Dawn and sunset in Japan during the Heian period (794–1185)

Sunset in Tōkyō 「東京」- Spring 2014

In Japan, the image of the dawn and the sunset has an important role in Japanese culture and literature. Over the centuries, in Japanese literature there are several examples of works that talk about the dawn and the sunset. Inside poetry and prose of the Heian period (794–1185) they are strongly linked with nature and the four seasons. For example, the Makura no Sōshi「枕草子」(The Pillow Book, written around 1000) starts with the following word: “Haru wa akebono.”「春はあけぼの」 (In spring, the most beautiful thing is the dawn.).

With this article I will share with you a view of the society during the Heian period through the analysis of these two moments of the day, the words that are used to represent them and some concrete examples in waka「和歌」(classical poetry) written in that period.

The role of dawn and sunset in the aristocratic society

The moments of dawn and sunset have an important role in Japanese people’s life during the Heian period.

For example, many officials started their work day early in the morning and finished at 10 am or at midday depending on the season and the court nobles who had meetings with the Emperor usually started in the evening and finished during the night.

During this era, aristocratic women lived with their parents and their husband came to visit them at sunset and left at dawn. According to the institution of marriage of that time, called tsumadoikon「妻問婚」, polygamy was allowed so aristocratic women were often an object of love for men. This system was very hard for them, because they were always worried that a day their husband could stop visiting them and he could choose another woman as his lover.

In order to show their feelings in this period were written various poems that are part of the imperial anthologies. Classical poetry was born in the city for social communication among educated elites and it helped the writer to express his own sentiments and thoughts in an elegant, courteous and indirect way. Reading it you can feel a close harmony between the natural and the human spheres, because in Japanese culture nature is an elegant world where every element plays a significant part.

Dawn and sunset in Japanese Language

Let’s see the etymology of the character dawn:「曙」(akebono) and sunset:「夕暮れ」 (yūgure)「黄昏」(tasogare).

Dawn character

曙 (akebono)

This character is made up of two parts:

• あけ(ake);
• ほの (hono).

The common explanation given for its origins are the following:

1. Analyzing the character 曙 (akebono):

• アケ (ake) has the meaning of 明く (aku) which means: to open, to be open, to come to an end.
• ホノ (hono) has the meaning of 仄か (honoka — faint, indistinct, dim).

2. アケ(ake) has the meaning of 朱色 (shu iro — vermilion).

3. Akebono reading comes from the ancient pronunciation of akmon.

Sunset characters

In waka there are two characters which have the meaning of sunset:

• 夕暮れ (yūgure);
• 黄昏 (tasogare).

夕暮れ (yūgure)

This character consists of:

• ゆう (yū);
• くれ (kure).

There are various opinions about the etymology of 夕 (yū):

1. It has the same etymology of 夜 (yo — evening ) and 宵 (yoi — evening).
2. It is the abbreviation of ヨルオフ (yoru ofu).
3. It is the moment when it is evening, the work is finished and a person feels relaxed.
4. It is also supposed to be the abbreviation of ユクヒ（行日) (yuku hi) that is connected to ヨヒ（夜）(yohi — evening).

The etymology of 暮れ (kure) character:

1. It has the meaning of クロ（黒）(kuro — black, dark).
2. It has the meaning of クラ（暗・昏）(kure, kurai — dark).
3. It is the abbreviation of クーウ（得）レ (kūre).
4. It is the combination of the sound of ra ラ行音 (ra gyōon) with ku and it is the abbreviation of kun which means 黄昏時 (tasogare doki — dusk).
5. Maybe it comes from ク (ku), クラキ (kuraki), レ (re), カクレ(kakure) which show the moment right after the sunset.

黄昏 (tasogare)

There are two main opinions about the etymology of 黄昏 (tasogare):

1. This word shows the meaning of タソカレ（誰そ彼）(tasokare) which represents that moment when it is difficult to distinguish the shape of a person.
2. It has the meaning of タソカレ (田退) (tasokare) that is the moment when the peasant finishes to work and comes back at home.

The image of dawn and sunset in the poetry

Nowadays it is possible to read various wonderful waka (31 syllable classical japanese poems) that present the image of dawn and sunset. Here are some examples:

Book 1 Spring — Senzai wakashū (Collection of a Thousand Years)

N. 40 藤原季道朝臣 (Fujiwara no Suemichi no Ason)

崇徳院に百首歌たてまつりける時、はるのうたとてよめる
(Sutoku in ni hyakushu uta tate matsuri keru toki, haru no uta tote yomeru)

春はなほはなのにほひもさもあらばあれただ身にしむは曙のそら
(Haru wa nao / hana no nioi mo / samo araba are / tada mi ni shimu wa / akebono no sora)

N. 40 Fujiwara no Suemichi no Ason

Spring poetry that was written when I gave to the late emperor Sutoku the Hyakushu uta (Hundred-poem sequence).

