To the Shining You: Episode 33 "Birth of Shikibu" Synopsis & What I Say This Week
Mahiro, a working girl from the Heian period, becomes Fujishikibu! A newbie, but suddenly becomes a recluse after returning home? Confirms her unchanging love for Michinaga

This week's duty is N-ko. Finally, Mahiro-san has started serving as Akiko-sama's wife. Her first job, the working girl Mahiro is born! But then she suddenly goes back to her hometown, which is Mahiro-san's usual free spirit.

But in the ending of last week's episode, when she went up to the Imperial Palace, she couldn't get used to the piercing gazes from the ladies-in-waiting.

The life of a Heian woman's wife must have been pretty tough! I guess it's all about human relationships no matter the era.

Mahiro-san, after her official duties, greeted everyone and was suddenly given the name Fuji Shikibu, taken from the official title of her father Tametoki. The person who told me that I was Fuji Shikibu was a woman called Senji no Kimi, played by Kinako Kobayashi in the drama. She is the granddaughter of Emperor Daigo and is of a noble bloodline.

Akiko's ladies-in-waiting were all princesses from prestigious families, so much so that one would think they could even become a consort. When Akiko entered the Imperial Court, there were about 40 ladies-in-waiting gathered. It is said that they were mainly family members.

There are also classes for wives. Mahiro was a top-class wife.

Although they were all called ladies-in-waiting, there were three classes: Joro (elder ladies-in-waiting) who served Empress Shoshi, Churo (middle ladies-in-waiting) who supervised the servants and ran odd jobs, and Gero (lower ladies-in-waiting) who were below them.

Mahiro-san is, of course, a top-class lady. But in the drama, the ladies-in-waiting also did all sorts of small tasks. Serving in the palace is tough.

It seems that Murasaki Shikibu was the fifth highest ranking lady-in-waiting to Empress Shoko, with Senji no Kimi at the head. Apparently this can be seen from the order of the oxcarts when Empress Shoko visited. Although she was inferior to the other ladies-in-waiting in terms of family status, perhaps the influence of "The Tale of Genji" was a factor. Mahiro, that's amazing.

Is the wife's room, or tsubone, only partitioned by a folding screen?
Mahiro, my wife is gone in just 8 days...

The scene where Mahiro and his wife sleep and wake up at the TV station was interesting! The overhead camera moves around the TV station, just like a Brian De Palma movie!

I got to see how each lady-in-waiting spent her time. Some snored, some talked loudly in their sleep, and some even went out to meet with nobles. I didn't feel like I could rest in a room that was only partitioned off with small screens, curtains, and folding screens, where even the slightest snoring could leak out.

Mahiro-san is distracted and is not making much progress on his story. He finally goes to Michinaga directly. Michinaga raises his voice and tries to stop him. Even though the Minister of the Left begs him humbly, he still can't win against Mahiro-san. Mahiro-san returns home after only eight days of service.

After about six months of seclusion, the "Kiritsubo Chapter" was completed!

In fact, Murasaki Shikibu did not get along well with her ladies-in-waiting, so she returned home quickly. After that, she stayed in her parents' home for about six months. During that time, she probably wrote, but she was worried about what to do and when to return. In the drama, it was portrayed as if she returned home quickly, wrote quickly, and returned home, but in reality, she didn't return for about six months!

He was sent a poem urging him to come back, and was told to send a poem to Akiko as a greeting since it was New Year's, so he should attend her service, but he just sent a poem and started moping around again.

She completely missed the timing to return and became even more anxious. In the end, she finally got up the courage to enter the service after receiving a poem from Michiko. Murasaki Shikibu's shy behavior around this time can be seen in the record of the gift of poems in the "Murasaki Shikibu Collection."

Murasaki Shikibu was a very introverted person, unlike Mahiro.

Mahiro-san continues to write at ease at her parents' home. She has finished the Kiritsubo chapter and returned to court. She looks very pleased. She immediately had an audience with Emperor Ichijo. When she read the Kiritsubo chapter, she initially felt it was a dig at her, but it gradually stayed with her... She was grateful to him and said she wanted everyone to read it too. The Tale of Genji is chasing The Pillow Book!

Princess Akiko is very reserved, but I have a feeling she will open up to Mahiro.

