#mt. penglai

[cutehomeart]

The history of Japanese art is marked by countless artists who have left their indelible footprints in the sands of time, but few have accomplished this with as much panache as Yokoyama Taikan. An artist par excellence, Taikan's work offers glimpses into the fascinating and the mythical, blending art and folklore in a symphony of color and form. One such masterpiece from his repertoire that stands as a testament to his ingenuity is the painting of "Mt. Penglai," also known as "Mountain of Immortals.

This article will take you on a mesmerizing journey through the alleys of Japanese artistry as we delve deep into the beauty and intricacy of Taikan's Mt. Penglai.

[ryin-silverfish]

Lotus Lantern: The Summaries, Part 1

I grew up watching the Lotus Lantern TV shows, both of which have a special place in my heart. However, this particular tale is kinda one that thrives in operas and modern media adaptations, while the written texts of the story remain mostly out of reach for average audiences, being compiled in an 1957 book named 董永沉香合集.

As such, I've decided to make an informal summary of all versions of Chenxiang's stories from this particular book and maybe some more, for anyone wanting to learn about Lotus Lantern beyond the TV show.

This series is a WIP; each post features the summary of a single version of the legend. For Part 1, it will be——

Chenxiang Baojuan("The Precious Scroll of Chenxiang",1847/1907)

-This story took place in the Han dynasty. Son of a rich landlord, the scholar Liu Xiang(刘向) was on his way to the imperial examination (which didn't exist in the Han dynasty, but okay), and decided to stop at the temple of the Lady of Mt. Hua(华岳娘娘) for prayers.

-However, she was attending a party in the Celestial Realm, and her attendants——ghostly judges and pawns——didn't know how to answer when Liu asked if he'd succeed in the imperial examination, so they just threw him a blank wooden slip (used in divinations).

-Feeling cheated, the scholar angrily swept open the curtain covering the goddess's idol, and was instantly charmed by her beauty, so much so that he wrote a poem on the walls asking for her hands in marriage.

-As King Zhou's story in FSYY has told us, this was a very bad idea. The Lady of Mt. Hua was not amused upon her return, and went after the scholar with a sword in hand, but was also instantly charmed by his good looks.

-After a quick confirmation from the Old Man Under the Moon(月下老人) that their relationship was, in fact, Fated to Be, she used her magic to create a beautiful mansion, then, a huge storm, to force Liu to seek shelter there.

-She proposed to him inside the mansion, and Liu Xiang was like “I'd love to, but I gotta go to my exams and take care of my parents back home, so…later?”

-The Lady took it with characteristic grace, by which I mean she kicked him out of the mansion, then sicc demonic tigers and snakes on him and forced him to come back.

-Anyways, they married each other, and the Lady gave him three treasures as tribute to the ruling emperor: a luminous pearl, a pearl belt, and a crystal bowl, before sending him on his way to the imperial examination.

-Unfortunately for Liu, a corrupt minister saw those treasures and wanted to take them for himself, so he falsely accused Liu of stealing and threw him into prison.

-Just when Liu was about to be executed, his divine wife saved him again by whipping up a storm; Liu cleared his name in front of the emperor, and all was well…but not for long. 

-The brother of the Lady of Mt. Hua is a guy called True Sage Xuanmiao(玄妙真君), but later, the text also referred to him as Erlang Shen.

-While at the Peach Festival, he teased He Xian'gu(何仙姑), one of the Eight Immortals, about her (nonexistent) husband, and she mocked back: "Well I don't have a husband, but your sister sure does! That's why she isn't at the party."  

-Xuanmiao got really mad, rushed home to fight his pregnant sister, and sealed her under Mt. Hua. She gave birth while imprisoned, and sent Chenxiang to his father via a ghostly official/Yaksha. 

-After learning about his mother's imprisonment, 12 years old Chenxiang left to pursue studies of the Taoist arts. He met the Gold Star of Venus, who led him to some divine pills and peaches that granted him superpowers. That wasn't quite enough, however, and when he went to fight Erlang, he was soon losing and being chased around.

-Luckily for Chenxiang, the White Crane Boy(白鹤童子), a divine messenger, was passing by and helped him get reinforcements; the "Eight Cave of Immortals, the Great Immortal of Penglai, the Mystic Lady of the Nine Heavens, Fourth Sister of the Hundred-Flowers"（八洞仙人、蓬莱大仙、九天玄女、百花四姐）. In return, the True Sage summoned legions of celestial soldiers, Sir Thunder and Lady Lightning(雷公电母), and the Four Heavenly Generals (Ma, Wen, Zhao, Guan, not to be confused with the 4 devarajas).

-The battle became so heated that it alerted Guanyin, who went and informed the Jade Emperor, causing him to send the Gold Star of Venus down there and order both sides to quit fighting. With that taken care of, Chenxiang cleaved open the mountain and saved his mom, but the imprisonment had done a number on her: her form was skeletal, her hair was a mess, her gaze was unfocused, and she was more or less catatonic.

-It would be really depressing if the story ended here, so the Mystic Lady of the Nine Heavens gave her a magical pill that returned her to full health, and the family went on to enjoy their happy ending.

[any-which-way-poetry]

Transcript: Guest episode 李商隐 Li Shangyin - 无题 Untitled

[Listen to the episode here.]

Three translations of an untitled poem by Li Shangyin.

