Fujibakama: In Serch of Lost Sakura
Around mid-October, Fujibakamas feed Asagimadara butterflies for their migration in near future and reminds the wingless to Ohsima Zakura of the previous spring.
Fujibakama is a flower as one of the seven flowers of fall. Since a poem about it was compiled in Manyo shu, the oldest collection of Waka, it was one of the most favored themes of them.
The ones indigenous to Kyoto was on the verge of extinct but thanks to the conservation of Genji Fujibakama-kai, we can enjoy them in Fujibakama Matsuri.
Dried leaves of Fujibakama give out the fragrance like Oshima Zakura and court ladies in Heian period (794-1185) put them into Nioi Bukuro (Fragrance bag) to enjoy the delicate scent.
There are many kind of Sakuras in Japan and most famous, so-called Sakura, is Somei Yoshino. Today, we can admire them in spring through the archipelago but their ancestors were born in the 19th century on a crossbreed tree. Their mother is Edohigan and father is Ohshima Zakura.
Ohshima Zakuras are found in many places in Kyoto and the most recommended place is Haradanien. The garden is known as “Sakura Paradise” and one of the most late-flowering place in Kyoto among the Kyoto enthusiasts.
Generally speaking, Omuro Zakuras in Ninnaji temple is famous for the latest bloom Sakura in Kyoto but the ones in Haradanien is the latest ones because it is located in the mountains and spring arrives slightly later than Ninnnaji.
However, the latest one was Kitano Zakura. Kitano Zakura was only found in Kitano Tenmangu shrine, famous for the faith of Goyro, and there were no genetically same Sakuras on the planet. The last time we saw them is 2023. In January 2024, the tree vanished all of a sudden.
The shrine announced nothing about them. I tried to ask the reason but gave up the idea. They existed and gone. That’s all. We live in the moment. 合掌