In Spring,
the cherry flowers fragrance
and the color are marvelous as always,
but the thing that deeply touches me
is the dawn sky.

In this example, in the Senzai wakashū 「千載和歌集」(Collection of a Thousand Years, 1183) Fujiwara no Suemichi represents a spring landscape that is surrounded by the first lights of the day. He says that the cherry flowers with their colors and scents were very beautiful as always, but in that moment only the image of the dawn could move his heart. The main subjects of this waka are the cherry flowers and the dawn. Cherry flowers are a frequent theme of spring since the Kokin wakashū「 古今和歌集」(Collection of Japanese Poems of Ancient and Modern Times, 10th century), while the dawn suggests the joy that a person can feel during a spring morning.

Book 16 Spring — Shūi wakashū (Collection of Gleanings)

N. 1076 大中臣輔親 (Ōnakatomi no Sukechika)

題しらず (Shirazu)

あしひきの山郭公さとなれてたそかれ時になのりすらしも

(Ashihiki no / yama hototogisu / satonarete / tasogare doki ni / nanorisurashimo)

N. 1076 Ōnakatomi no Sukechika

Unknown subject.

At sunset,
mountain cuckoo
gets used to the inhabited place,
it looks like it is announcing
its own name.

In Shūi wakashū「 拾遺和歌集」(Collection of Gleanings, early 11th century) there is an entire book dedicated to spring.

In this waka Ōnakatomi no Sukechika shows to the reader the image of a cuckoo that at sunset arrives from the mountain to the village and while it is getting used to the new atmosphere it seems that it is saying its name. In this work the main topics are: the sunset and the cuckoo. The sunset is that moment when it is getting dark and it is difficult to distinguish the shape of a person. The cuckoo, instead, is the symbol of the coming of summer which makes us understand that this poetry was written at the end of spring.

This work communicates the nostalgia that the writer was feeling while he was looking at the scene of two lovers who were seeing each other at sunset time.

Book 4 Autumn — Kokin wakashū (Collection of Japanese Poems of Ancient and Modern Times)

N. 205

題しらず (Shirazu)

ひぐらしのなく山ざとの夕暮は風よりほかに訪ふ人もなし

(Higurashi no / naku yamazato no / yūgure wa / kaze yori hoka ni / tou hito mo nashi)

N. 205

Unknown.

At sunset,
in the solitary mountain village
where the sunset cicada sings,
no visitors are coming
except for the wind.

Last but not least, in Kokin wakashū (Collection of Japanese Poems of Ancient and Modern Times) there is the image of a cicada that is singing in a lonely village where at dusk you can only hear the fall wind. The main subjects in this waka are: the sunset, the mountain village and the cicada. The depiction of the sunset with the autumn season reveals a quiet and melancholy moment. The mountain village is empty and desolate; sometimes it shows a place where a person can go to seek refuge from the pain which is caused by the society. The cicada is a significant symbol for the autumn sadness. Thanks to these simple elements the writer can communicate his deeper feelings.

These are just few examples where the dawn and the sunset emerge as special moments of the day for the Heian period society.

In Heian classical waka, the images of dawn and sunset are linked with many elements such as: love, flora, fauna and atmospheric conditions of the four seasons. In particular, some poems focus on the sad and the bright sides of autumn and on the flowers of spring; these two seasons became the preferred seasons of the imperial anthology because with their subjects and their climate were more agreeable and they were celebrated not only in literature but also in the visual arts.

The reason why the dawn and the sunset, combined with nature and the four seasons, are the main subjects of the Japanese poetry, is that Japanese people since the past have a strong bond with the cyclic nature, agriculture, geography and climate that help them to become more sensitive to the changing of time and the four seasons.

Exploring different waka, even if every poetry may be read in different ways, it is thanks to the feelings that the writer could express that it is possible to admire their beauty, elegance and the delicate balance which exists between nature and human life.

References

• Donald Keene, Seeds in the heart: Japanese literature from earliest times to the late sixteenth century, Henry Holt, 1993
• Haruo Shirane, Japan and the culture of the four seasons. Nature, Literature and the Arts, Columbia University Press, New York, 2012
• Maeda Tomiyoshi kanshū , Nihon gogen daijiten, Shōgakukan, Tōkyō, 2005 (Maeda Tomiyoshi, Japanese dictionary of etymology, Shōgakukan, Tōkyō, 2005)
• Toshiaki Takeshita, Il Giappone e la sua civiltà: profilo storico, CLUEB, 2005 (Toshiaki Takeshita, Japan and its culture: the historic profile, CLUEB, 2005)
• Shinpen Kokka Taikan Iinkai hen, v. 1–2, Kadokawa Shoten, Tōkyō, 1983 (The new edition of the national anthem encyclopedia, v. 1–2, Kadokawa Shoten, Tōkyō, 1983)
• The picture was taken during my visit in Japan in 2014.