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561. The Golden Age of Japan: Secrets of the Imperial Court (Part 2)
2025/4/30
The Rest Is History
D
Dominic
T
Tom
参与航空教育和培训的播客主持人
Dominic: 我认为《枕草子》的开篇以优美的散文描写四季不同的景色，展现了作者对自然景物的细腻感受和对美好事物的欣赏，体现了平安时代宫廷女性的审美情趣和生活方式。
《枕草子》是日本文学中最著名的篇章之一，也是一篇非凡的散文作品，其独特的机智、才华、精致和作者鲜明的个性在中世纪文学中独树一帜。
《枕草子》创作于11世纪初的京都，作者是一位女性，与《源氏物语》创作时间相近，作者清少纳言与《源氏物语》的作者紫式部相识，但紫式部对其评价不高，可能存在嫉妒心理。
清少纳言和紫式部都曾侍奉皇后，并且都精通汉语，但清少纳言并不掩饰自己的汉语能力，毫不掩饰自己的才华，并以此在宫廷中获得巨大的成功。
《枕草子》是一部包含日记、随笔、自然描写、宫廷轶事、爱情故事等多种内容的杂文集，其内容丰富多样，结构独特，写作风格自由灵活，作者可以围绕任何感兴趣的话题进行创作，对自然景物的描写生动优美，能够引起读者的共鸣，清少纳言喜欢列举事物，这在日本文化中具有延续性，《枕草子》中的列表既荒诞有趣，又类似于现代社交媒体或博客中的列表文章，包含许多关于宫廷生活的精彩轶事。
虽然清少纳言的文字与现代读者产生共鸣，但她所处的时代和文化背景与现代社会存在巨大差异，对宫廷文化的积极评价可能与其在宫廷中的显赫地位有关，清少纳言和紫式部对宫廷生活的描写存在差异，清少纳言更喜欢八卦，而紫式部则更内向和忧郁。
清少纳言和紫式部的作品共同展现了平安时代宫廷文化的精致和优雅，在平安时代宫廷中，诗歌创作和鉴赏能力是衡量一个人身份地位和优雅程度的重要标志，平安时代宫廷对诗歌的重视程度远超其他任何社会，诗歌创作和鉴赏是人们日常生活的重要组成部分，清少纳言不仅是一位杰出的诗人，而且对诗歌有着深厚的造诣，能够巧妙地运用诗歌进行创作和表达。
在平安时代宫廷中，诗歌创作能力对个人的声誉至关重要，任何失误都可能对声誉造成损害，即兴作诗是展现才华和应对社交场合的重要方式，清少纳言在即兴作诗方面展现了其非凡的才华，在平安时代宫廷中，书法也是衡量一个人修养和地位的重要标准，精美的书法被视为一种道德美。
在平安时代宫廷中，诗歌和书法不仅关乎社交地位，也与个人的爱情和浪漫生活息息相关，诗歌是男女之间表达爱慕和建立关系的重要媒介，平安时代宫廷对女性的性行为和爱情关系的容忍度相对较高，女性在其中并非被动角色，气味是女性展现魅力的重要因素，清少纳言对气味也有独特的见解。
在平安时代日本，服装不仅仅是装饰，更是表达个人性格和社会地位的重要方式，其意义远超现代时尚的概念，平安时代日本对女性美的标准与现代社会存在差异，裸体被认为是不吸引人的，而头发的长度、光泽度等则被视为重要的美学标准，在平安时代日本，文学和情色元素紧密交织，女性的文学作品因其独特的魅力而受到男女读者的喜爱。
Tom: 紫式部和清少纳言两位作者有很多相似之处，紫式部对清少纳言的评价中可能存在嫉妒心理。
《枕草子》中清少纳言的叙述风格轻松活泼，但其真实性难以完全确定。
虽然清少纳言的文字与现代读者产生共鸣，但她所处的时代和文化背景与现代社会存在巨大差异，她对宫廷文化的积极评价可能与其在宫廷中的显赫地位有关。
在平安时代宫廷中，诗歌创作能力对个人的声誉至关重要，任何失误都可能对声誉造成损害，即兴作诗是展现才华和应对社交场合的重要方式，清少纳言在即兴作诗方面展现了其非凡的才华。
在平安时代宫廷中，诗歌和书法不仅关乎社交地位，也与个人的爱情和浪漫生活息息相关，诗歌是男女之间表达爱慕和建立关系的重要媒介，平安时代宫廷对女性的性行为和爱情关系的容忍度相对较高，女性在其中并非被动角色。
在平安时代日本，服装不仅仅是装饰，更是表达个人性格和社会地位的重要方式，其意义远超现代时尚的概念，平安时代日本对女性美的标准与现代社会存在差异，裸体被认为是不吸引人的，而头发的长度、光泽度等则被视为重要的美学标准。
平安时代宫廷生活并非总是光鲜亮丽，也存在着寒冷、黑暗和孤独等阴暗面，《枕草子》中对平安时代宫廷生活的积极描绘并非虚构，而是作者对美好事物的追求和对现实困境的回避。
