11/17/2015

Maple-tree viewing 紅葉狩り

We read the autumnal tints and yellow leaves, 紅葉or黄葉, koyo in Japanese. When autumn comes, a deciduous tree leaf changes its color to red and yellow from green. Colored leaves 紅葉koyo, the maple 楓kaede are other name for maplesもみじ. The leaf came to be written as maple, もみじmomiji after the Heian era. Maple-tree viewing紅葉狩り means people enjoying colored leaves紅葉 and taking a walk. Kyoto has three places called Sanbi三尾 including Takao 高雄（尾）, Makinoo 槇の尾and Toganoo 栂ノ尾 Umegahata in Ukyoku,Kyoto京都市右京区梅ヶ畑 where the beauty of three colored leaves can’t be beat by any other places in Japan. Kozanji-Temple高山寺, restored by Myoe-shonin 明恵上人 (a holy priest) and famous Shingonshu school真言宗 temple Jingoji-Temple神護寺 are famous for splendid colored leaves, but they are also famous for the many treasures in the temples at the same time. In particular, the national treasure of Cho-Ju-Giga 鳥獣人物戯画 of Kozanji-Temple高山寺 is famous, but it was restored to the original state neatly and displayed in Kyoto National Museum last autumn and was opened to the public. Many people flocked from the whole country to see the exhibition, including my friend Nagaoka and me. We got in a long line and though pushing saw 4 story picture scrolls of funny but wonderful satire. It was the first time I saw the pictures in Kozanji-Temple高山寺 since my college days. For Mr. Nagaoka it had been more than 10 years. It is said that nothing cynical can affect the pleasant feeling one gets when viewing picture-story scrolls of excellent animals drawn in funny ways by a brush with a light touch. Especially for Nagaoka, since his hobby is drawing caricatures of frogs, it seemed to be thoroughly interesting. Last year, when we went to Kyoto Museum exhibition hall, we wished to go to Kozanji高山寺 after a long time, if possible. We discussed and decided to go this fall. And also our friend Mr.Iisaka served as our tour guide for sightseeing of colored leaves紅葉狩り.

On Thursday, November 11, we left our house early in the morning for Kozanji高山寺.

Let me introduce a day of the maple-tree viewing紅葉狩り with my photos.

By the way, we drank and ate yudofu for dinner at Chikusen竹仙 restaurant in Seiryoji-temple清涼寺 of Arashiyama, Sagano嵐山、嵯峨野.

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　紅葉狩り

　紅葉、黄葉と書いて「こうよう」と読むが、秋（錦秋ともいう）に木の葉が緑から赤や黄色（褐色もある）に色づく落葉樹のことを言う。紅葉は楓の別称だが葉は掌状（カエデはカエルの手のような形からカエデとなった説がある、花言葉は「遠慮」）、平安時代以後に楓を紅葉と書くようになった。紅葉を愛でて散策することを「紅葉狩り」と言うが、京都市右京区梅ヶ畑地区の高雄（尾）、槇の尾、栂の尾を三尾と言うが、三尾（さんび）の紅葉の美しさは日本中のどこにも負けない見事な美しさ。栂の尾の明恵上人再興の高山寺、真言宗の名刹高雄山神護寺はいずれも素晴らしい紅葉で有名で、それと共に（三尾のもう一つ西明寺を含め）その内寺には数々の歴史的宝物があることでも有名で、特に栂の尾高山寺の「鳥獣人物戯画」は有名である。その鳥獣戯画が去年の秋、京都国立博物館で長年の修復が終わり綺麗に復元されて公開展示されたが、その展覧会で画を見るため全国から沢山の観客が押し寄せた。その中の二人に私や友人の長岡さんも含まれていた。私たちも長い行列に並び、押し出されるような流れに乗って、4巻の巻物に描かれた滑稽で見事な動物の物語絵巻に見入った。私にとっては大学時代に高山寺で見て以来、長岡さんにとっても10年以上前にこの画を見たこと以来だった。軽快なタッチの筆で描かれた動物の戯画は、何か人間を皮肉るような何とも味わいの深い画であり、特に長岡さんにとってはカエルを戯画化して自分の趣味の画の画風の中に構成されておられるので、興味深く思っておられたようだった。そのとき、展覧会場で出来れば高山寺へ久しぶりに行きたいなあ、と話し合ったが、この秋それが実現した。同じく友人の飯坂さんも私たちに同行した。

　11月11日木曜日、私たちは高山寺を目指して朝早く家を出た。8時半にJR尼崎駅で待ち合わせて京都へ向かった。それでは、その時の写真、私たちの京都紅葉狩りの一日をご紹介しよう。