---

finding time to meet is hard; parting is hard too.    we had a hard time meeting, I had a hard time leaving you the east wind brings in the new season gentle, but it withers the flowers all the same.    the flowers wither when the spring wind's all blown through

      it's hard to meet you in time. it's hard to leave you.       the east wind is so soft it can't even move flowers.

spring silkworms until they die spin out worries without rest;   the silkworm sits and spins her thoughts out till the very last     spring silkworms spin their lives into thread until they run out.

a candle burns down to ash and only then its tears begin to dry.    the candle turns to ash and suddenly the tears are in your past       a candle’s tears can’t dry until it’s worn itself to ash.

in the morning mirror you comb over and over your lovely hair. you recite verse instead of sleeping, in the cold light of the moon---

   at sunrise check my mirror and my roots are showing through    at moonrise stumbling over psalms while my lips turn blue

      the morning mirror shows my hair clouding over, changing into something else.       night. I can't sleep. poems run out of me. the cold moon watches over my shoulder.

but there's not much road between here and the queen mother's mountain.    a mile or two on down the road is the immortal mountain       not many roads stray close to the mountain dreaming, but

she's close; her green bird always comes to check on you.    queen mother's crow says girl stop sitting counting days without him       the three-legged bird flies to me to say: our lady of peaches is worried for you.

---

Trying to find a pleasing way to arrange these alternate translations together has thrown it into sharp relief for me which lines are very literal and hard to misinterpret, and which lines could be read in multiple ways. The couplet about the silkworm and the candle only varies by minor changes in word order, whereas the line about the east wind and the line about the roads to Mt Penglai can be read in two completely opposite ways. I think my favorite part of this was finding different ways to interpret the allusion to Mt Penglai; in the text it just says “Mt Peng,” but the reader understands this is a mythical mountain, idiomatically something like fairyland, and that the green bird is a messenger of the Queen Mother of the West, who keeps the peaches of immortality and presides over prosperity, longevity, and eternal bliss (according to Wikipedia). She’s a fitting patron for a girl who’s worried about love, and invoking her also gives the poem an east-to-west direction, like the travel of the sun.

[leahsfiction]

thinking about our Dessa x Li Shangyin collaboration bc i still think it's really good

my version:

it was hard just to meet; it’s hard now to leave still some flowers survive once the spring wind’s power goes silkworm in spring, spitting silk until it dies a candle burns to ash, only tears left as a sign i check my mirror at dawn, my worries show at the roots nighttime psalms in my mouth as the moon only gets colder from here to immortal mt. penglai there’s not far left to go– the queen mother’s crow came to see me, you know

ghoul's version:

we had a hard time meeting, I had a hard time leaving you the flowers wither when the spring wind's all blown through the silkworm sits and spins her thoughts out till the very last the candle turns to ash and suddenly the tears are in your past at sunrise check my mirror and my roots are showing through at moonrise stumbling over psalms while my lips turn blue a mile or two on down the road is the immortal mountain queen mother's crow says girl stop sitting counting days without him

[garden-ghoul]

Tonight, an untitled poem by our favorite dude, Li Shangyin.

finding time to meet is hard; parting is hard too. the east wind brings in the new season gentle, but it withers the flowers all the same.

spring silkworms until they die spin out worries without rest; a candle burns down to ash and only then its tears begin to dry.

in the morning mirror you comb over and over your lovely hair. you recite verse instead of sleeping, in the cold light of the moon---

but there's not much road between here and the queen mother's mountain. she's close; her green bird always comes to check on you.

Original text and translation notes under the cut.

无题

相见时难别亦难，东风无力百花残。

春蚕到死丝方尽，蜡炬成灰泪始干。

晓镜但愁云鬓改，夜吟应觉月光寒。

蓬山此去无多路，青鸟殷勤为探看 。

So in this one, inspired by Wong May’s marvellously airy and confusing English translation, I decided to try being a little less literal than normal.

the east wind ... all the same --- the original is a lot less wordy; I tried to fit in a lot of implications. The notes on Gushiwen imply a seasonality to the east wind, and I got it in my head that we’re watching the passage of time wither flowers as it must. the young lady seems very preoccupied with this idea.

spin out worries --- it actually says “spin silk,” but 丝 silk and 思 thought are pronounced the same. I’ll confess that per Laurence “longing” might be more appropriate than “worry” but I’ve gone for the angle of “you can only stop worrying once you’re dead; it is hard being a young lady.”

you comb over and over --- you could read this more literally as “worry that your lovely hair [symbolic of youthful beauty] will change.” I was happy to have the actress show instead of tell, an obsessive attention to her hair (though I recognize that any well-off young lady from the Tang Dynasty who isn’t paying obsessive attention to her hair is neglecting a gift---I think the acting works in English).

there’s not much road --- this is the interpretation of all the notes and translations we’ve checked, but I’m tickled that “not much road” and “not many roads” would read as exact opposites here, close vs far away.

the queen mother’s mountain --- I added in the epithet to refer to Mt Penglai, the home of the Queen Mother of the West, keeper of the immortal peaches. Laurence says she’s this young woman’s patron, though I’m not entirely sure what that means. still, someone’s got to look out for pining young ladies.

her green bird --- I’m keeping 青 as “green” here purely because Laurence translated it as “black” and Wong May translated it as “blue.” completes the trifecta. these are messenger birds---Laurence says three-legged birds, which I love---who carry correspondence for the Queen Mother of the West.

always comes to check on you --- courteously or attentively visiting to see what’s going on, might be a literal translation. the bird is really sweet. I like the bird.

