The Temple of the Golden Pavilion

by Yukio Mishima

Book Overview

A haunting portrait of a young man's obsession with idealized beauty and his destructive quest to possess it fully--and the book that "established Mishima's claim as one of the outstanding writers of the world" (The New York Times).

Because of the boyhood trauma of seeing his mother make love to another man in the presence of his dying father, Mizoguchi becomes a hopeless stutterer. Taunted by his schoolmates, he feels utterly...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0679752706
• ISBN13: 9780679752707
• Release Date: October 1994
• Publisher: Vintage
• Length: 288 Pages
• Weight: 0.53 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.2" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

Literature that rightfully make us proud to be Japanese

If ever criticized, The Temple of the Golden Pavilion by Yukio Mishima is chided most frequently for some of its seemingly mundane, superfluous and repetitive details and paragraphs. Many give up, or decide not to read it at all, since the text appears heavy and unmanageable from the very first page. However, after analyzing the book and enduring challenges, one should come to realize the book's deeper meanings. Mishima's writing is filled with archetypes and symbols that reoccur throughout the novel which may seem repetitive, but are utterly paramount and necessary to encourage deeper thought within the reader. After studying a chapter or two, one can make connections using these archetypes as a guide to interpret the book. For example, the seasons and the weather reflect the state of mind of the protagonist, Mizoguchi. Descriptive words such as "brilliant" and "bright" are premonitions of future events. Other distinctly repeated archetypes include colors, water and fire (they are repeated for the sake of emphasis), which help the reader to stay intact with the extraordinary world that Mishima creates. The Temple of the Golden Pavilion is famous for mind-boggling its readers. A way one can come to terms with the frequent juxtapositions in the book is by researching a little about the author's background. Then, one will realize that Mishima incorporated his own philosophies and experiences in the character of Mizoguchi (which resulted in an active voice in its narrations: almost as if Mishima was talking to you personally). This may explain why the book seems abstract yet realistic, absurd yet understandable. Some characteristics of Mizoguchi we can relate with--others are puzzling and enigmatic. It is striking to think that the main happenings of the novel actually happened--a stuttering young monk did in fact set fire to the golden temple after becoming obsessed with its beauty, as cited in the introduction of the book. The plot is simple, and its synopsis can be predicted through reading the introduction and the blurb. Mishima focuses acutely on the insight of the distressed monk's mind, even forcing the reader to unexpectedly sympathize with the mentally "different" protagonist. This may be the reason why some readers find Mishima's book hard to understand, or not fruitful. A reader cannot expect to obtain anything productive out of this book simply from the plot alone. Its true value can be attained through reading the book proactively, with care. The Temple of the Golden Pavilion has become internationally accepted, possibly because of its universal philosophical messages, unique writing style, and also precisely for its absurdness. It is an esoteric piece of writing. It is loved by individuals (intellectuals) who are able to enjoy and appreciate quality writing while carefully deciphering its many conundrums; but it is dismissed by those... seeking a lighter read. For more in-depth information and analysis, please

Not So Golden

The Temple of the Golden Pavilion, by Yukio Mishima, is a tragic story about Mizoguchi, the story's protagonist, and his struggle to come to terms with his existence. This novel does not attempt to teach us how or in what way we should live our lives; rather, it offers an insight into the mind of a deeply troubled young man whose existence he justifies by hating the outside world. Told from the first-person perspective, I had trouble getting into the novel at first - I enjoy an intrusive narrator. After a few chapters, however, I was drawn into Mizoguchi's world of contrasts between evil and beauty. We learn that Mizoguchi stutters a lot and because of this he has been cast out of society at school. His stuttering, his feeling that he is unattractive, and some of the things he has done (such as stepping on a prostitute's stomach) cause him to believe that he is a terribly ugly and evil person. However, Mizoguchi would have himself be seen no other way. Since he has been cast out of the world, he comes to believe that the world is a beautiful and good place in which he does not belong. Yet Mizoguchi soon finds out that this perception of the word - one in which the world is a kind and beautiful place - is not entirely accurate. It is here that I believe Mishima's writing ability stands out among other writers. This is because he is able to show how people like Mizoguchi and Kashiwagi, who is met later in the novel, can see the destruction or defilement of something beautiful as a validation of their own existence. For example, when Mizoguchi wished "that the Golden Temple was going to be bombed," (62) it was in order for him to remain ugly and evil in his own eyes. While the Golden Temple exists, he is able to find flaws in it - the phoenix looks more like a crow, it is made up of several different architectural styles and its shadow looks more beautiful than the actual building itself. This is not to say that the Golden Temple is not actually beautiful, but that it becomes more beautiful only when it is gone. Since he could then say that the Golden Pavilion was beautiful and that beauty did exist in the world, Mizoguchi could use that as a way to underscore his own ugliness. With The Temple of the Golden Pavilion Mishima holds his own among the great writes of fiction. Just like any other book, it takes a while to start enjoying, but picks up once you do. It does not try to give us guidelines to live our lives by nor does it have a "The moral of the story is..." This is part of the reason why I enjoyed reading it so much - I did not feel as though there was some sort of a hidden meaning behind every detail of which I needed to be aware. Rather, it provides a detailed insight into the thought processes of a person who can only see himself from a negative perspective.

