Silver Peacock

Author: Akahana Naoko
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-03-01
Features: Silver Peacock tells seven strange stories. One day, a weaver, suddenly summoned by a group of girls to weave a flag, had an odd idea: Maybe they are peafowls? Perhaps the incarnations of peafowls secretly living deep in this primitive forest?
Reading excerpt:
Once upon a time, on a distant southern island, there lived a highly skilled weaver. Though still a young man, the beauty of the colors in his fabrics and the feel of them in the hand were unmatched by anyone. Moreover, men who worked so diligently were extremely rare. Once he started weaving, he forgot to sleep and eat, sitting motionless in front of the loom. When not weaving, he dyed threads. Using tree bark or grass as dyes, he would squat in front of his house from morning till evening, until he dyed the threads to the colors he desired. Even when dozing, he was thinking of new patterns. The weaver wanted the large blue swallowtail butterflies common in the forest to flutter on his fabrics; he wanted to weave the stars in the sky. Additionally, he wanted to weave the sea—the very blue sea itself, its sound, its scent, and its radiance—into a single piece of fabric.
And yet, there was more. He wanted to weave all sorts of invisible things. For example, "dreams," "sadness," "songs," "happiness," and "memories of the past." When thinking of such things, the weaver’s cheeks would flush with a rose-colored hue, and his heart would pound.
However, the poor people on the island, who came to the weaver to commission things, all asked for simple, practical items. And his tools and threads were only suitable for weaving such rough, utilitarian things. Only the weaver’s dreams were far too grand for the reality of his situation.