Kyoto Sanbi 京都三尾

高山寺を歌う

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 ♫ 女ひとり

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　歌　デューク・エイセス

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　詞　永六輔

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　曲　いずみ　たく

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　2）京都栂尾高山寺

恋に疲れて女がひとり　　　　

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　大島つむぎにつづれ帯が

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　影を落した石だたみ

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　京都栂尾高山寺

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　恋に疲れた女がひとり　　　

　　　　　　　　　　　Toganoo 栂の尾　

　　　　　　　　　　　 高山寺 Kozanji

高山寺蔵　国宝　鳥獣人物戯画絵巻 Scroll of Frolicking and Humans , Choju-giga

　　　　　　　　　　Makinoo 槇の尾

西明寺 Saimyoji

SAIMYO-JI TEMPLE

　Three ridges called Takao, Makino-o and Togano-o form the area and are located in the northwest corner of Kyoto. The clear water of the Kiyotaki River streams over rocky beds at the foot of these mountains and presents a scene only possible in a valley. Makino-o is noted as one of the best places in Takao and its vicinities to appreciate tinted maple trees. These places are so well-known that evry fall crowds of people visit the temples located here, attracted by a superb scene of autumnnal colors which stretch as far as the eye can see.

　Saimyo-ji was founded in the Tencho Era (824-834) by Chisen, who was one of the ten disciples of Kukai. In front of its main gate, several stone lanterns are interestingly set in a row. The main building housing the sanctuary was rebuilt by Keishoin, the mother of the 5th Tokugawa Shogun Tsunayoshi. In this building there are enshrined the main statue of this temple which is Shakanyorai carved by Unkei, modeled after a statue of Saga Shakado Temple, and a statue of Kannnon having 1.000 hands designated as an Important Culture Asset.

　After enjoying the view in Saimyo-ji Temple, people can walk to Takao Jingo-ji Temple and

Togano-o Kozan-ji Temple enjoying a view of the Kiyotaki River seen down on their left or right. Since ancient times these places have been described in Japanese literature including poems.

　　　　　　　　　　　　Takao 高雄

神護寺 Jingoji

紅葉する植物

紅葉：カエデ科（イロハモミジ、ハウチワカエデ、サトウカエデ、メグスリノキ）・ニシキギ科（ニシキギ、ツリバナ）・ウルシ科（ツタウルシ、ヤマウルシ、ヌルデ）・ツツジ科（ヤマツツジ、レンゲツツジ、ドウダンツツジ）・ブドウ科（ツタ、ヤマブドウ）・バラ科（ヤマザクラ、ウワミズザクラ、カリン、ナナカマド）・スイカズラ科（ミヤマガマズミ、カンボク）・ウコギ科（タラノキ）・ミズキ科（ミズキ）　　　　　　　　　　　　　※三尾の楓はイロハモミジと思われる巨木も多い
黄葉：イチョウ科（イチョウ）・カバノキ科（シラカンバ）・ヤナギ科（ヤナギ、ポプラ、ドロノキ）・ニレ科（ハルニレ）・カエデ科（イタヤカエデ）・ニシキギ科（ツルウメモドキ）・ユキノシタ科（ノリウツギ、ゴトウヅル）
褐葉：ブナ科（ブナ、ミズナラ、カシワ）・スギ科（スギ、メタセコイヤ）・ニレ科（ケヤキ）・トチノキ科（トチノキ）・ズズカケノキ科（スズカケノキ）

京都国立博物館で先に行われた高山寺鳥獣戯画展のことは私のホームページのブログに書いた。そのブログは

　　　Book5 No.42 "Scroll of Frolicking Animals and Humans" Exhibition 鳥獣戯画展、ご覧ください。

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　Kozanji temple 高山寺

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　Scroll of Frolicking and Humans, Choju-giga 鳥獣戯画

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　Jingoji Temple 神護寺

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　高雄の紅葉 Maple tree in Takao

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　Saimyouji 西明寺

Seiryoji 清涼寺

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 Seiryoji Chikusen 清涼寺竹仙

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　♪おんなひとり

Seiji Fujishiro 藤城清治

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　藤城清治 Seiji Fujishiro

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　藤城清治展 Seiji Fujishiro Exhibitio 　　　　

藤城清治作品集 Works of Seiji Fujishiro　

A monument marking the centenary of Japanese warship Kanrin Maru's arrival in San Francisco is seen on Oct. 10 at the city's Lincoln Park, a potential site for a 'comfort women' monument. | KYODO National / Politics

