Absolutely stunning.
One of my favourite novels.
Natsume Soseki wrote Kasumakura (also known as The Three-Cornered World) in 1906, but it reads as if he were narrating it to me here in this room. As Japan was first opening to the West and modern concepts in novels were introduced, he wrote this as a counter - a novel revolving simply around beauty instead of plot. We see Japan through the eyes of his character as figures from a landscape scroll painting - as he pursues a life of music, poetry, and art in their purest forms.
"As I climb the mountain path - I ponder".
On a meandering tour of the mountains, our nameless young artist strives to see the art in everything around him, often pausing to created haiku and ruminate on nature. One night he enters the home of an old woman, who tells him of lodging house in the next village, the home of a family whose daughter has returned from a poor marriage. Off season, his room is in the quiet end of the house, overlooking a mossy garden. Over the next few days, he walks to the nearby Mirror Pool, visits the temple, and befriends the enchanting young beauty Nami, with whom he discusses music and relationships. Within this simple plot, he constantly pauses to think about art and great artists, from celadon plates too beautiful to place anything on, to calligraphy, and the works of Turner. Overcome by nature's beauty, he practices to create a perfect haiku. His journeys aim: to leave behind the world of common emotions and achieve the transcendent state of the artist, searching for the purest of images to inspire him, devoting all his energy to observing actions from the point of view of Art.
Soseki achieves his goal in this haiku-style novel. "All that matters is that a certain feeling, a feeling of beauty, remain with the reader. I have no other objective. Thus, there is no plot, and no development of events." The narrator's open personable voice invites you along with a gentle humour to change the view of the world around you - to meander with him through spring evenings without the slightest goal in mind, open to the karmic moment.
Captured from the opening lines, this is one of the most unique Japanese novels. I read it almost too quickly - wanting more yet not wanting it to end - knowing I would begin again immediately upon finishing it. A deserving classic that enriches, working on all levels.
One of my new favourite novels and one I highly recommend.
1906 / Tradeback / 146 pages
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