清少纳言和紫式部都身处平安时代宫廷的政治斗争之中，她们的创作也受到政治局势的影响，在平安时代，藤原氏家族通过婚姻政治控制了朝廷，实际掌握了日本的统治权力，藤原氏家族通过将女儿嫁给天皇来巩固其在朝廷中的权力。
在清少纳言生活的时代，藤原道隆担任摄政，实际掌握着日本的统治权力，清少纳言侍奉的皇后定子对清少纳言十分欣赏，清少纳言的声誉也提升了定子的地位，清少纳言和皇后定子的地位都受到藤原氏家族权力斗争的影响，其处境十分微妙。
藤原道隆去世后，其弟弟藤原道长取代其成为摄政，这导致了清少纳言和皇后定子的地位动摇，藤原道长为了巩固其权力，将女儿彰子立为皇后，并让紫式部侍奉彰子，紫式部最终站在了权力斗争的胜利一方，其作品《源氏物语》也受到藤原道长的赏识。
皇后定子的去世标志着清少纳言在宫廷中的生涯结束，其创作也受到此事件的影响，紫式部与藤原道长关系密切，其作品《源氏物语》也巩固了藤原道长的权力，紫式部虽然在权力斗争中获胜，但她本人并不快乐，其作品也体现了对人生无常和快乐短暂的感悟。
平安时代日本深受中国文化影响，佛教文化也对日本社会产生了深远的影响，平安时代日本本土宗教神道教与佛教文化能够共存，人们并不认为它们是相互冲突的宗教体系，清少纳言和紫式部都信奉佛教，并对佛教的轮回和涅槃思想有深刻的理解。
supporting_evidences
Dominic: 'So that, ladies and gentlemen, is one of the most famous passages in all Japanese literature. I would argue one of the most extraordinary passages of prose you will ever read.'
Dominic: 'It is the beginning of a really, really remarkable and original masterpiece called The Pillow Book, which was written in the early years of the 11th century in what is now Kyoto...'
Dominic: 'And as with the tale of Genji, its author was a woman. Yes, the woman was called Seishonagon. And Murasaki Shikibu, the author of the tale of Genji, knew Seishonagon and didn't like her...'
Tom: 'I think what you get there is a clear tone of envy'
Dominic: 'So Seishonagon, Se is a family name, but Shonagon, like Shikibu, so Murasaki's kind of second name, is the name of a post in the Imperial Civil Service...'
Dominic: 'She's absolutely unafraid to make a show of her brilliance. And she does it with such style and charisma that it clearly makes her a kind of a massive star at court...'
Tom: 'So this is part of the fun of reading the Pillay book, is that Sage Shonaghan is very She's very playful'
Dominic: 'Because as you said, it's bonkers to think that while she is writing this, Ether at the Unready is paying Dane Gale to Olaf Tryggvason...'
