Utsubo Monogatari

Utsubo Monogatari (うつほ物語, "The Tale of the Hollow Tree")[a] is a late 10th century[1] Japanese story.

[2][3] Twenty volumes exist that are dominated by two plotlines: about a family of master virtuosos who have learnt the art of playing the koto from celestial beings and acquired it as a hereditary gift from a Buddha[4] and the story of a rich court nobleman named Minamoto no Masayori from the Fujiwara family and his ninth daughter Atemiya, who is the subject of courtship by many nobles, Atemiya becomes the wife of the emperor and her son his successor.

[3] The text is referenced in a number of later works such as Kagerō Nikki (c. 977), Makura no Sōshi (1002), and Genji Monogatari (c. 1021), suggesting compilation between c. 970 and 999.

The title refers to the bear den formed by trees in which the protagonist Nakatada and his mother flee to, to live there.

[2] It contains the following chapters: The story is generally divided into three major sections:[2][3] An English translation by Ziro Uraki was published in 1984 by Shinozaki Shorin under the title The Tale of the Cavern (Utsuho Monogatari) (ISBN 4784104372).