[tainbocuailnge]

[nasu voice] okay so xu fu is a woman who agreed to search for the island of immortality on shi huang di’s behalf because she was in lesbians with yu miaoyi who is an immortal vampire who wanted nothing more than to die when xu fu met her and so xu fu decided to research immortality in order to find a way to kill an immortal and fulfil yu miaoyi’s deathwish but not long after xu fu’s departure yu miaoyi fell in love with xiang yu who is a war automata created by shi huang di based on the wreckage of prince nezha (who was a robot created by the gods) thus giving yu miaoyi a reason to live as she and her husband found solace in their shared inhumanity and basically a lot happened in 2200 years and now yu miaoyi is traveling with a bunch of modern humans to restore the proper flow of history and they stumble upon mt. penglai where xu fu has been holed up for all those millennia experimenting in every possible field of magecraft and science to a way to kill yu miaoyi unaware that she no longer wants to die nor will ever return xu fu’s affections. also she looks kinda like a jiangshi and has a huge plush of yu 

[cma-japanese-art]

Box, 1800s, Cleveland Museum of Art: Japanese Art

For the cover designs on writing boxes, Chinese motifs like Mt. Penglai (Horai-zan in Japanese), the island of immortality, remained popular. A landscape with a river, buildings, mountains, trees, and clouds decorates the top of this portable writing box while the inside is embellished with clouds, birds, water, and grasses and offers a space for a tiny ink stone. Size: Overall: 15.5 cm (6 1/8 in.) Medium: lacquer

https://clevelandart.org/art/1974.271

[newhologram]

Kamaitachi - Kyary Pamyu Pamyu lyrics and translation

Usual disclaimer: I’m a JP student, not fluent, still learning. I also try not to do literal translations because it can feel stale. It’s more important to me to preserve the feeling than to give you a boring direct translation. Translation notes: The song and video are full of many cultural references that don’t exactly have translations. I got a little creative, but here are some notes to help enjoy the video even more. 

Kyary’s first look is based on Tang Sanzang (Sanzou Houshi), the Buddhist monk from Journey to the West. Her second is a Kamaitachi, a Japanese weasel youkai with scythe-like claws, known for riding on cyclones and cutting people.

Even though she’s a Kamaitachi and not a monkey, her character and the relationship to Tang Sanzang is a lot like Sun Wukong (Son Gokuu) from Journey to the West. Being mischievous, eating enchanted peaches, being tied by by fate. I wonder if the question is, “Son Gokuu rides on a cloud, so what if he were actually a Kamaitachi riding on the wind?” A Kamaitachi that can’t cut its own string of fate.

Aka-ito: the red string of fate that connects us to our soulmate. In this video, it’s the pink string of fate.

Houraisan aka Mt. Penglai: a magical land in Chinese mythology that made its way to Japan. Also called the Island of Immortals or Treasure Island. 

Idzuna: a kind of fox-spirit, but another name of Kamaitachi. It’s also the name of the sorcery that uses these youkai to possess people. 

Kamakiri-zaka: I translated this as Break Up Hill for context, but other readings could be Scythe Slash Hill or Praying Mantis Hill. This seems to reference Engiri Jinja or a ties-cutting shrine that people would go to cut the string of fate so that they would no longer be attached to someone or something. This isn’t always romantic, it can be leaving toxic friends or an old job.

Kyary is playing two soulmates resisting their fate. The Kamaitachi succeeded in possessing the monk in his sleep, but then realized they were soulmates. Her buddies tried to cut the string but it didn’t work. She went about her life, but being tied to this person left her almost like a zombie, so she left to fix it. The characters venture far in the dream-land together to try “breaking up”. In the end, they’re fated and the string remains. 

FANSUB HERE Gifsets will be in my gifs tag More translations Like my J-Pop translations? Donate to my ko-fi or become a Patron. Translation, romaji, and kana below.

-----

Hypnotic and breezy is the splendor of spring The wind blows to the future beyond Treasure Island Shining Shining, sunrises and fragrant jasmine tea The more I fall in love, the closer I am to my dreams

Shalalang Ring-Ring Crushin' on You Shalalang Ring-Ring Crushin' on You Shalalang Ring-Ring Crushin' on You

Thunderbolt! Kamaitachi! At the speed of lightning I can see right through this puppy love, but the thread of fate can't be broken A whirlwind of change is coming, though your heart may stumble This jinx won't hurt one bit, our delicate love upon Break Up Hill

My sleepy brain was in a trance, time to wakey-wakey Like an empty vessel, my heart was missing something A steady whoosh of wind takes me to the East Sea I'll miss you more every thousand years

Shalalang Ring-Ring Crushin' on You Shalalang Ring-Ring Crushin' on You Shalalang Ring-Ring Crushin' on You

Come get dolled up, it's Kawaii Magic Before the lotus flower withers away Infatuation can be so cruel, but this dream of ours can't be broken

Thunderbolt! Kamaitachi! Though your heart may stumble This jinx won't hurt one bit, our delicate love upon Break Up Hill

Zzz... Zzz...

Shalalang Ring-Ring Crushin' on You Shalalang Ring-Ring Crushin' on You Shalalang Ring-Ring Crushin' on You

Thunderbolt! Kamaitachi! At the speed of lightning I can see right through this puppy love, but the thread of fate can't be broken A whirlwind of change is coming, though your heart may stumble This jinx won't hurt one bit, our delicate love upon Break Up Hill

Zzz... Zzz...

----- saimin saimin soyosoyo to haru no urara no houraisan no mukougawa mirai he to kaze ga fuku Shining Shining hi ga nobori kaoru sanpin TII koi ni koi ni ochiru hodo yume ni todoku tte

shararan rinrin renren rin shararan rinrin renren rin shararan rinrin renren rin

kaminari kamaitachi dengeki no sokudo de koigokoro mitooshita demo kono ito wa kirenai henka no tsumujikaze kokoro ga tsumadzuite mo itakunai sono idzuna awai koi kamakiri-zaka

saimin saimin nemutai nou shakishaki to shite shinkuukan no sore kurai kokoro ga nuketeita suisui fuufuu kaze ga fuku higashi no umi he ryoukai senmei tatsu hodo ni hito ga koishikute

shararan rinrin renren rin shararan rinrin renren rin shararan rinrin renren rin

omekashi Kawaii magic renge chitte shimau made koi mo kitto setsunakute demo kono yume wa kirenai

kaminari kamaitachi kokoro ga tsumadzuite mo itakunai sono izuna awai koi kamakiri-zaka

suyasuya

shararan rinrin renren rin shararan rinrin renren rin shararan rinrin renren rin

kaminari kamaitachi dengeki no sokudo de koigokoro mitooshita demo kono ito wa kirenai henka no tsumujikaze kokoro ga tsumadzuite mo itakunai sono idzuna awai koi kamakiri-zaka

suyasuya

-----

催眠催眠　そよそよと　春のうららの 蓬莱山の向こう側　未来kへと風が福 Shining Shining　日が昇り　香るさんぴんティー 恋に恋に落ちるほど　夢に届くって

