Hashihime
Encyclopedia
Hashihime is a character first appearing in Japan
ese Heian
-period literature, represented as a woman who spends lonely nights waiting for her lover to visit, and later as a fierce “oni” or demon fuelled by jealousy. She came to be associated most often with a bridge in Uji.
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“Upon a narrow grass mat
laying down her robe only
tonight, again –
she must be waiting for me,
Hashihime of Uji”
Hashihime’s name also appears in Murasaki’s Tales of Genji, as the title of a chapter. She is also mentioned several times in the waka poems throughout the work.
The name Hashihime appears in the manga title “Hashihime Purei Senka”
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese Heian
Heian
The name Heian may mean:* Heian period, an era of Japanese history* Heian-kyō, the Heian Period capital of Japan that has become the present-day city of Kyoto* Heian series, a group of karate kata ....
-period literature, represented as a woman who spends lonely nights waiting for her lover to visit, and later as a fierce “oni” or demon fuelled by jealousy. She came to be associated most often with a bridge in Uji.
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Biography
Very little is known about the origin of Hashihime. The most common interpratation is that she was a lonely wife pining for her husband/ lover to return but due to his being unfaithful she became jealous and turned into a demon.Appearance in Japanese literature
Hashihime first appears in a Kokinshu (ca. 905) poem, of which the author is unknown.“Upon a narrow grass mat
laying down her robe only
tonight, again –
she must be waiting for me,
Hashihime of Uji”
Hashihime’s name also appears in Murasaki’s Tales of Genji, as the title of a chapter. She is also mentioned several times in the waka poems throughout the work.
Popular culture
A myth regarding Hashihime in today’s culture is that if a pair of lovers comes across Hashihime, they will either have to end their relationship or die.The name Hashihime appears in the manga title “Hashihime Purei Senka”