Pathway to Japanese Literature
Discover Japan's stories—across time, across language.
← Back
The Secret of the Burial ShroudAuthor: Okamoto Kidō
| Original Title | 経帷子の秘密 |
|---|---|
| Author | 岡本 綺堂 |
| Genre | Modern Short Fiction |
| Author Type | Male Author |
| Summary | In 1860s Japan, as Yokohama’s foreign influences captivate Edo’s elite, the Omiya family embarks on a fashionable sightseeing trip. Nineteen-year-old Otsuma, overshadowed by her unmarried status, accompanies her mother on a journey that takes an ominous turn. Returning home at dusk, they encounter an elderly woman struggling to keep pace with their palanquin. Out of kindness, Otsuma offers her seat—only for the stranger to vanish, leaving behind a chilling relic: a pristine burial shroud. \nThe discovery casts a shadow over the household, but fate intervenes when a prestigious marriage proposal arrives for Otsuma from the affluent Inoya family. Rumors swirl of a generations-old curse plaguing Inoya—no biological heir survives. Yet Otsuma accepts, driven by duty and an unsettling sense of destiny. As her wedding approaches, eerie parallels emerge between the shroud’s grim symbolism and her future. \nHaunted by premonitions, Otsuma navigates a web of familial obligation and spectral foreboding. Her resolve to confront Inoya’s dark legacy intertwines with Japan’s shifting era, where tradition clashes with encroaching modernity. What unfolds is a tale of sacrifice and cursed bloodlines, where one woman’s choice ripples across generations—and the dead may hold sway over the living. |
← Return to List← Return to TOP