しゃららん　りんりん　恋々凛 しゃららん　りんりん　恋々凛 しゃららん　りんりん　恋々凛

カミナリ　かまいたち　電撃の速度で 恋心見透した　でもこの糸は切れない 変化の　つむじ風　心がつまづいても 痛くない　そのイヅナ　淡い恋　鎌切り坂

催眠催眠　眠たい脳　しゃきしゃきとして 真空管のそれくらい　心が抜けていた すいすいふうふう風が吹く　東の海へ 了解千年経つほどに　人が恋しくて

しゃららん　りんりん　恋々凛 しゃららん　りんりん　恋々凛 しゃららん　りんりん　恋々凛

おめかし Kawaii magic 蓮華散ってしまうまで 恋もきっと切なくて　でもこの夢は切れない

カミナリ　かまいたち　心がつまずいても 痛くない　そのイズナ　淡い恋　鎌切り坂

すやすや

しゃららん　りんりん　恋々凛 しゃららん　りんりん　恋々凛 しゃららん　りんりん　恋々凛

カミナリ　かまいたち　電撃の速度で 恋心見透した　でもこの糸は切れない 変化の　つむじ風　心がつまづいても 痛くない　そのイヅナ　淡い恋　鎌切り坂

すやすや

[yamayuandadu]

Is Hourai being some horrible bleak place Lafcadio Hearn's own interpretation or something actually rooted in Chinese/Japanese sources? Can't find much info about the Chinese Penglai at all besides it being a hotspot for immortals. The Japanese side of things is light too, with Hourai just being a convenient otherworldly location that gets swapped out with Tokoyo a lot. It has the character 蓬 (weedy, overgrown, wasteland) in it so I'm wondering if there is an original "desolate" Penglai...

Hearn’s vision of Hourai was a metaphor for his own experience as a vintage weeb, as far as I can tell, and as a result not directly rooted in any specific texts or folklore. He was disappointed with Tokyo and believed the things which fascinated him about Japan - his personal mt. Penglai, one could say - were getting lost due to modernization (or perhaps never existed in the first place, which is why he says Hourai exists in paintings and mirages). Chinese sources from antiquity understood the mountain/island as a very real place, with occasional expeditions being sent there in the everlasting imperiall quest for immortality etc. That’s probably where the idea of brining fruits from there in the tale of princess Kaguya comes from (note the story about fruits from Tokoyo in the Nihon Shoki too), and also why you can occasionally see the name being used interchangeably with Tokoyo, which was also supposed to be a distant, though physical location. In the Heian period mt. Fuji was often considered to be Penglai, with Miyako no Yoshika being a particular enthusiast of searching for the immortals purportedly living near the top. I can’t really find anything that would imply the island was thought to be a deserted, melancholic place Hearn presents it as, basically. Note he describes that as a result of recent changes and “evil winds,” too, which further supports the view it was simply a metaphor for his mental image of Japan.

[sparklyjojos]

THE SAIMON FAMILY CASE recaps [7/13]

In which we talk with the yakuza side of the family, learn about strange mountain hermits running around, and meet the Obligatory Kodansha Editor Character.

--

PART 5

Chinese legends speak of a man called Xu Fu. The ruler of Qin Dynasty ordered him to sail to the land to the east and find the elixir of immortality. After a long journey, Xu Fu arrived at a beautiful mountain as wondrous as Mount Sumeru that he called Fushizan, “the mountain of immortality”. One theory claims that it was the same place we know as Fuji-san.

Well, certainly it wasn’t Mt. Fuji he found… although the mountain indeed was located on the legendary Penglai, the Island of Immortals—Japan. On Mount Penglai lived its God, and looking from the top one could see the entire Country of Gods stretching down below...

--

When Ajiro and Kirigirisu are still up at 4 AM talking about the case, Soga Tensui makes yet another sudden entrance and shows them a written request:

The other Soga Tensui is with the rest of the family right now. Voices carry far, so please keep on talking as if I’m not here. If you want to discuss something with me, please write it down.

The three men talk in this way until dawn. Since the magician doesn’t say a word, Kirigirisu isn’t sure if they’re actually talking with Tensui or maybe with Gensui.

Ajiro has no qualms about telling Tensui he and his brother are among the most likely suspects, and the man doesn’t seem upset in the slightest.

We have already considered the possibility. Neither I nor the other Soga Tensui is the perpetrator. We may not have a solid alibi, and I realize that it’s a weak proof of innocence, but the idea to ask you for help came from both of us. We wouldn’t make the request, was one of us the culprit.

It appears Tensui has already made his own little investigation through Miku, who asked everyone in the family (with a promise not to blame them for the deaths) whether or not they swapped the curtains or took Yuuta to Tottori. Either no one from the family members present did that, or the culprit stays quiet. The investigation hit a dead end.

It seems the case is unsolvable as of now. I don’t think the investigation will be able to progress any further unless another incident happens on the 19th next month.

Soon after that Tensui leaves them, probably to hide before everyone else wakes up.

--

Once the family sits down to eat, Ajiro asks everyone to watch each other’s moves throughout the next month, just in case.

