the /hief !en, 0ere they fro! !any a provin/e=

5M#S#5#

here 0as 5akusho of 5a0a/hi, there 0ere the t0o brothers Suriharitaro6

they have no rivals in fen/ing1 o!oten/hi, fa/e to fa/e atta/k

P"$ES

.hat /hiefs /a!e to you fro! the /ity=

5M#S#5#

E!oi of San7o, 5ozari of Mibu1

P"$ES

$n the fighting 0ith tor/hes and in !elee22

5M#S#5#hey had no e9uals1



P"$ES

$n northern +akoku=

5M#S#5#

.ere #so no Matsu0aka and Mikune no 5ure1

P"$ES

$n 5aga=

5M#S#5#

%o, Chohan 0as the head there1 here 0ere seventy /o!rades 0ho 0ere very

strong and skilful1

C+O"S

.hile (oshitsugu 0as going along in the fields and on the !ountains 0e

set !any spies to take hi!1

5M#S#5#

'et us say that he is /o!e to the village of basike1 his is the best

pla/e to atta/k hi!1 here are !any 0ays to es/ape if 0e are defeated,

and he has invited !any guests and has had a great feast at the inn1

P"$ES

.hen the night 0as advan/ed the brothers (oshitsugu and %obutaka fell

asleep1

5M#S#5#

&ut there 0as a s!all boy 0ith keen eyes, about sixteen or seventeen

years old, and he 0as looking through a little hole in the partition,

alert to the slightest noise1

P"$ES

+e did not sleep even a 0ink1

5M#S#5#

.e did not kno0 it 0as shi0aka1

P"$ES

$t 0as fate1

5M#S#5#

he hour had /o!e1

P"$ES

&e 9ui/k

5M#S#5#

+ave at the!



C+O"S des/ribing the original /o!bat, no0 sy!bolized in the dan/e

#t this 0ord they rushed in, one after another1 hey seized the tor/hes6

it see!ed as if gods /ould not fa/e the!1 shi0aka stood unafraid6 he

seized a s!all s0ord and fought like a lion in earnest, like a tiger

rushing, like a bird s0ooping1 +e fought so /leverly that he felled the

thirteen 0ho opposed hi!6 !any 0ere 0ounded besides1 hey fled 0ithouts0ords or arro0s1 hen 5u!asaka said, 4#re you the devil= $s it a god 0ho

has stru/k do0n these !en 0ith su/h ease= Perhaps you are not a !an1

+o0ever, dead !en take no plunder, and $4d rather leave this tru/k of

(oshitsugu4s than !y /orpse14 So he took his long spear and 0as about to

!ake off1

5M#S#5#

22&ut 5u!asaka thought22

C+O"S taking it up

.hat /an he do, that young /hap, if $ ply !y se/ret arts freely= &e hegod or devil, $ 0ill grasp hi! and grind hi!1 $ 0ill offer his body as

sa/rifi/e to those 0ho! he has slain1 So he dre0 ba/k, and holding

his long spear against his side he hid hi!self behind the door and stared

at the young lad1 shi0aka beheld hi!, and holding his s0ord at his side

he /rou/hed at a little distan/e1 5u!asaka 0aited like0ise1 hey both

0aited, alertly6 then 5u!asaka stepped forth s0iftly 0ith his left foot,

and stru/k out 0ith the long spear1 $t 0ould have run through an iron

0all1 shi0aka parried it lightly, s0ept it a0ay, left volted1 5u!asaka

follo0ed and again lunged out 0ith the spear, and shi0aka parried

the spear2blade 9uite lightly1 hen 5u!asaka turned the edge of his

spear2blade to0ards shi0aka and slashed at hi!, and shi0aka leaped to

the right1 5u!asaka lifted his spear and the t0o 0eapons 0ere t0isted

together1 shi0aka dre0 ba/k his blade1 5u!asaka s0ung 0ith his spear1

shi0aka led up and stepped into shado01

5u!asaka tried to find hi!, and shi0aka slit through the ba/k2/hink of

his ar!our6 this see!ed the end of his /ourse, and he 0as 0roth to be

slain by su/h a young boy1

5M#S#5#

Slo0ly the 0ound22

C+O"S

22see!ed to pier/e6 his heart failed6 0eakness o4er/a!e hi!1

5M#S#5#

#t the foot of this pine tree22

C+O"S

+e vanished like a de01

#nd so saying, he disappeared a!ong the shades of the pine tree at#kasaka, and night fell1



