Hikaru Genji
Encyclopedia
is the protagonist of Murasaki Shikibu
's The Tale of Genji
. In the story
, he is described as the most handsome man in the world and he attracts all women. Genji is the second son of Emperor Kiritsubo (桐壺帝), but he is delegated to civilian life for political reasons and begins a career as an imperial officer. The tale concentrates on his romantic life and gives an impressive portrait of the customs of the time.
Genji was given the appellation in his youth. He is also referred to in the book as sometimes abbreviated as . His given name is never referred to in the course of the story.
He is a fictitious person but it is thought the author was inspired by some historical figures including Minamoto no Tōru
who was a grandson of Emperor Saga
hence one of the Saga Genji
clan.
Hikaru Genji appears from the first volume "Kiritsubo" to the 40th volume "Illusion".
His father Emperor Kiritsubo considered appointing the Shining Prince the crown Prince. He was however worried that his second son had no support from his maternal line. And it had been predicted by a Korean that if Hikaru would ascend to the throne, the country would be thrown into chaos. This prediction discouraged him too. Finally the Emperor lowered Hikaru's rank to civilian, giving him the clan name Minamoto, (Genji).
Genji adored his stepmother , the favorite consort of Emperor Kiritsubo. Since her close resemblance to the dead Lady Kiritsubo was the reason that Emperor Kiritsubo had her enter his court, this was not surprising. As a result of their forbidden love, she bore a boy ,, to Genji, but no one knew the truth of his birth, and the child was raised as a prince and son of Emperor Kiritsubo.
He had two wives in the legal sense during his life: Lady Aoi (Aoi no Ue
､葵の上) and , the third daughter of respectively. Lady Aoi was his wife in his youth and died after she bore a son to Genji. Onna san no Miya was, on the other hand, his wife in his old age. She was a daughter of Emperor Suzaku by a lady whose sister was Empress Fujitsubo, hence her niece. But his de facto wife and most beloved one was Lady Murasaki ,, another niece of Fujitsubo. Genji met her by chance when she was very young - at the age of twelve. When her grandmother who brought her up died, and before her real father could take her to his mansion, Genji kidnapped Murasaki and brought her up himself. After Aoi died, Genji made her his unofficial wife. But their marriage didn't follow the whole protocol of official marriage, though she received as many honours as the factual wife of Genji, she remained officially his concubine, and that was one of the reasons Genji was offered the opportunity to marry the Third Princess. Genji couldn't reject this offer because of his affection for Fujitsubo, but this young girl was totally different from Fujitsubo and he was very disappointed and had many regrets.
Genji had many love affairs. He even made love to one of his brother's de facto consorts, . She was nominally the Head of Ladies-in-waiting and no official consort, but it was a scandal. Genji moved to Suma, in Harima province
, before he could be expelled officially by his enemies.
In Harima province, Genji met Lady Akashi and had a daughter by her. Later his brother Emperor Suzaku was afflicted by illness and feared it was a result of his poor treatment of his brother, Genji. Genji was invited to return to Miyako
(nowaday Kyoto). He left Lady Akashi and the child and returned to Kyoto.
After Genji was back in Kyoto, Emperor Suzaku abdicated in favor of the crown prince (Reizei) who was really the son of Genji. This prince ascended to the throne, but he learned the secret of his birth by chance, and wanted to abdicate in favor of his real father, Genji. It was however impossible and as the second best, Emperor Reizei gave Genji the same rank as an abdicated emperor. After rising to this noblest rank, Genji was called Rokujo-in, a name taken from his mansion.
Genji wanted his daughter to be the next Empress. He invited Lady Akashi and the child (known as Princess Akashi, 明石の姫) to Kyoto. Later, Lady Murasaki adopted this girl and brought her up. This girl became a consort of the crown prince and later his empress.
At the age of forty, he married his niece, Onna san no Miya. This marriage did not make him happy. , a son of his friend , hence a nephew of Lady Aoi, lusted after Onna san no Miya and sought her love even after her marriage with Genji. Finally he intruded into Rokujoin and raped her. She bore a boy whose father was Kashiwagi. Genji was angry but finally realizes it was just what he had done to his father, and it was a punishment of his past treachery to his father and emperor. He decided to keep the secret of the birth of this boy and to bring him up as his real and third child.
After Lady Murasaki died, he became a monk and secreted himself in . One year later he died too.
Murasaki Shikibu
Murasaki Shikibu was a Japanese novelist, poet and lady-in-waiting at the Imperial court during the Heian period. She is best known as the author of The Tale of Genji, written in Japanese between about 1000 and 1012...
's The Tale of Genji
The Tale of Genji
is a classic work of Japanese literature attributed to the Japanese noblewoman Murasaki Shikibu in the early 11th century, around the peak of the Heian period. It is sometimes called the world's first novel, the first modern novel, the first psychological novel or the first novel still to be...
. In the story
Narrative
A narrative is a constructive format that describes a sequence of non-fictional or fictional events. The word derives from the Latin verb narrare, "to recount", and is related to the adjective gnarus, "knowing" or "skilled"...
, he is described as the most handsome man in the world and he attracts all women. Genji is the second son of Emperor Kiritsubo (桐壺帝), but he is delegated to civilian life for political reasons and begins a career as an imperial officer. The tale concentrates on his romantic life and gives an impressive portrait of the customs of the time.
Genji was given the appellation in his youth. He is also referred to in the book as sometimes abbreviated as . His given name is never referred to in the course of the story.