As expected of a woman who writes stories, Mahiro makes detailed observations of Akiko. She discovers many different sides to Akiko that the other ladies-in-waiting miss.

He purposely sent the beanbag flying in the wrong direction to give the prince a snack, and he told me that his favorite color is blue, the color of the sky. He told Mahiro his true feelings in secret.

I understand this. No matter how close you are, there are people who don't notice you, and there are people who don't overlook even the smallest things. For Akiko, Mahiro was the first person who tried to see her true nature with clear eyes and didn't overlook the movements of her heart.

I'm really looking forward to seeing what kind of interactions will develop between the two of them in the future.

However, she is a princess who is too modest. A heroine who never expresses her own opinions, but is not completely without a sense of self, would be Yukiko from "The Makioka Sisters"!

From regent politics to cloistered rule, and the beginnings of an age of military force

In terms of political moves this time, I think it's the restoration of Ise's power. Emperor Ichijo orders Michinaga to have Ise's power restored to the Imperial Court. This is clearly a check on Michinaga. If Shoshi does not have a son, Ise's power will be restored. Michinaga is in a real pinch. I want to somehow bring Emperor Ichijo and Shoshi together... but I'm asking Mahiro.

There were also signs of a shift from regent politics to the Insei period. In a personnel matter regarding the appointment of new governors, Michinaga objected to Emperor Ichijo's recommendation of Taira no Korehira to be appointed as the governor of Ise. Michinaga opposed the appointment, arguing that the world was becoming one in which temples, shrines, and aristocrats were using force to cause conflict and expand their influence, and that since Taira no Korehira had been fighting with Taira no Muneyori, conflicts involving force would cause chaos in the world.

Taira no Korehira is the founder of the clan that would later lead to Taira no Kiyomori. About 150 years after Michinaga Yamahiro lived, an era would come in which problems would be solved by force and power would expand, just as Michinaga had feared. It turns out that the seeds of the transition to the age of the samurai, which is depicted in the historical drama "Taiheiki," were already present in this era.

What was there was unchanging love!
A fan depicting the two's childhood meeting.Mahiro, who makes my heart flutter

Michinaga, grateful that Emperor Ichijo had visited Akiko due to the effect of "The Tale of Genji," visited Mahiro's office, gave her a gift, and left. When he opened the box, he found a fan inside. He unfolded it timidly and found a picture of the two of them when they first met on the banks of the Kamo River!

Mahiro and Michinaga, who were Saburo before coming of age, came to the Kamo River to search for the little bird that they had let escape. The words they exchanged and the scene they saw come back to them. Mahiro holds the fan close to his chest and his heart trembles.

She became Shoshi's lady-in-waiting for various reasons, including Michinaga's desire to turn Emperor Ichijo's heart to her, wanting to support the family as her father Tametoki had lost his official position, and wanting to test her own abilities through writing.

But is the picture on the fan a message from Michinaga saying that the two of them were still young at the time, and that his feelings for her are still the same as when they first met? If so, that's an incredible display of love. He uses Mahiro's talent for the sake of the festival, but at the core of it all is the same love and feelings.

And perhaps the fifth chapter of The Tale of Genji, Wakana Maki, was written as if guided by this fan? I'm sure that's the case.

"The dog has let the sparrow's baby escape. It was hiding in a cage."
This is a famous scene in which Hikaru-kimi catches a glimpse of Wakamurasaki, who is crying, "The dog let the baby sparrow escape.I had put it in a cage."

Wakamurasaki, and later Murasaki no Ue, and Hikaru no Kimi never became an official couple, but they were never apart for the rest of their lives.

If Mahiro is Wakamurasaki and Hikaru-kimi is Michinaga, then these two will never be together, but they will never be apart either... what an incredibly strong love... This week I was once again impressed! That's what N-san said.

What is the review of “To Shining You”?

"Premium Japan Literature Club" (exaggeration) was formed by people who love literature within the Premium Japan editorial department. For literature lovers, the 2024 taiga drama ``Hikaru Kimi e'' was a perfect opportunity to discuss this and that. Volunteers from the editorial department will continue to freely review articles. Editor S and Editor N reviewed the differences between historical facts and dramas, a deep dive into foreshadowing, and more!