An excellent psychological examination

The Temple of the Golden Pavillion is an excellent psychological novel. In this book, we can see how a mind can be driven along to evil through obsession.The main character of this book is Mizoguchi. He is the son of a poor rural priest. He is taken by his dying father to become an acolyte at the Temple of the Golden Pavillion. All throughout his childhood, his father had told him about the spledid beauty of this temple. Mizoguchi builds up an image of ideal beauty in his mind based on this Golden Pavillion. However, this ideal image causes him to feel disappointed in any supposed form of beauty, including women and even the actual physical Golden Pavillion. Nothing can live up to this image of supreme beauty.As he enters university, he comes under the influence of Kashiwagi, a fellow student with a very bitter view of life. Under this influence, Mizoguchi's dark feelings bubble up inside him. One of my favorite parts is Mizoguchi and Kashiwagi's discussion of knowledge and action. Kashiwagi asserts that an unbearable life can be made bearable by just having the knowledge that it is unchangable. However, Mizoguchi argues that knowledge is a dead thing, and that only action to change to change an unbearable life can make it bearable. This attitude leads him to his final desperate attack.I think that this book is particularly important in this age of terrorism. Often people ask why do terrorist do what they do, and they ask this because they don't understand the obsession (whether in ideal beauty as in this book, or with fundamentalist religion as in the case with terrorists), the hopelessness, and the desperation that they feel. I think if you read this book, you can understand how a mind is turned to evil acts through these means. Please read this book, if only to understand this point.A previous reviewer complained that ther isn't much action in this book, and that is true, but that's no reason to give it a low rating. It's a psychological novel about the process of a mind on the road to evil, so naturally the main part of the story takes place in the mind. If you want a novel with exploding cars, you should try a Tom Clancy novel instead.

A deep, thought-provoking, and beautiful book

The Temple of the Golden Pavilion is a book that stayed with me since I first read it, and in particular certain lines by Mizoguchi and Kashiwagi, two of the principal characters, are often so perfect in describing the events of life that I am again filled with admiration for Mishima's incredible philospohical and literary skills. The thing about Mishima, though, is that his protagonist will almost invariably be a young, introspective male - of course, this is a mirror image of Mishima himelf. I am reading "Confessions of a Mask", his "coming-out" autobiography right now, and it brought me back to thinking about the "Temple"; "Confessions" was one of his earliest books and it certainly set the stage for a work like "Temple" to come. It's clear from the autobiography that the themes of beauty (in particular masculine beauty), death, and war are Mishima's obsessions. Of the four Mishima novels i've read (Sound of Waves, Thirst for Love, Spring Snow, and the TOFTGP), some of these themes are always present. In every novel, too, he is using a different approach to them; in the Golden Temple, there is a heightened awareness of sprirituality and beauty of divine origin, i.e. the Golden Temple itself, the object of the acolyte Mizoguchi's obsession, which progressively takes over his life. ("Did I possess the Golden Temple, or was I possessed by it?") It is hard to imagine Mishima's characters - like the stuttering teenage acolyte Mizoguchi of The Temple, with his keen aestheticism or his crippled friend Kashiwagi with his brilliant philospophical insights - in real life, whether it be Japan or any other country. Mishima's works, even his autobiography, are all surreal in nature. The "Temple" very effectively built up such an aura around the actual Golden Templein Kyoto that when I later saw a picture of it (it has been rebuilt since its destruction described in the book) I was very disappointed by its real image. It is certainly a beautiful building, but to me is not mysterious or hypnotic like it is to Mizoguchi. It is not alive, and certainly doesn't look like it can manipulate the hearts and minds of people, as it did with Mizoguchi. In general, Mishima's works, as was he - seem otherworldly. If this appeals to you, then his books, and this one in particular, will be unforgettable. Mishima's gift for beautiful, descriptive prose and powerful analogies shines through Ivan Morris's excellent translation. If you have never read a Mishima book, and are looking forward to a hypnotic/intellectual journey, "The Temple" is a great book to start with. Also, the Everyman's Libraby edition is very good, with historical notes, an introduction by Donald Keene, thick paper and a built-in bookmark. Get it over the others.

One reason for 'Kinkakuji'

This novel is a good example of a theme that frequently arises in Mishima's work: the resentment of the object of desire. Mizoguchi, the protagonist, is overwhelmed by the beauty of the golden temple and learns to resent it through the guru-like counsel of a friend. Over and over, Mizoguchi feels overwhelmed and made insignificant by the beautiful things in his new life as a monk: the beautiful temple, sexual possibility, and ultimately, his autonomy, perhaps even his life. This book, arguably Mishima's best, may well have been another one of the author's suicide rehearsals, and the unforgettable psychological impact of the book is that of a legendary storyteller demonstrating his Hamlet-like "north-by-northwest" madness. Technically, this is an amazing book, dripping with evocative, beautiful imagery and reminds me of a movie in its directorial-like descriptive method, its forceful 'mis en scene'. Artistically, I suspect Mishima was trying to compete with his great literary forefather Kawabata by playing with western ideas of the apolonean, further fueling his hopelessness and his rage with his art and with himself, but that is a bit academic and beyond my ability to determine. Ultimately, I cherish this book for its tortured explanation of the harshness love and beauty cruelly impose, a feral scream quietly hidden in the drug-like beauty of a book.