��You think one of us killed him?” booms the man looking like a mountain (Kirigirisu looks into his notes… right, Fujita Daisen. The non-yakuza son of the yakuza old man.) “If the culprit is really among us, then listen up! On the 19th next month, I’m gonna be patrolling Mount Daisen together with my buddies from the mountaineering club. If you’re gonna attack someone, better try me then! You can be sure I’m gonna turn the tables on you!”

“Calm down, no one’s going to attack you,” says the man more similar to a tall tree (notes, notes… ah, Fujita Hyousen. Daisen’s younger brother, the current yakuza boss. If Daisen seems like a furious animal in his demeanor, this guy’s more like a sharp blade).

“What, Hyousen, are you saying I’m not gonna be attacked next?”

“Even if I was the culprit, I wouldn’t want to target you.”

“You still dare say that? I’d say it’d be just like you to attack me!”

Everyone else looks on in awkward silence as the two brothers have a heated exchange.

“Whatever,” Hyousen says after they calm down a little. “If you do go into the mountains on 19th, better take care not to get into any accidents.”

“Oh, don’t you worry. I’m not gonna die until I meet the Mountain God.”

“Do you seriously still believe all those tales…”

“I’m gonna see the Country of Gods from the mountain!” Daisen yells nonsensically.

--

On December 19th, Fujita Daisen (44) is found dead while patrolling Mount Daisen with his climbing club friends. It seems he slipped on the stairs of a mountain shelter and hit his head, eventually dying from blood loss.

Mount Daisen—probably the inspiration for the man’s name—has been an object of worship and awe since ancient times. One legend speaks of a proud god from Korea who wanted to prove one of his mountains was in fact even grander, so he loaded it onto a boat and took to Japan to compare sizes. As soon as he arrived close to Mount Daisen and realized how big it truly was, he left his own mountain next to it and left in a huff—that’s where the neighboring mountain Koreizan came from.

Mount Daisen can be dangerous to climb in winter, so patrols of experienced climbers are sent out to ensure safety on the snow-covered trails. One such patrol of ten men under Fujita Daisen’s lead embarked on duty on December 19th. They all took a brief rest in a small concrete hut serving as a shelter. Eventually Daisen asked everyone to leave the shelter and follow him, now constantly staying in front of the group, heading straight for the peak without looking back at them even once—something very unusual for him.

When they arrived at the peak, strangely-behaving Daisen was the first to enter the big lodge located there, but once everyone else walked in, they couldn’t find Daisen inside. Instead, someone else had been waiting for them: a corpulent thirty-something man with curly hair bringing to mind a reggae artist.

“I’m… Saimon Takayoshi,” he mumbled out, giving off the vibe of a troubled introvert. “I’m from… Daisen’s family. He asked me to… from that shelter to here… to switch places with him. Daisen should join us... any time now...”

Before the rest could fully shake off the surprise, they heard two other climbers call for them from outside, yelling that they had found someone dead at the shelter below. Everyone rushed back and discovered the corpse was Daisen, lying in a pool of blood by the short stairs outside.

According to Takayoshi, Daisen had anticipated that someone would try to attack him that day. Takayoshi thought it was probably just baseless paranoia, but agreed to serve as bait during the climb, so that Daisen could walk behind them, spot the assassin and catch him. Daisen planned to leave the hut only when the others were at a certain distance so they wouldn’t suspect anything. It seems that he fell from the stairs when trying to follow them.

Since Daisen’s father Kyuuzou was once called Saimon, this incident means a fourth member of the Saimon family in a row has died on 19th day of a month.

--

As the previous boss of Fujita-gumi, Fujita Kyuuzou inherited a splendid residence in Tsuwano, on the opposite side of town than Kami-Saimon. He lives there along with those who served him the longest. His son Hyousen and the rest live in another house, closer to the town’s center.

On December 21st, the day of Daisen’s wake, Ajiro and Kirigirisu head to Kyuuzou’s residence and talk with Takayoshi.

As we may remember, Takayoshi is one of the three sons of Akiko, the second victim. (The other two brothers are Taishi and Akio, who play the two clowns in the show.) Though in his thirties, Takayoshi is single, apparently never having even dated before… and no wonder, because his entire demeanor screams that he doesn’t like any contact with other people. Was that why he left the family?

“I wasn’t as talented as my brothers…” Takayoshi mumbles out an explanation. “I’m from the main family, so I would perform in shows since I was small… but no matter how much I trained, I had stage fright and always made mistakes. Akio was always nice to me, but… Taishi would beat me… others turned a cold shoulder…”

Young Takayoshi would often leave his house to find shelter and understanding somewhere else: in Fujita-gumi led by Kyuuzou, who treated the boy on par with his own children. Takayoshi became a full-fledged member after graduating middle school and moved to the Fujita residence. He quickly realized that the rest of the main family still acts cold towards him, though for much different reasons now. Afraid that his presence could bring Fujita-gumi trouble, he left Tsuwano in high school.

After many misadventures he was found passed out in the mountains and brought back to the main family’s house, where he once again became the object of pestering. Daisen and Hyousen helped him get out of there, and Kyuuzou’s recommendation allowed him to stay for three years with a friendly yakuza group Nagasaki-kai (written 長先会 rather than like the city’s name). During that time, Takayoshi managed to learn enough magic to later be able to travel around Japan making a living through street performances. Maybe it wasn’t an easy life, but still better than staying with the Saimons. He kept in touch with the Fujitas and knew about the mysterious deaths going on, but only decided to return a few days ago, to help Daisen.

“He didn’t tell me much, but… he said that the real target isn’t the Saimon family, but Fujita-gumi. And now he’s dead… I made a horrible mistake again…!”

