A Journey of the Driftwood

「Where is the Soul? – A Journey of the Driftwood」is a story which I made as a work of Book Art at the Taipei International Artist-in Residence program in Taiwan 2018.

The driftwood believes that it has an empty body with no heart inside. So, it goes on a journey looking for its soul.
What did the driftwood come across at the night of the Autumnal Equinox Festival (Chū-shū-setsu)?

川岸に流れ着いた流木が魂を求める旅に出ました。
中秋節の夜に流木がであったのは？
 
 
Pieces of driftwood washed ashore set out on a journey in a search for the soul.
What did the driftwood encounter on the night of the Autumnal Equinox?

鎮守の杜

ここは山奥の小さな村。
嵐の去ったあと、川のよどみに流木が集まってきました。
川辺には鎮守の杜の守り神である楠の大木がありました。
その祠に住むフクロウが、風に乗って飛んできて流木に止まりました。
 
すると流木はゆっくりと動き出し、
人のかたちのように集まり、
そろり　と立ち上がりました。
 
 

Sacred Grove at a Village Shrine (鎮守の森 – Chinju no mori)

Here is a small mountain village.
After a big storm had passed, some driftwood gathered in the backwater of the river.
A big camphor tree that grew by the riverside was a guardian deity of the Sacred Grove at a Village Shrine (Chinju no Mori). An owl which lived in a small auxiliary shrine hokora was flying around, riding upon the winds and alighted by the driftwood.
Then the driftwood started to move slowly,
gathered into a human-like form and
smoothly and easily stood up.

流木は川面に写った自分の姿に驚きます

心のない空っぽな体、枯れ木をつないだような手足。
「 なんという姿だ。 」

周りを自由に飛び回る鳥達が、流木の目にうらやましく映ります。
 
 

The Driftwood is Astonished at Its Own Reflection on the River Surface

The driftwood was astonished at seeing its own figure reflected on the river surface.
But what kind of a figure this was – an empty body without a heart, hands and feet looking like the withered tree…
And the driftwood looked enviously at how freely the birds appeared flying around.

新月の晩

流木はフクロウから、山奥にある老樹のところに行けば
願いがかなうと教えられます。
ただしそれは、一年に一度。
老樹の誕生を祝う中秋節の満月の夜だけです。

流木は、魂を求める旅に出ることを決心しました。
 
 

An Evening of the New Moon

The owl said to the driftwood, “If you go to the old tree that grows deep in the mountains, it will teach you how your wish can come true. But this is so just once a year. This happens only on the night of the full moon during Autumnal Equinox when the old tree’s birthday is celebrated. And the driftwood resolutely started the journey to search for its soul.

旅の風景

満月に間に合うよう、急がなくてはなりません。
 
 

Nature Views During the Journey

The driftwood must hurry to get there while the moon is full.

夕暮れの風景　から　夜の森へ

日が暮れかかる頃、流木はようやく老樹の場所にたどりつきました。
しかし大木は嵐に倒れ、その姿はありません。
今は、大きな木の株と根っこが残っているだけです。
　
「　老樹の命はもう亡くなってしまったのか。 」
流木はたいへんがっかりしました。

あたりはだんだん暗くなってゆきます。
風がビュービューと吹き荒れ、森は闇に包まれてゆきました。
流木は悲しみと疲れで木の根元に座り込み、眠ってしまいました。
 
 

Scenery Changing from the Dusk to the Night View of the Shrine Grove

At the time when the sun was beginning to set, the driftwood finally reached the site of the old tree.
However, the giant tree fell during the storm and there wasn’t’ anything there. Only the stump and the roots of the big tree remained.
“Has the lifespan of the old tree ended?” The driftwood felt awfully saddened.
It was getting dark around. The wind was blowing violently, the grove was engulfed in gloom.
The driftwood, upset and tired, sat down on the tree root and fell asleep.

満月の森

夢の中で満月に照らされた老樹が姿を現しました。
千年以上も生きた大木です。
木の精霊があらわれ、流木に言いました。

「おまえの命はこの大木から生れたのだ。　
求めていた、勇気、自信、優しさ、嬉しさを感じる心は
すでに、おまえの魂に宿っているのだ。 」　

流木はその事に気づいていなかっただけでした。
 
 

The Shrine Grove Lit by the Full Moon

In the dream, the driftwood saw a form of the old tree, illuminated by the light of the full moon. The giant tree was more than a thousand years old.
The spirit of the tree appeared and said, “Your life is born from this giant tree. All that you were seeking – the courage, confidence, kindness, joyfulness, happiness that you felt in your heart, already dwell in your soul.” The driftwood only was yet unaware of this!

精霊の言葉に、流木は幸せな気持ちでいっぱいになりました。

体の中が温かいエネルギーで満たされてゆくのを感じます。
 
 

These Words of the Tree Spirit Filled the Driftwood with Happiness

The driftwood felt satisfied with how the warm energy filled its body inside.

朝の森

風もおさまり、森に静かな朝がやってきました。
そこには流木の姿はありません。
老樹の根元から小さな蘖が生えています。

あたらしい命の誕生です。
 
 

Sacred Grove in the Morning

The wind settled down and a quiet morning came into the grove.
But the driftwood’s figure was not there. From the root of the old tree, a small shoot was sprouting.
It was a birth of a new life.