Fuji

藤 Wisteria

1 Source and/or Related Material

Unknown

2 Author

possibly Maeda Toshitsune or Nambu Nobuoki

3 Repertoire

Kanze, Hōshō, Kongō

4 Synopsis

A travelling monk (waki) visits Lake Tago in Etchū Province (modern Toyama). At the lakeside, wisteria are blooming beautifully. The monk recites an old poem on their withering, and a woman (maeshite) appears and scolds him because although the place is famous for its wisteria, he has not praised the flowers’ beauty. He questions the woman, and she hints that she is the spirit of the flowers, then disappears. A villager (ai) enters and tells the monk how once Ōtomo no Yakamochi, when he was stationed here, composed poems about wisteria with his companion Nawamaru. Chanting sutras late into the night the monk falls asleep, and the spirit of the wisteria (nochishite) appears to him. She explains, with reference to the Buddhist teaching that even plants can reach enlightenment, that thanks to the monk’s prayers she has become a Bodhisattva of flowers. While the chorus praises the beautiful landscape reflected by the lake, the spirit offers a dance. Eventually the spring night ends and the priest awakes from his dream.