Takayoshi may have been a prime suspect so far, but the conversation makes Ajiro and Kirigirisu doubt he’s involved in the case. On the day of Tamako’s death he was far away in Hokkaido, attempting to get some money by talking to a journalist about his experiences on the road. The journalist was called Uyama Hideo and worked for Kodansha.

[Uyama Hideo is an actual Kodansha editor. The author’s note at the end dedicates the book to Uyama and reveals that it was in part written as thanks for everything he did for the shinhonkaku / new mystery genre.]

Takayoshi and Uyama eventually moved to the Kanto area, where he got a call from the Fujitas about his mother Akiko’s death. He was still in Kanto when a month later he learned about Yuuta’s death and Daisen’s plan. And so, he decided to help and headed to Mount Daisen.

“Magicians don’t reveal their methods, but I guess I’m not a true magician anyway…” Takayoshi mumbles. “And it’s for the investigation, so I’ll tell you what we did... When a magician performs instant transportation, it’s practically always achieved using a double… Either a twin sibling, another really similar person, or at least someone with the same body shape hiding their face… but you need a good excuse for the last one. If you see a magician getting shot out of a cannon towards a suspended cage, he will be wearing a helmet saying it’s for safety… but it’s actually to hide his face… the double is already hidden at the destination, they just need to use blind spots effectively to switch…”

Kirigirisu realizes that he has already seen an “instant transportation” like that before: the torn business card that seemed to have teleported inside a mandarin orange.

Takayoshi explains that while not being that similar to Daisen, the right clothing and time to prepare made him able to serve as his double. Having experience with illusion helped.

“And what do you personally think about Daisen’s death?” Ajiro asks. “Was it an accident?”

“Daisen was… definitely murdered.”

--

After listening to Takayoshi, the detectives move rooms to have a conversation with Hyousen, Daisen’s brother and the current boss of Fujita-gumi.

Hyousen states that it’s Fujita-gumi that’s being targeted. Two other groups may be at fault. One is Nagasaki-kai; they may have been friendly once, but after their boss got assassinated a bit before Hyousen took over Fujita-gumi, the relations between them worsened, and who knows, maybe they’re just waiting for the right moment to take over Tsuwano. The other enemy group is Karyuu-kai (華隆会), also hungry for their turf. Hyousen claims that Fujita-gumi are the ones keeping Tsuwano peaceful and happy, and if they were to fall, the other groups would probably bring in a giant gang war.

Fujita-gumi is mostly a tekiya group selling shady goods at festivals and getting protection money from Tsuwano’s stores. Another source of income for them is “industrial enterprise”—by which Hyousen means Soga Tensui Troupe’s Circus of Magic.

The group fell into some financial difficulties lately. The yakuza structure have changed a lot throughout the years; many small groups have merged together into big ones, creating an oligopoly. The thing about Fujita-gumi’s tekiya business is that they can’t exactly go sell things in another group’s territory, but many groups allowed for an exception when their yashi (peddlers) were tagging along with the Circus of Magic. This new yakuza oligopoly means in practice that Fujita-gumi can’t go many different places anymore, and neither can the Circus. Even the recent show in Yamaguchi was only possible thanks to a brief change in what yakuza group controlled the turf at the moment. Right now the Circus is pretty much limited to touring between towns by the old mines, where the Tsukumos and Tousens still have many friends.

The cost of the magic show is nothing to sneeze at, what with all these outsiders it employs, and combined with territorial limitations it made the Circus face tough times. Daisen was able to help them a little financially as the owner of a yakiniku restaurant chain in Tottori, and Hyousen set up a bunch of pachinko parlors with help of (then friendly) Nagasaki-kai. Then the new boss of Nagasaki-kai announced severing their ties and all the pachinko parlors were slowly being taken back. Their only remaining parlor in Yamaguchi is receiving harassment, and even Daisen’s yakiniku restaurants have been under attack recently.

Considering all this, it wouldn’t be weird if one of the enemy groups started attacking Fujita-gumi indirectly by assassinating members of their family. Hyousen is fully convinced that the four dead Saimons were all murdered.

Ajiro and Kirigirisu can see the point, but something doesn’t add up. If Daisen believed another yakuza group was at fault, why would he stand up at a family gathering and challenge the culprit among them to target him? Why would he get so heated with Hyousen?

Hyousen does realize their conversation made him look suspect, so he explains it. Daisen got heated because he thought there was an enemy group’s spy in the family. It’s true that Daisen acted like he fully expected Hyousen to target him, but that probably stemmed from when they were young and fought constantly. When Hyousen said that even if he was the culprit, he wouldn’t want to attack Daisen, he meant that Daisen as his brother likely wouldn’t be targeted by the other groups, as they would fear Fujita-gumi’s revenge… and revenge they will get, as soon as Hyousen figures out who exactly is at fault for his brother’s death.

This leaves one question: what was that strange thing Daisen said about the Mountain God and the Land of Gods?

“The mountain is Mount Daisen, and the Land of Gods is Izumo stretching to the west. As for the Mountain God… I think it’s nothing more than idle gossip, but I’ll tell you. Our father claims that decades ago he met the Mountain God while climbing Mount Daisen. I never believed him, but Daisen did. The truth is, who my father met was not a god, but a hermit living in the mountains. I and my son Hyousai were even named after him. You see, volcanic Mount Daisen was once called the hikami (火神) mountain, hikami meaning “the god of fire”. That hermit was also called Hikami (氷神), although with the first kanji meaning “ice” rather than “fire”. And since he was a sennin (仙人), a mountain hermit, and was gifted with appropriate genius, sai (才), his full name was Hikami Sensai (氷神仙才). Only my father has ever met that man.”

So that’s where the names Hyousen (氷仙) and Hyousai (氷才) came from.

--

The two detectives move rooms again to speak with Fujita Kyuuzou, the previous boss of Fujita-gumi, elderly father of Daisen and Hyousen.

