Tsukumogami emaki and Urban Spaces

Abstract

T sukumogami emaki 付喪神絵巻 (Illustrated Scroll of Animated Utensils, 16th century) is a short tale featuring as its protagonists a band of used utensils who have turned into monsters ( yōkai 妖怪). This work belongs to a genre of such tales composed between the 14th and 16th centuries, known as otogi-zōshi 御伽草子, or Muromachi tales. More than four hundred of these Muromachi tales exist, a great number of which are accompanied by vivid illustrations. Some have been preserved in the form of books, others in the form of scrolls. In most cases, the author and illustrator, along with the exact date of composition remain uncertain. The author of Tsukumogami emaki, likewise, is yet unknown. In previous research, however, it has been argued that the work shows connections with the illustrated scroll Hyakki yagyō emaki 百鬼夜行絵巻 (Illustrated Scroll of the Parade of Ghouls and Ghosts by Night), as well as with religious ceremonies, such as the Gion Festival 祇園祭, conducted in Kyoto. One of the illustrations in this work contains a quote from another illustrated scroll, namely, Kōbō daishi gyōjō emaki 弘法大師行状絵巻 (Illustrated Scroll of the Deeds of Master Kōbō, late 14th century), which points perhaps to the author’s interest in Master Kōbō, that is, Kūkai 空海 (774–835), a prominent monk and founder of Shingon 真言, a school of Esoteric Buddhism. Aside from its possible affinity with Buddhism, this illustrated scroll provides important insights into details relating to the convergence and transmission of knowledge, as well as ways in which urban spaces, especially city borders, were once conceived. The oldest extant manuscript of this scroll, dating back to the Muromachi period, was previously stored in Tō-ji 東寺 temple, Kyoto, and is currently stored in Sōfuku-ji 崇福寺 temple, Gifu. There exist also a number of Edo-period imitations which, despite minor differences in the illustrations, contain more-or-less the same content as the Muromachi manuscript. Regarding content, a summary of this tale is naturally in order: Sometime in the Kōhō 康保 era (964–968), during the year-end spring cleaning, a number of old utensils are ungratefully discarded. In virtue of their intense sense of indignation, these disgruntled utensils become animated, bent on getting revenge on their human owners. An animated rosary by the name of Ichiren 一連 (literally, “one string,” in reference to the string of beads that makes up a rosary) pleads Tsukumogami emaki and Urban Spaces