To the Shining You Episode 37 "Ripples" Synopsis & Whatever I Want to Say This Week
His relationship with Michinaga is pretty much revealed, the rebellious period of the Heian period was tough, and the story takes an unexpected turn!

This week's guest is N-ko. This week's title is "Ripples," so ripples are spreading in many places and in people's hearts. Lady Michiko and Akazomeemon, who are vaguely aware of the relationship between Michinaga and Mahiro. The other ladies-in-waiting, and the relationship between Mahiro and her family. Mahiro's story takes on a life of its own, and it also has various influences.

Are you scared of Michiko's forced smile? Do you feel sorry for her? We can imagine your complicated feelings!

Princess Akiko is currently at the Tsuchimikado residence to give birth. Princess Michiko is looking tenderly at Prince Atsushi, who would later become Emperor Go-Ichijo. She should be overjoyed to hold her grandchild in her arms, knowing that her daughter, who she had been so worried about, has finally given birth to a child with Emperor Ichijo.

When they returned to the inner palace, Lady Rinko's face turned sad when she heard Princess Akiko's idea to copy Mahiro's story on beautiful paper, organize it, and compile it into a booklet to present to the emperor.... Akazomeemon, gazing at this, could understand Lady Rinko's feelings.

I think Michiko and Akazomeemon had a vague idea about it. They took the strategy of "luring with a story" to make the Akiko Project a success, and even though it was successful, they felt that something was fishy about Michinaga and Mahiro. They didn't go to the scene, but it smelled fishy! And it's even more irritating that it doesn't seem to be just a flirtatious relationship.

Akasomeemon also points out the nails, but there is no doubt that Princess Akiko's luck has improved since Mahiro's story, so he just says, "Please don't hurt my lady."

The 33 chapters of The Tale of Genji, compiled into a beautiful booklet, are now available.

It's a mid-afternoon and Empress Akiko and her ladies-in-waiting are having a good time. They are standing in front of the colorful paper that will be used for the booklet, deciding which color paper to use for which volume.

Empress Akiko also joined in, and all the ladies-in-waiting worked together to finish the booklet. Time passed slowly. It was elegant.

The fair copy of each volume was assigned to a calligrapher (a person who is exceptionally skilled in calligraphy) of the time. There was even a scene where Fujiwara no Yukinari was fair copy. This is fiction, and the original manuscript no longer exists, so we don't know the truth.

Yukinari is one of the Sanato. He is one of the three people who were considered to have exceptionally beautiful handwriting. And he was certainly a treasurer of Emperor Ichijo, so it would not be strange if Yukinari was in charge of the fair copy. If he really did make a fair copy and the original remains, it would be a national treasure.

There was a rebellious period even in the Heian period!The daughter, Kenko, cannot forgive her mother, Mahiro...

Now that the booklet is complete and things have settled down, Mahiro asks to return to the village after a long time. Princess Akiko says no at first, but then she remembers that Mahiro is also a mother and reflects on the fact that she has only been thinking about herself. She allows Mahiro to return to the village.

Through the story, Mahiro paved the way to becoming the emperor, and Akiko, who was unable to express her feelings, was able to change thanks to Mahiro's emotional education. She knows this from personal experience, which is why she is afraid of Mahiro leaving her side.

And after all, she is Michinaga's daughter. I don't know why, but I guess she fell in love with Mahiro. Blood is thicker than water.

Mahiro is returning to her parents' house in an ox cart. She is carrying a lot of high-quality souvenirs, such as pure white polished rice, sake, sweets, and silk. Mahiro is a very successful working woman of the Heian period.

Tametoki's father has gotten older. Otomaru and everyone else are just as lively as ever. But Kenko is different. She has a cold gaze and speaks in a formal manner. Although she wants her mother's love, her loneliness grows and she becomes critical. Isn't that a rebellious phase? Does this mean that adolescents are the same now as they were in the Heian period?

"Because mother is a concubine!" her daughter Kenko screams!Now Mahiro will sing... "Life is full of surprises"!

When Mahiro returns to her parents' home, she realizes how shabby it is. It's only natural to think so, especially when compared to the splendor of the Tsuchimikado residence and the Imperial Court. In the outside world, working for the most highly-ranked woman in Japan, there should have been only the best things to see and touch at the time.

This is still relevant today. There are many people who fall apart due to the imbalance between the world they see as successful and their real lives. Mahiro has joined the celebrity ranks, and although she doesn't want to brag, she talks about the state of affairs at the palace, which ends up making Kenko dislike her. When she was leaving, Kenko screamed, "I'm living such a poor life because my mother is a concubine!"

...No no, it's Kenko. Your mother put an end to her relationship with her first love, Michinaga, because she didn't want to become a concubine. Even though she stuck to her ways, my grandfather couldn't get a government position for 10 years, and there was no lord who would marry him. He was surrounded by enemies on all sides.

So, am I the only one who felt like becoming an imaginary old lady and treating Kenko like a mother?

I think it's difficult to live your life in this state. Mahiro is one of the people who is still holding on. Although he was born into a noble family, he was born into a poor courtier class, and because of his low status, he often had to give up on love and marriage. I think it's okay for him to get a little drunk on the celebrity life he achieved through his own efforts, but I understand that his family members who are left behind can't feel that way.