5#3E5$(O

5#3E5$(O, # P'#( $% O%E #C, &( MOO5$(O

PE"SO%S OF +E P'#(

S+$E 5agekiyo old and blind

S"E +i!e his daughter, /alled also +ito!aru

OMO +er attendant

.#5$ # villager

C+O"S

he s/ene is in +inga1

5#3E5$(O

+$ME #%D OMO /hanting

.hat should it be6 the body of de0, 0holly at the !er/y of 0ind=

+$ME

$ a! a girl na!ed +ito!aru fro! 5a!ega2engayatsu,My father, #kushi/hi2bioye 5agekiyo,

Fought by the side of +eike,

#nd is therefore hated by 3en7i1

+e 0as banished to Miyazaki in +inga,

o 0aste out the end of his life1

hough $ a! una//usto!ed to travel,

$ 0ill try to go to !y father1

+$ME #%D OMO des/ribing the 7ourney as they 0alk a/ross the bridge and

the stage

Sleeping 0ith the grass for our pillo0,he de0 has /overed our sleeves1



singing

Of 0ho! shall $ ask !y 0ay

#s $ go out fro! aga!i provin/e=

Of 0ho! in oto!i=

$ /rossed the bay in a s!all hired boat

#nd /a!e to (atsuhashi in Mika0a*#h 0hen shall $ see the City2on2the2/loud=

OMO

#s 0e have /o!e so fast, 0e are no0 in Miyazaki of +inga1

$t is here you should ask for your father1

5#3E5$(O in another /orner of the stage

Sitting at the gate of the pine 0ood, $ 0ear out the end of !y years1 $

/annot see the /lear light, $ kno0 not ho0 the ti!e passes1 $ sit here in

this dark hovel, 0ith one /oat for the 0ar! and the /old, and !y body is but a fra!e20ork of bones1

C+O"S

May as 0ell be a priest 0ith bla/k sleeves1 %o0 having left the 0orld in

sorro0, $ look upon !y 0ithered shape1 here is no one to pity !e no01

+$ME

Surely no one /an live in that ruin, and yet a voi/e sounds fro! it1 #

beggar perhaps, let us take a fe0 steps and see1

5#3E5$(O

My eyes 0ill not sho0 it !e, yet the autu!n 0ind is upon us1

+$ME

he 0ind blo0s fro! an unkno0n past, and spreads our doubts through the

0orld1 he 0ind blo0s, and $ have no rest, nor any pla/e to find 9uiet1

5#3E5$(O

%either in the 0orld of passion, nor in the 0orld of /olour, nor in the

0orld of non2/olour, is there any su/h pla/e of rest6 beneath the one sky

are they all1 .ho! shall $ ask, and ho0 ans0er=

OMO

Shall $ ask the old !an by the that/h=

5#3E5$(O

.ho are you=

OMO

.here does the exile live=

5#3E5$(O.hat exile=



OMO

One 0ho is /alled #kushi/hi2bioye 5agekiyo, a noble 0ho fought under

+eike1

5#3E5$(O$ndeed= $ have heard of hi!, but $ a! blind, $ have not looked in his

fa/e1 $ have heard of his 0ret/hed /ondition and pity hi!1 (ou had better

ask for hi! at the next pla/e1

OMO to +i!e

$t see!s that he is not here, shall 0e ask further=

they pass on

5#3E5$(O

Strange, $ feel that 0o!an 0ho has 7ust passed is the /hild of that blind

!an1 'ong ago $ loved a /ourtezan in #tsuta, one ti!e 0hen $ 0as in that pla/e1 &ut $ thought our girl2/hild 0ould be no use to us, and $ left her

0ith the head !an in the valley of 5a!ega2engayatsu6 and no0 she has gone

by !e and spoken, although she does not kno0 0ho $ a!1

C+O"S

#lthough $ have heard her voi/e,

he pity is that $ /annot see her1

#nd $ have let her go by

.ithout divulging !y na!e1

his is the true love of a father1

OMO at further side of the stage

$s there any native about=

8$''#3E"

