Summary

This is one of Akutagawa Ryunosuke's earliest celebrated short stories, drawn from a tale in the classical collection Konjaku Monogatari. Set in a Heian-era Buddhist temple, the story explores the psychology of vanity, self-consciousness, and the uncomfortable ways others respond to our misfortunes and triumphs. Akutagawa masterfully examines a universal human contradiction: we desire change yet feel unsettled when we achieve it.