The Sound Of The Wind (秋思)

Risshū (立秋): August 7-23—Beginning of autumn

According to my Japanese almanacs, of the four seasons, it is autumn alone which is heard before it is seen.

This happens after a windless, blisteringly hot Japanese summer, when autumn arrives around the end of August. Ever so subtle, it makes itself known by the murmur of the the leaves stirring in the trees; for autumn arrives to our ears carried on the wind.

秋来ぬと目にはさやかに見えぬども風の音にぞおどろかれぬる　　　

–藤原敏行朝臣

Nothing meets the eye
to demonstrate
that autumn has come–
And yet, suddenly we are struck
by the sound of the wind
— Fujiwara Toshiyuki no Ason

In ancient Japan, the Ninth Month was known as the 'Long Month' (長月). Long, of course, because the nights are growing longer and longer. 10th century court lady Sei Shonagon likewise reminds us to pay attention to the wind:

　秋は夕暮れ。夕日のさして山の端いと近うなりたるに、烏の寝どころへ行く とて、三つ四つ、二つ三つなど、飛びいそぐさへあはれなり。まいて雁などの つらねたるが、いと小さく見ゆるはいとをかし。日入りはてて、風の音、虫の 音など、はたいふべきにあらず。

“In autumn the evenings, when the sun sinks close to the edge of the hills and the crows fly back to their nests in threes and fours and twos; more charming still is a file of wild geese, like specks in the distant sky. And then, when the sun has set, our hearts are moved by the sound of the wind and the hum of the insects.

Long, autumn nights can be rough, though. Indeed, everything conspires against a person during those long, lonely nights. Early darkness, dewdrops like tears, and crickets crying outside your window~~everything reminding you of your lover's absence and the transitory nature of the world–seen as clearly as the colors of the grasses fading in the fields outside your window.

Mono no aware. I wonder what is it about this aspect of being swallowed up in insignificance that is also something so strangely comforting? Autumn–for me, it is the most beautiful season of all…

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I love how the calendar is always looking toward what is coming…even during the hottest days of summer, people start mentioning the coming breeze of autumn.