Immediately after entering the room, they notice a black Noh mask portraying a smiling old man—kokushikijou—displayed as decoration. Kyuuzou invites them to sit down with him on the tatami. As soon as they do, Kyuuzou suddenly yells out in a frightening manner, causing Kirigirisu to fall on his back in fear. Ajiro doesn’t even flinch.

“It’s been forty years since someone was able to withstand my kiai,” Kyuuzou says with a smile. “You truly are Soujin’s grandson.”

“Do you know my grandfather?”

“Know him? We’re sworn brothers, we drank from the same cup of sake! As his grandson, you too are like my family.” Kyuuzou’s eyes are kind as he looks at Ajiro.

“I… did not know about that. My apologies. If I could contact him, I would have brought him along...”

“Don’t worry. No one could ever shackle that man down, not even his grandson, not even I, his sworn brother. He’s not a yakuza, a man that would feel bound by family events; even if I was the one to die, I’m sure he wouldn’t attend my funeral.”

Ajiro’s own grandfather shared sake with a yakuza boss… Kirigirisu is shocked, but starts to understand why exactly Soujin gives others that dangerous mafia boss impression.

The detectives ask more questions about the case, but learn nothing new. Kyuuzouu does remember meeting Hikami Sensai decades ago, but the memory is fuzzy. He doesn’t have any proof that another group is pulling the strings behind the scenes, but Daisen was definitely murdered and they probably have a serial murder case in progress.

--

--

Kirigirisu’s life began anew in 1973, when he was a suspect in a murder case and had lost all his memories due to hitting his head. He could only vaguely remember suddenly falling off a cliff into the sea and trying to swim to the shore. It seemed like he had been solving a case as a private detective under the name Kirigirisu Tarou—or at least the few clues they found said so.

Nihon Tantei Club was founded a year later, in 1974. Though it hasn’t seen many cases so far, certainly their popularity is rising—well, a little. In this uncertain era, many businesses are facing financial difficulties. Kirigirisu wants to help Nihon Tantei Club as he can, not only because of his loyalty to both Ajiros, but because one of their investigations led to his first meeting with Kano.

But no matter how much they try, 1977 swiftly becomes 1978 without the Saimon Family Case coming anywhere near to being solved.

--

On January 18th, Ajiro and Kirigirsu visit Tsuwano once more in anticipation of another death the next day. The town is still full of snow, and the family members still have a grim look on their faces.

Daisetsu, late Daisen’s son, asks them to go with him and Takayoshi to the local bar at 10 PM so they can talk. When they meet there, an unknown man shows up to drink with them.

“This is…” Takayoshi mutters, “the journalist I told you about… Uyama…”

Uyama Hideo is a short man with curious eyes. He welcomes them with enthusiasm that makes it obvious he’s already somewhat drunk. His business card gives his first name as Hideomi (日出臣), apparently an older nickname of his.

“Oh…” Uyama sighs strangely. “You know, I have this astrologer friend, a man of many talents who wants to become a mystery novelist lately. I believe his name will become famous. Oh… he incidentally has the same first name as you, Mr. Ajiro. Shimada Souji.”

[The narration confirms that he means the future author of The Tokyo Zodiac Murders.]

The group sits down for a drink. It’s a pretty small place, as expected from a quiet town. The friendly owner is apparently one of Daisen’s friends from the mountaineering club. Looking around, the detectives notice a few posters of celebrities: the actor Matsuda Yuusaku, the karate master Ooyama Masutatsu, the pro-wrestler Rikidouzan, baseball stars Harimoto Isao and Kaneda Masaichi… Kirigirisu truly has no idea why all these different people have their faces plastered around the bar. Maybe the owner is a fan.

Daisetsu says that it’s not actually him that wanted to talk to the detectives, but Uyama.

“Oh… that’s right,” Uyama agrees with that strange sigh of his. “When Mr. Kirigirisu called me last month, I learned from him that Kira was staying with Fujita-gumi…”

“Kira?”

“That’s how… he reads my name…” Takayoshi explains [貴良 can be read as both Takayoshi and Kira]. “Even Daisetsu picked it up from him…”

“Oh… I wanted to talk about how those four deaths look like a murder case to me.”

“Exactly!” Daisetsu shouts. “At least my father’s death was murder! There’s no way a true man of the mountains would just slip and fall! I asked Uyama to help us investigate.”

“Oh… I’m going to look into the case more. Maybe interview the Saimons.”  Uyama adds that Taishi didn’t want to let him bother anyone from his house, so they should split forces: Uyama will focus on Fujita-gumi, while Ajiro and Kirigirisu take care of the Saimons. “I’m not doing this for a scoop, but just to help Kira. Besides, I’m something of a mystery fan, so I’m interested in seeing a strange case myself…”

The group talks some more before parting ways. Takayoshi and Daisetsu (and very drunk Uyama carried on Daisetsu’s back) head to the Fujita residence, and the detectives return to Kami-Saimon for the night.

As midnight strikes and January 18th becomes 19th, the anticipation of things to come hangs heavily in the air.

--

[>>>NEXT PART>>>]

[hasxufudoneanythingwronginactive]

Day 476:

Xu Fu: I swear to god I’m not just using Mt. Penglai as a catch-all, but it does work as a catch-all.

[clarste]

Regarding what you have said earlier, that the way the title “hourai person” is phrased in Japanese oddly makes it sound like the described person comes from the place called Hourai, wouldn't it actually be exactly what it is supposed to mean in a figurative sense? This coming under the assumption, that the most plausible inspiration for the Hourai Elixir would be the mythological Mount Hourai (or Mount Penglai), known for its connections with immorality.

