Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10

Commentary on the Work - What is the theme of the immortal masterpiece "The Temple of the Golden Pavilion"?
annual report

“My only pride was that I was not understood by others.”
The agony of a stutterer and ugly man who lived oppressed in stark contrast to the beauty of the Golden Pavilion
The power of true stories that made solid narratives and meticulous composition possible

The protagonist, Mizoguchi, is ugly, stutters, and has an introverted personality. He has lived a lonely life since childhood.
His father, a monk at a small temple, used to say, “There is nothing in this world as beautiful as the Golden Pavilion,” and Mizoguchi came to regard the Golden Pavilion, the polar opposite of his own ugliness, as a symbol of beauty, and felt a special affection and sense of unity with it.
The method was truly unique.
He, who had always prided himself on having been alienated from beauty, finally believed that in the midst of a war with unexpected bombings, he was reborn as the same being as the Golden Pavilion, the symbol of absolute beauty, and himself, a mere stammerer.
But even after the war, the Golden Pavilion still stood strong and shining, unblemished, and Mizoguchi was overcome with a sense of loneliness and frustration.


Despite the complex and ever-changing psychology of the characters, the plot is dense and the narrative continues solidly because "The Temple of the Golden Pavilion" is a "current affairs novel" inspired by the arson incident that occurred in 1950.
In fact, Yukio Mishima closely investigated the Kinkaku-ji arson incident and the life of its perpetrator, Hayashi Shoken, for about five years, and focused on Hayashi's testimony of "alienation of humanity" and "jealousy of beauty."
Of course, this wasn't just Hayashi Shoken's story.
The reason Yukio Mishima, who was in his 30s, became obsessed with physical training was also because of his inferiority complex about being born weak.
Ultimately, the series of events in the play where Mizoguchi suffers from an inferiority complex due to her body complex and, unable to bear her situation of being excluded from beauty, attempts to destroy the Golden Pavilion are also the author's own bare face.


A controversial writer and three-time Nobel Prize in Literature nominee
Yukio Mishima's "Confessions" written during a literary turning point

Living up to his nickname, "The Genius of the Showa Period," Yukio Mishima published 180 novels, 60 plays, and a vast amount of essays and critiques during his 23-year writing career.
Among his numerous works, “The Temple of the Golden Pavilion” was the masterpiece that made Yukio Mishima the greatest writer of his time.
For this work, he won the Yomiuri Literary Prize in 1957, and was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature three times in a row from 1963 to 1965.


As Japanese literary critic Yoshimi Usui commented, “It is surprising that one can fill oneself up like this and express it in a novel,” “The Temple of the Golden Pavilion” is a “confession novel” written during Yukio Mishima’s literary turning point.
Unlike his early days, when he focused on his innate anxiety and sensitive sensibilities, in his 30s he began to focus on his physical intellect, which actively attempts to 'self-reform'.
The first such attempt was The Sinking Falls, and the work that ultimately achieved its completed form was The Temple of the Golden Pavilion.


“I wanted to let you know.
It is perception that transforms this world.
You see, nothing else can change the world.
Only perception can transform the world from its unchanging state.
“You could say that in order to endure this life, humans have come to use perception as a weapon.”

“It is never perception that transforms the world,” I countered, risking a confession.
“It is action that transforms the world.
“That’s all there is to it.”
-From the text

It was not a mere coincidence that in the play, the main character Mizoguchi escaped the world of perception and was reborn as an 'actor' with the help of Kashiwagi, who had bow legs.
It is in line with the author's will to abandon his past self, who was physically and mentally weak, and to pioneer a new life by devoting himself to physical exercise.
Fourteen years after the publication of "The Temple of the Golden Pavilion," Yukio Mishima committed suicide by seppuku.
There are differing opinions as to how he, who tried to live his life by reforming himself, ended up in such an extreme death.
Even today, Yukio Mishima's later years continue to spark intense controversy, and the value of "The Temple of the Golden Pavilion," written at a crucial juncture both personally and literary, remains vivid.
The work contains the anguish of his youth, as well as the inner conflict he experienced before becoming absorbed in far-right ideology.

“There is a feeling that transcends the passage of time.

“This is a work that must be savored to the last line.” _Japanese Amazon Reader Review

The pinnacle of aesthetic literature that no one can surpass!
Depicting the fundamental human dilemma in a delicate and elegant style

The epithets that follow "The Temple of the Golden Pavilion" and Yukio Mishima are varied, but everyone agrees that he is a master of aesthetic literature that no one can surpass.
This is why, regardless of the extreme right-wing actions of Yukio Mishima in his later years, we must evaluate his unique aesthetic sense, flowing prose, meticulous composition, and delicate psychological depiction.
Hideo Kobayashi, the literary critic who established modern Japanese criticism, praised The Temple of the Golden Pavilion as “a very beautiful lyric poem rather than a novel,” and repeatedly expressed admiration for its splendid yet elegant style.
Tsuji Hitonari, the author of the best-selling book “Between Calm and Passion,” also showed his affection for Yukio Mishima, saying, “I’ve read ‘The Temple of the Golden Pavilion’ dozens of times.”


The idea of ​​a mummy is shallow and foolish, but it may be enough to motive a crime of arson against a national treasure.
Yukio Mishima, Nudity and Clothing - Diary (1959)

The reason why 'beauty' shines even brighter in Yukio Mishima's literature is because it implies a fundamental dilemma: the inability to align one's inner self with the external world, which leads to self-loathing.
As humans are imperfect beings, we are bound to be fascinated by perfect objects while also being infinitely intimidated by them.
Everyone has aspects of Mizoguchi and Hayashi Shoken, who long for absolute beauty like the Golden Pavilion, but are tormented by their own inability to reach it, and ultimately try to destroy their idol.
"The Temple of the Golden Pavilion" starkly exposes the abyss held by the imperfect beings known as humans.
The sentences stand out even more like a lyric poem, the psychological descriptions of the characters are so delicate that even the slightest tremors are conveyed, and the expression of beauty itself is splendid but never excessive.
That is why, even now, half a century after its publication, 『The Temple of the Golden Pavilion』 continues to be renowned as a "novel bible" that countless writers practice with, and a "masterpiece of aesthetic literature" that touches the emotions and evokes empathy from readers around the world.