.hat do you 0ant 0ith !e=

OMO

Do you kno0 0here the exile lives=

8$''#3E" .hat exile is it you 0ant=

OMO

#kushi/hi2bioye 5agekiyo, a noble of +eike4s party1

8$''#3E"

Did you not pass an old !an under the edge of the !ountain, as you 0ere

/o!ing that 0ay=

OMO

# blind beggar in a that/hed /ottage1



8$''#3E"

hat fello0 0as 5agekiyo1 .hat ails the lady= she shivers1

OMO

# 9uestion you !ight 0ell ask1 She is the exile4s daughter1 She 0anted to

see her father on/e !ore, and so /a!e hither to seek hi!1 .ill you takeus to 5agekiyo=

8$''#3E"

&less !y soul 5agekiyo4s daughter1 Co!e, /o!e, never !ind, young !iss1

%o0 $ 0ill tell you, 5agekiyo 0ent blind in both eyes, and so he shaved

his /ro0n and /alled hi!self 4he &lind !an of +inga14 +e begs a bit fro!

the passers, and the likes of us keep hi!6 he4d be asha!ed to tell you

his na!e1 +o0ever, $4ll /o!e along 0ith you, and then $4ll /all out,

45agekiyo64 and if he /o!es, you /an see hi! and have a 0ord 0ith hi!1

'et us along, they /ross the stage, and the villager /alls 5agekiyo, Oh

there, 5agekiyo

5#3E5$(O

%oise, noise So!eone /a!e fro! !y ho!e to /all !e, but $ sent the! on1 $

/ouldn4t be seen like this1 ears like the thousand lines in a rain

stor!, bitter tears soften !y sleeve1 en thousand things rise in a

drea!, and $ 0ake in this hovel, 0ret/hed, 7ust a nothing in the 0ide

0orld1 +o0 /an $ ans0er 0hen they /all !e by !y right na!e=

C+O"S

Do not /all out the na!e he had in his glory1 (ou 0ill !ove the bad blood

in his heart, then taking up 5agekiyo4s thought $ a! angry1

5#3E5$(O

'iving here1111

C+O"S going on 0ith 5agekiyo4s thought

$ go on living here, hated by the people in po0er1 # blind !an 0ithout

his staff, $ a! defor!ed, and therefore speak evil6 ex/use !e1

5#3E5$(O

My eyes are darkened1

C+O"S

hough !y eyes are dark $ understand the thoughts of another1 $

understand at a 0ord1 he 0ind /o!es do0n fro! the pine trees on the

!ountain, and sno0 /o!es do0n after the 0ind1 he drea! tells of !y

glory, $ a! loth to 0ake fro! the drea!1 $ hear the 0aves running in the

evening tide, as 0hen $ 0as 0ith +eike1 Shall $ a/t out the old ballad=

5#3E5$(O to the villager

$ had a 0eight on !y !ind, $ spoke to you very harshly, ex/use !e1

8$''#3E"



(ou4re al0ays like that, never !ind it1 +as anyone been here to see you=

5#3E5$(O

%o one but you1

8$''#3E" 3o on, that is not true1 (our daughter 0as here1 .hy /ouldn4t you tell

her the truth, she being so sad and so eager1 $ have brought her ba/k

no01 Co!e no0, speak 0ith your father1 Co!e along1

+$ME

O, O, $ /a!e su/h a long 7ourney, under rain, under 0ind, 0et 0ith de0,

over the frost6 you do not see into !y heart1 $t see!s that a father4s

love goes 0hen the /hild is not 0orth it1

5#3E5$(O

$ !eant to keep it /on/ealed, but no0 they have found it all out1 $ shalldren/h you 0ith the de0 of !y sha!e, you 0ho are young as a flo0er1 $

tell you !y na!e, and that 0e are father and /hild6 yet $ thought this

0ould put dishonour upon you, and therefore $ let you pass1 Do not hold

it against !e1

C+O"S

#t first $ 0as angry that !y friends 0ould no longer /o!e near !e1 &ut

no0 $ have /o!e to a ti!e 0hen $ /ould not believe that even a /hild of

!y o0n 0ould seek !e out1

singing

pon all the boats of the !en of +eike4s fa/tion

5agekiyo 0as the fighter !ost in /all,

&rave 0ere his !en, /unning sailors,

#nd no0 even the leader

$s 0orn out and dull as a horse1

8$''#3E" to 5agekiyo

Many a fine thing is gone, sir6 your daughter 0ould like to ask you1111

5#3E5$(O

.hat is it=

8$''#3E"