Yeah, Hourai is a mythical place, but if “person from Hourai” is supposed to be a fancy way of saying they’re immortal, then I would classify that as intentionally sounding weird like I mentioned. I don’t think the figurative use is at all obvious, even in Japanese.

Also, Kaguya is literally named “Mt. Hourai”. Ms. Kaguya Mt. Hourai.

[theshadowytastemakerstuden-blog1]

Calcium Carbonate from Oyster Shell Market Worldwide Survey by Applications, Solutions and SWOT Analysis upto 2023

Calcium Carbonate from Oyster Shell means that the calcium carbonate is produced from oyster shell. Oyster shells are derived from marine source, consisting of Calcium, Magnesium, Silica which are essentially required by the body.

Scope of the Report: This report focuses on the Calcium Carbonate from Oyster Shell in global market, especially in North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific, South America, Middle East and Africa. This report categorizes the market based on manufacturers, regions, type and application.

Get PDF Sample Copy of the Report @ https://www.researchmoz.us/enquiry.php?type=S&repid=1836248

Calcium carbonate from oyster shell means that calcium carbonate is produced through oyster shell. The main content of oyster shell is calcium carbonate. Oyster shell can be sourced easily, however, the lead contained in oyster shell has been a key issue during the development of calcium carbonate. As for the application, calcium carbonate from oyster shell is used in pharmaceutical industry, food industry and so on. There is no doubt that food industry owns the largest application share, which was 47.79% in 2016, followed by pharmaceutical industry with 32.37% market share Global production of oyster shell calcium carbonate reached to 3149 MT in 2016, from 2743 MT in 2012. India is the largest production base of oyster shell calcium carbonate, which accounted for 36.81% share globally in 2016. USA is the follower, with 1105 MT produced.

Read Overview of Report with TOC @ https://www.researchmoz.us/global-calcium-carbonate-from-oyster-shell-market-2018-by-manufacturers-regions-type-and-application-forecast-to-2023-report.html

The worldwide market for Calcium Carbonate from Oyster Shell is expected to grow at a CAGR of roughly 0.8% over the next five years, will reach 4 million US$ in 2023, from 4 million US$ in 2017, according to a new GIR (Global Info Research) study.

Market Segment by Manufacturers, this report covers Huber Materials Nutri Granulations The Wright Group ERIE Dr. Behr Sudeep Pharma Caltron Penglai Marine Bio-tech

Market Segment by Regions, regional analysis covers North America (United States, Canada and Mexico) Europe (Germany, France, UK, Russia and Italy) Asia-Pacific (China, Japan, Korea, India and Southeast Asia) South America (Brazil, Argentina, Colombia etc.) Middle East and Africa (Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, Nigeria and South Africa)

Market Segment by Type, covers Pharma Grade Food Grade Other

Market Segment by Applications, can be divided into Pharmaceutical Industry Food Industry Personal Care Industry Other

Make an Enquiry @  https://www.researchmoz.us/enquiry.php?type=E&repid=1836248

There are 15 Chapters to deeply display the global Calcium Carbonate from Oyster Shell market. Chapter 1, to describe Calcium Carbonate from Oyster Shell Introduction, product scope, market overview, market opportunities, market risk, market driving force; Chapter 2, to analyze the top manufacturers of Calcium Carbonate from Oyster Shell, with sales, revenue, and price of Calcium Carbonate from Oyster Shell, in 2016 and 2017; Chapter 3, to display the competitive situation among the top manufacturers, with sales, revenue and market share in 2016 and 2017; Chapter 4, to show the global market by regions, with sales, revenue and market share of Calcium Carbonate from Oyster Shell, for each region, from 2013 to 2018; Chapter 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9, to analyze the market by countries, by type, by application and by manufacturers, with sales, revenue and market share by key countries in these regions; Chapter 10 and 11, to show the market by type and application, with sales market share and growth rate by type, application, from 2013 to 2018; Chapter 12, Calcium Carbonate from Oyster Shell market forecast, by regions, type and application, with sales and revenue, from 2018 to 2023; Chapter 13, 14 and 15, to describe Calcium Carbonate from Oyster Shell sales channel, distributors, traders, dealers, Research Findings and Conclusion, appendix and data source

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[leahsfiction]

li shangyin's abstruse little poem feat. woman moments!

untitled (meeting is hard, and parting is hard)

无题·相见时难别亦难 李商隐

meeting is hard, and parting is hard soft spring winds can't destroy every flower

silkworms live utterly for silk[1] till they die; candles burn down to ash; only then do tears dry

she worries until dawn-dressing; her temples cloud over[2] night sounds accompany her as the moon rimes over[3]

mt. penglai[4] sits in the clouds—there are scarce few roads the queen mother's black birds[5] are kept busy to and fro

--

1: sī "silk" and "thoughts; longings" are homonyms 2: "temple-clouds" is a poetic expression for a woman's hair 3: lit. "moonlight grows colder"; i.e., as the night deepens 4: one of the mountains where immortals (xiān) live 5: the queen mother of the west, not explicitly named, is a Daoist deity, patron of female Daoists and unconventional women. her messengers/servants are three-legged birds.

[ruseg]

Mt. Penglai (Mountain of Immortals) Yokoyama Taikan pic.twitter.com/NqkbNMEHAt

— Anne Mortier (@AnneMortier1) January 19, 2018

[cma-japanese-art]

Box, 1800s, Cleveland Museum of Art: Japanese Art

For the cover designs on writing boxes, Chinese motifs like Mt. Penglai (Horai-zan in Japanese), the island of immortality, remained popular. A landscape with a river, buildings, mountains, trees, and clouds decorates the top of this portable writing box while the inside is embellished with clouds, birds, water, and grasses and offers a space for a tiny ink stone. Size: Overall: 15.5 cm (6 1/8 in.) Medium: lacquer

https://clevelandart.org/art/1974.271