Dominic: 'So the genius of it for, say, Shonagon is that essentially it's a framework in which you can write about anything that interests her'
Tom: 'And often these are descriptions of things that make her happy'
Tom: 'Exactly. The other thing, she loves a list'
Tom: 'So you've got some of your favourites written down'
Tom: 'So there's an amazing story, for instance, about how there's a great snowfall and the gardeners sweep up all the snow and they make a huge snow mountain...'
Dominic: 'But She is still very alien'
Dominic: 'And I think that's probably because she does love it because she is such a brilliant figure at court'
Dominic: 'when you look at Murasaki's diary, which is a kind of parallel to the pillow book, she's much more introverted, much more morose'
Tom: 'But I think when you combine, say, the writings of these two extraordinary authors, what you get is a sense that this court is kind of, if you want to say, civilized to the nth degree'
Dominic: 'Yes, Genji is a brilliant poet'
Dominic: 'And to quote Ivan Morris, the composition change and quotation of poems was central to the daily life of the Heian aristocracy'
Dominic: 'And so this is a crucial part of, say, Shonagan's fame at the court'
Tom: 'It imposes incredible strain because if you mess it up'
Tom: 'And Shae Shonagon is in a complete and utter panic'
Dominic: 'And writing calligraphy is also a crucial part of establishing yourself as civilized'
Tom: 'And the other thing that makes this, if people are not interested in poetry'
Tom: 'I mean, it's kind of like opening proceedings on social media when you never actually met the person'
Dominic: 'An erotic adventure at the court is a crucial part of kind of the broader social dynamics'
Dominic: 'So these courtships might lead to marriage or it might lead to a kind of polygamous relationship'
Dominic: 'So there are certain things that are obviously very important to them'
Tom: 'Everything, the way you construct your outfit, the choice of colours, the way they match'
Tom: 'And there are very distinctive standards of beauty'
Tom: 'And there's a sense, I think, almost in which the naked body is seen as unattractive'
Tom: 'And it's hard to think of another culture in which the literary and the erotic are so interfused'
Dominic: 'There's another woman, isn't there?'
Dominic: 'So this for Japan is the classical age'
Dominic: 'that Murasaki Shikibu or Seishonagon should have kind of been in love with a culture that gave them such a voice'
Dominic: 'But Seishonigan makes an absolute art form of it'
Tom: 'they can afford to be putting all their energy into calligraphy'
Tom: 'And I guess the writers of the Hay-Ann Court, as much as anybody, are aware that time is slipping away'
Tom: 'And I guess that this portrait of the Hitachi princess is a counterpoint to, say, Shonigan's portrayal of aristocratic life in Heian Kiyo as delightful'
Tom: 'Yeah. And I think a darkness, a literal darkness as well'
Dominic: 'And it'll sound a weird parallel'
Dominic: 'Yeah, and it's hinted in the very first sentence of the Tale of Genji'
Dominic: 'So who's in charge?'
Dominic: 'And the essence of marriage politics is to get the emperor married to your daughter'
Dominic: 'And the effective ruler of Japan when, say, Shonagon comes to court is a man who by now is not unofficial'
Dominic: 'And Say Shonagon thinks Teishi is great'
Dominic: 'But obviously the position of both women is kind of precarious'
Dominic: 'And what happens then is that the next brother in line succeeds Michitaka'
Dominic: 'And this is where Murasaki Shikibu comes in'
Dominic: 'And it's Murasaki, it turns out, basically who has backed the winning side'
Dominic: 'And so you can see, I think, therefore, that the Pillow book'
Dominic: 'And of course, Michinaga is delighted about this'
Dominic: 'And much more readily than say shonigan is in in her diary'
Tom: 'Well, you say the sacral, Tom, but that word would be slightly meaningless to them'
Tom: 'So in the time of Murasaki and Seishonagon, the emperor, as the emperor today does, is still claiming descent from the sun goddess'
Dominic: 'This is what everybody that we've been talking about in this episode and the previous episode believes'
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