The Pillow Book: Sections 115–119 Summary & Analysis

Sei discusses a pilgrimage to the temple at Kiyomizu over the New Year. One is always intrigued by the sight of monks navigating the steep temple stairs while wearing high clogs. On the other hand, it’s always unpleasant to have to pass in front of a crowd of kneeling pilgrims on the way to one’s room, even as one enjoys the feeling of “freshly kindled faith.” The sight of the sacred image in the glow of fiercely glittering lamps gives one a reverential feeling. There’s a drone of voices as priests present worshippers’ prayers before the altar.

Sei describes having a chat with a priest, who informs her that her petitions have been presented to Kannon. She finds it comforting to hear the bell ringing for the sutra recitation, knowing it’s being rung on her behalf, too. It’s also moving to hear a man in an adjacent room, praying and prostrating himself through the night, and occasionally pausing to tearfully blow his nose. Sometimes she overhears a dedication being announced, like “For the safe delivery of her child,” and Sei instinctively worries about the woman who’s being prayed for.

At New Year, though, the temple is far more hectic—there’s no hope of paying attention to one’s own prayers amidst the uproar. Monks run around carrying screens to set up temporary rooms. Refined ladies in rustling silks arrive. There’s “a great clamour of sutra chanting” all night long, preventing sleep. Sei has fun trying to guess the identities of various pilgrims. Young men linger near the ladies’ quarters, showing no interest in visiting the sacred image.

Another good time for a temple pilgrimage is when the spring blossoms are at their peak, when people’s clothes are in the most attractive colors. It’s always best to go on pilgrimage with peers with whom one can discuss everything one is experiencing.

Sei finds it “deeply irritating” to see a man setting off alone for an event such as the Kamo Festival, as though oblivious that someone else might have liked to go with him. It’s also irritating when there’s rain on the day one is supposed to set out on a pilgrimage. “Miserable things” include someone traveling by ox cart on a hot day, an aged beggar, or a dingy wooden shack. This leads to other things which look “stiflingly hot,” like certain costumes or uniforms, or a priest performing incantations at midday in summer.

Sei has a lot of opinions about “embarrassing things.” They include “the heart of a man” and a night-priest who is a light sleeper. In fact, she finds night-priests embarrassing in general, because she thinks they enjoy listening to gentlewomen’s gossip.

Sei is also embarrassed for any woman who’s taken in by a man who flatters her, but who is privately disdainful of her faults. There are also men who openly discuss a woman’s faults with other women, and the other women never suspect that they’re being slandered in the same way. Sei assumes that any man who has feelings for her is probably shallow-hearted—that way she won’t open herself up to embarrassment. There are also men who take advantage of unprotected women at court, then reject them if they become pregnant.