She has heard of your old fa!e in ashi!a1 .ould you tell her the ballad=

5#3E5$(O

o0ards the end of the third !onth it 0as, in the third year of )uei1 .e

!en of +eike 0ere in ships, the !en of 3en7i 0ere on land1 heir 0ar2

tents stret/hed on the shore1 .e a0aited de/ision1 #nd %oto2no25a!i

%oritsune said* 4'ast year in the hills of +ari!a, < in Midzushi!a, and

in +iyodorigoye of &it/hiu, 0e 0ere defeated ti!e and again, for

(oshitsine is ta/tful and /unning14 4$s there any 0ay 0e /an beat the!=45agekiyo thought in his !ind 4his +angan (oshitsine is neither god nor



a devil, at the risk of !y life $ !ight do it14 So he took leave of

%oritsune and led a party against the shore, and all the !en of 3en7i

rushed on the!1

C+O"S

5agekiyo /ried, 4(ou are haughty14 +is ar!our /aught every turn of thesun1 +e drove the! four 0ays before the!1

5#3E5$(O ex/ited and /rying out

Sa!oshiya "un, /o0ards

C+O"S

+e thought, ho0 easy this killing1 +e rushed 0ith his spear2haft gripped

under his ar!1 +e /ried out, 4$ a! 5agekiyo of the +eike14 +e rushed on

to take the!1 +e pier/ed through the hel!et vizards of Miyonoya1 Miyonoya

fled t0i/e, and again6 and 5agekiyo /ried, 4(ou shall not es/ape !e4 +e

leaped and 0ren/hed off his hel!et1 4Eya4 he vizard broke and re!ainedin his hand and Miyonoya still fled afar, and afar, and he looked ba/k

/rying in terror, 4+o0 terrible, ho0 heavy your ar!4 #nd 5agekiyo /alled

at hi!, 4+o0 tough the shaft of your ne/k is4 #nd they both laughed out

over the battle, and 0ent off ea/h his o0n 0ay1

C+O"S

hese 0ere the deeds of old, but oh, to tell the! o be telling the!

over no0 in his 0ret/hed /ondition1 +is life in the 0orld is 0eary, he is

near the end of his /ourse1 43o ba/k,4 he 0ould say to his daughter1

4Pray for !e 0hen $ a! gone fro! the 0orld, for $ shall then /ount upon

you as 0e /ount on a la!p in the darkness 111 0e 0ho are blind14 4$ 0ill

stay,4 she said1 hen she obeyed hi!, and only one voi/e is left1

.e tell this for the re!e!bran/e1 hus 0ere the parent and /hild1

E%D

%OES

Ernest Fenollosa has left this !e!orandu! on the stoi/is! of the last

play* $ asked Mr1 +irata ho0 it /ould be /onsidered natural or dutiful

for the daughter to leave her father in su/h a /ondition1 +e said,

4that the )apanese 0ould not be in sy!pathy 0ith su/h sternness no0, but

that it 0as the old &ushido spirit1 he personality of the old !an is

0orn out, no !ore good in this life1 $t 0ould be senti!entality for

her to re!ain 0ith hi!1 %o good /ould be done1 +e /ould 0ell restrain his

love for her, better that she should pray for hi! and go on 0ith the 0ork

of her nor!al life14



Of the plays in this book, 4%ishikigi4 has appeared in 4Poetry,4

4+agoro!o4 in 4he Kuarterly "evie0,4 and 45u!asaka,4 in 4he Dra!a64 to

the editors of 0hi/h periodi/als $ 0ish to express !y a/kno0ledg!ent1

ΠΑΟΥΝΤ CERTAIN NOBLE PLAYS OF JAPAN.doc

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