San Francisco Japanese-Americans ask why city needs a ‘comfort women’ memorial

by Toyohiro Horikoshi Kyodo Nov 3, 2015 Article history

Online: Nov 03, 2015 Print: Nov 04, 2015 Last Modified: Nov 03, 2015

SAN FRANCISCO – San Francisco lawmakers voted in September to set up a “comfort women” memorial, becoming the first major U.S. city to plan such a tribute to the women and girls forced to provide sex for soldiers of the Imperial Japanese military. While the decision by the city’s Board of Supervisors was unanimous, it has baffled Japanese residents and Japanese-Americans. They ask why the West Coast city needs a monument addressing an issue that is a point of controversy between Japan and its neighbors. If it goes ahead with the plan, the city will join a handful of smaller U.S. municipalities that already have comfort women monuments, including Glendale, a suburb of Los Angeles, which built a statue in 2013. “I think Glendale’s is actually a good type of design, but I know that San Francisco has lots of artists and communities that would give input as we move the process forward,” Eric Mar, the board member who introduced the motion to set up the memorial, told a reporter visiting his office at City Hall. Glendale set up a bronze statue of a young Asian woman sitting on a bench with a bird on her shoulder. It symbolizes the suffering of women and girls, mainly Korean and Chinese, who were forced to work at Japanese military brothels during the war. Some Japanese deny they were forcibly recruited. Glendale’s memorial sparked a backlash from some quarters of the local Japanese-American community and prompted a lawsuit calling for its removal. That legal battle is still pending. Mar said he hopes the San Francisco monument’s design will symbolize a range of issues together, including encouraging education about the trafficking of women, and will thereby solidify support from residents. Seiko Fujimoto, who has lived in the city’s Japantown since moving to the United States more than 40 years ago, is one of those opposed to the statue. I “don’t understand why they have to destroy the relationship of coexistence among Japanese, Chinese and Korean ethnic groups,” Fujimoto said. The number of Japanese-Americans living in the city has been dwindling. Many shops in Japantown are run by Korean-Americans, one longtime resident said. The neighborhood is no longer vibrant like the city’s Chinatown, which is within walking distance. The British Columbia city of Burnaby, adjacent to Vancouver, earlier this year announced plans to erect a memorial to comfort women — but reversed track when the issue proved divisive. A group of Koreans visited Burnaby, a sister city of Hwaseong, South Korea, and proposed setting up a statue alongside the Korean War Memorial in the city’s Central Park. Burnaby Mayor Derek Corrigan did not decline the Korean proposal, which came with a donation of 50,000 Canadian dollars, according to Gordon Kadota, an influential Japanese-Canadian in the community. The mayor, however, seemed unaware of the East Asian sensitivity of the comfort women issue, telling the local Japanese community paper, the Vancouver Shimpo, that he had not anticipated serious repercussions. Kadota, himself opposed to the monument, said the Korean proposal has been effectively withdrawn from the mayor’s agenda. “Vancouver has nothing to do with comfort women,” said Kadota, who was born in Vancouver and has lived in that part of Canada all of his life except for a decade centering on World War II. “Erecting the monument goes against Vancouver’s belief in accommodating immigrants and advocating ethnic diversity.” Comfort women monuments have been erected in at least five locations in the United States, all in relatively small communities. The statute in San Francisco, with its historical ties with Japan, would have different implications, at least from the Japanese perspective. The plan has already drawn a strong protest from Osaka, a sister city of San Francisco, whose mayor, Toru Hashimoto, is a populist figure in Japanese politics. Hashimoto said in a letter to San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee, “I have no intention of (legitimizing) or defending the issue of ‘comfort women,’ nor do I intend to do so in the future,” but “every country must squarely face their own past problem and engage in addressing this issue.” Hashimoto maintains that Japan is not the only country to have had military brothels for soldiers during wartime. In the letter, he requested that the mayor consider the plan carefully, noting that the city is home to many Japanese. Asked about the potentially divisive nature of the plan in an ethnically diverse society, Mar said San Francisco needs the monument because it is a town of immigrants with different backgrounds and cherishes human rights. Mar added, many Japanese-Americans support the memorial. Kadota, too, admitted that some people in the Japanese community are reluctant to back his initiative to scrap the plan. In explaining the background to the San Francisco resolution, Mar, of Chinese descent, said one factor that motivated him was the Imperial Japanese Army’s occupation of China. The city supervisor said the plan has already drawn $140,000 in funds for construction and potential sites have been identified. They include Lincoln Park, which overlooks the Pacific Ocean and hosts a Holocaust Memorial. Steps away from that memorial stands a monument celebrating the centennial of the 1860 port entry of the Japanese warship Kanrin Maru on the occasion of the signing of the Treaty of Amity and Commerce with the United States. The Golden Gate Bridge, one of the city’s major tourist attractions, comes into view behind a monument to the ship, gifted by the city of Osaka. San Francisco is also where a peace treaty between Japan and the Allied Powers was signed in 1951, formally ending World War II.

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