Ono no Komachi at Seki Temple, from the series The Seven Fashionable Komachi (Furyu nana Komachi)

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FROM THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO’S CATALOG

Two young women walking on a dock cover their faces demurely as they encounter a man in a boat. One wears a robe with a cherry-blossom design, a flower strongly associated with Ono no Komachi, a famous ninth-century poet. The scene illustrates a poem by Komachi, inscribed in the cloud above: I that am lonely, Like a reed root-cut Should a stream entice me, Would go, I think. (Translation by Arthur Waley) This poem was written by Komachi when she received an invitation to leave her self-imposed seclusion. Ashamed by her aged appearance, Komachi refused

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