Sanuki no Suke's Diary

 

     The Diary of Sanuki no Suke (Sanuki no Suke's Diary) is a literary diary written by Fujiwara Nagako (1079-?), whose job title was Sanuki no Suke, and who served Emperor Horikawa (1079-1107) in the late Heian period (794–1185). It consists of 2 volumes.

     The 1st volume is a matter-of-fact record of nursing care for Emperor Horikawa, for whom she served as a court lady, spanning one month from June 20th, 1107, when he fell ill, to July 19th, when he passed away.  It frankly depicts the sadness and pessimism of the emperor as his condition worsened day by day and he faced death, as well as the fluctuating emotions of the author, who was by his side and felt his sadness and pessimism firsthand.

     The 2nd volume, while centered around a year or so from October, 1107, to Emperor Toba's Daijosai Ceremony, a kind of Royal harvest festival, in 1108, is a chaotic composition that significantly intertwines the present and the past.  Having hesitantly accepted a request from Retired Emperor Shirakawa (1053-1129) to return to service under the young Emperor Toba (1103-1156), the author vividly expressed her passionate yearning for the late emperor as she looked back on her days at court, which she was constantly reminded of.

     The 1st volume is thought to have been completed shortly after Emperor Horikawa's death, while the 2nd volume was completed around Autumn, 1109, once the author's service to Emperor Toba had come to an end.  The Honcho Shoseki Mokuroku, or the Japanese Book Catalog, compiled in the late Kamakura Period (1185-1333), lists this diary as to have 3 volumes, which suggests the possibility that a separate volume, lost somewhere before or after the 2nd volume, might have existed.