Ukon (no Baba)

右近（の馬場） Flower Viewing at Ukon

1 Source and/or Related Material

Tales of Ise chapter 9

2 Author

Zeami, revised by Kanze Nobumitsu

3 Repertoire

Kanze, Hōshō, Kongō

4 Synopsis

A priest (waki) and his companions (wakitsure) have come from Kashima in Hitachi Province (Ibaraki) to Kitano Shrine in the capital, and they stop by Ukon no Baba, an area in the shrine precincts which is famous for cherry blossom viewing. There, they meet a noblewoman (maeshite) and her attendants (maetsure) riding in a flower-viewing coach. The priests and women recite an old poem about Ukon no Baba, and the noblewoman speaks of famous sites nearby. Suddenly, the woman reveals that she is Sakuraba, the Goddess of the cherry blossoms, and vanishes. The God of a lesser shrine (ai) arrives and tells about Sakuraba and the art of poetry, then performs a dance. Sakuraba (nochishite) appears in her true form and blesses the realm with a divine dance.