He is a fictitious person but it is thought the author was inspired by some historical figures including Minamoto no Tōru
Minamoto no Toru
was a Japanese poet and statesman. He was born the grandson of Emperor Saga and a member of the Saga Genji clan. He is sometimes mentioned as the model for Hikaru Genji in important Japanese literary classic the Tale of Genji....
who was a grandson of Emperor Saga
Emperor Saga
was the 52nd emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Saga's reign spanned the years from 809 through 823.-Traditional narrative:...
hence one of the Saga Genji
Genji
was a after Bunkyū and before Keiō. This period spanned only slightly more than a single year from February 1864 through April 1865. The reigning emperor was .-Change of era:...
clan.
Hikaru Genji appears from the first volume "Kiritsubo" to the 40th volume "Illusion".
Life of Hikaru Genji in Tale of Genji
Hikaru Genji was born the second son of emperor Kiritsubo by his lower ranked consort, . Genji was blessed with peerless beauty and genius, even from infancy, and was nicknamed "the Shining Prince". His mother Kiritsubo died when he was only three years old. Pursuing the ideal of his mother, he became involved with many women in his lifetime.His father Emperor Kiritsubo considered appointing the Shining Prince the crown Prince. He was however worried that his second son had no support from his maternal line. And it had been predicted by a Korean that if Hikaru would ascend to the throne, the country would be thrown into chaos. This prediction discouraged him too. Finally the Emperor lowered Hikaru's rank to civilian, giving him the clan name Minamoto, (Genji).
Genji adored his stepmother , the favorite consort of Emperor Kiritsubo. Since her close resemblance to the dead Lady Kiritsubo was the reason that Emperor Kiritsubo had her enter his court, this was not surprising. As a result of their forbidden love, she bore a boy ,, to Genji, but no one knew the truth of his birth, and the child was raised as a prince and son of Emperor Kiritsubo.
He had two wives in the legal sense during his life: Lady Aoi (Aoi no Ue
Aoi no Ue
is a fictional character in The Tale of Genji . Daughter of the Minister of the Left and Genji’s first principal wife, she marries Genji when she is sixteen and he only twelve. Proud and distant to her husband, Aoi is constantly aware of the age difference between them and very much hurt by...
､葵の上) and , the third daughter of respectively. Lady Aoi was his wife in his youth and died after she bore a son to Genji. Onna san no Miya was, on the other hand, his wife in his old age. She was a daughter of Emperor Suzaku by a lady whose sister was Empress Fujitsubo, hence her niece. But his de facto wife and most beloved one was Lady Murasaki ,, another niece of Fujitsubo. Genji met her by chance when she was very young - at the age of twelve. When her grandmother who brought her up died, and before her real father could take her to his mansion, Genji kidnapped Murasaki and brought her up himself. After Aoi died, Genji made her his unofficial wife. But their marriage didn't follow the whole protocol of official marriage, though she received as many honours as the factual wife of Genji, she remained officially his concubine, and that was one of the reasons Genji was offered the opportunity to marry the Third Princess. Genji couldn't reject this offer because of his affection for Fujitsubo, but this young girl was totally different from Fujitsubo and he was very disappointed and had many regrets.
Genji had many love affairs. He even made love to one of his brother's de facto consorts, . She was nominally the Head of Ladies-in-waiting and no official consort, but it was a scandal. Genji moved to Suma, in Harima province
Harima Province
or Banshu was a province of Japan in the part of Honshū that is the southwestern part of present-day Hyōgo Prefecture. Harima bordered on Tajima, Tamba, Settsu, Bizen, and Mimasaka Provinces. Its capital was Himeji....
, before he could be expelled officially by his enemies.
In Harima province, Genji met Lady Akashi and had a daughter by her. Later his brother Emperor Suzaku was afflicted by illness and feared it was a result of his poor treatment of his brother, Genji. Genji was invited to return to Miyako
Kyoto
is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...
(nowaday Kyoto). He left Lady Akashi and the child and returned to Kyoto.
After Genji was back in Kyoto, Emperor Suzaku abdicated in favor of the crown prince (Reizei) who was really the son of Genji. This prince ascended to the throne, but he learned the secret of his birth by chance, and wanted to abdicate in favor of his real father, Genji. It was however impossible and as the second best, Emperor Reizei gave Genji the same rank as an abdicated emperor. After rising to this noblest rank, Genji was called Rokujo-in, a name taken from his mansion.
Genji wanted his daughter to be the next Empress. He invited Lady Akashi and the child (known as Princess Akashi, 明石の姫) to Kyoto. Later, Lady Murasaki adopted this girl and brought her up. This girl became a consort of the crown prince and later his empress.
At the age of forty, he married his niece, Onna san no Miya. This marriage did not make him happy. , a son of his friend , hence a nephew of Lady Aoi, lusted after Onna san no Miya and sought her love even after her marriage with Genji. Finally he intruded into Rokujoin and raped her. She bore a boy whose father was Kashiwagi. Genji was angry but finally realizes it was just what he had done to his father, and it was a punishment of his past treachery to his father and emperor. He decided to keep the secret of the birth of this boy and to bring him up as his real and third child.
After Lady Murasaki died, he became a monk and secreted himself in . One year later he died too.
External links
- Online text of complete 1976 Seidensticker translation without the notes and with numerous typos. (The illustrations included in the Knopf edition of this translation are reproduced at the UNESCO heritage site below.)
- Tale of the Genji woodcut illustrations and accompanying excerpts at the UNESCO Global Heritage Pavilion
- Murasaki Shikibu: Genji monogatari (1987)
- Some scans of the Genji Monogatari Emaki (Tale of Genji Scroll). Only about half of the images are from the 12th century scroll; they are the darker colored, more faded images.