Thanks to Mahiro's hard work, Masako became Akiko's wife and later achieved the high rank of third rank, which paved the way for her to become a successor to her mother, Mahiro. She will probably realize this long after her rebellious phase is over.

Now, Mahiro will sing... "Life is full of surprises"! Life is full of surprises, so much so that it makes me want to do an MC.

A story reading event will be held, hosted by Emperor Ichijo and Akiko!
Amazing work by Murasaki Shikibu. Who would have thought that her theory on the story of The Tale of Genji would be depicted here!

I think the highlight of this episode is when Emperor Ichijo suggested holding a story reading session. I got the impression that this was a very connoisseur-level, nasty part. But, for people who have written dramas, such as Oishi Shizuka, this is a very important part.

After returning to the Imperial Palace, Empress Shoko presented the 33rd chapter of "The Tale of Genji." The emperor was also pleased with the beautiful finished product. Not only did he offer words of encouragement to Mahiro, who declared that the story would continue, but he also suggested holding a reading session!

The reception held at Fujitsubo was a very splendid affair. Emperor Ichijo and Empress Shoko, the most notable nobles of the day, and their ladies-in-waiting were in attendance.

The chapter he is reading seems to be "Fireflies" from chapter 26. He is reading the famous passage from this chapter about the storytelling theory of Hikaru Genji. Why would he bring this up of all places?! As expected from Oishi Shizuka.

In "The Firefly Chapter," Hikaru Genji takes in Tamakazura and looks after her. Tamakazura comes from the countryside and becomes engrossed in the story. As Hikaru Genji watches her diligently copying it down, he seems to be reading the scene. Below, I have written down the lines while watching the video.

"I feel like I've said something rude and criticised you," said Hikaru-kun. "They say that stories are the writing of things that exist in the world.
"The Nihonki and other books only show one side of the story. The stories contain the details that make sense," he said, laughing.

Fujiwara no Tadanobu and Kinto were surprised when they heard this passage. "Are you now elevating this story above the Nihonki?" Tadanobu muttered to Kinto. Kinto was amazed, saying, "You wrote it knowing that the emperor would read it."

It was a time when official records of the history of the nation's founding, such as the Nihon Shoki (Chronicles of Japan), written in kanji, were considered superior, while stories written in hiragana, such as tales, were considered inferior and were only used by women and children. Waka poetry was also considered superior to tales. The order was kanji > waka poetry > stories.

We cannot see the original or any copies of The Tale of Genji from that time. None of them exist. The oldest copy was discovered in 2019, but it is still almost 200 years after Murasaki Shikibu wrote it.

However, the original copy of "Mido Kanpakuki" still exists. In his book "Murasaki Shikibu and Fujiwara no Michinaga" (Kodansha Gendai Shinsho), written by Kazuhiro Kuramoto, who is in charge of historical research for "Hikaru Kimi e", he writes as follows:

For example, although the Konoe family had an old copy of The Tale of Genji, at the time of the Onin War in the 15th century, they evacuated 50 boxes of ancient documents handed down by the family, including the Mido Kanpakuki, to Iwakura in the northern suburbs of Kyoto, but left The Tale of Genji behind. The Konoe family mansion was burned down during the Onin War, and The Tale of Genji shared that fate, but the Mido Kanpakuki and other ancient documents escaped. Such was the status of literature in premodern times.

From "Murasaki Shikibu and Fujiwara no Michinaga" by Kazuhiro Kuramoto (Kodansha Gendai Shinsho)

The reason why Michinaga's diary, Mido Kanpakuki, remains but Murasaki Shikibu's The Tale of Genji has not survived is because stories are of a lower rank.

Yet Murasaki Shikibu boldly wrote, "There are some things that cannot be understood from the facts written in history books alone. The truth of a particular era and life is found in stories."

Murasaki Shikibu is amazing. I am touched by her bold spirit in incorporating narrative theory into her work in an era when stories had a low status.

I'm sure that screenwriter Oishi Shizuka, as someone who spins stories, also thought, "I want to write this part!"

Has a black Michinaga appeared? Did he say that the second prince, Prince Atsunari, will be the next Crown Prince?

It is true that thieves broke into Fujitsubo and stripped the wives of their clothes. In the drama, the two young wives were shown shivering in their undergarments, but in reality they were found completely naked.

At that time, Mahiro was the first to rush to Fujitsubo. She had been writing until late into the night and was awake. Both Empress Shoko and Michinaga came to trust Mahiro even more.

Michinaga expresses his gratitude to Mahiro, but as he leaves he says something unbelievable: Prince Atsunari will be the next Crown Prince.

Mahiro's eyes wandered in confusion. What did you just say? ...Is there Prince Atsuyasu, the first prince born to Sadako? Could it be that the dark side of Michinaga is beginning to emerge? Prince Atsuyasu, the flag of a tragic prince has been raised!

The drama and "The Tale of Genji" have been closely linked lately, and we are now in the climax. The words "sin" and "punishment" that Mahiro wrote down while planning the story are also interesting... I can't take my eyes off it until the climax!

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!