Empowered Narratives— “Tales of Poor Women” and Kiyomizudera in Premodern Japanese Kannon Setsuwa

This paper explores a sub-genre of premodern Japanese Kannon setsuwa known as “tales of poor women (貧女譚).” Unlike early Chinese Guanyin miracle tales, Japanese Kannon setsuwa are notable for their explicit focus on female sexuality, as well as their frequent (and approving) depiction of female protagonists of low social standing seeking wealth and other worldly benefits. By examining how such tales of marginalized women both shaped and were shaped by Buddhist institutions in 10th and 11th century Japan, this paper will explore how gender and marginality came to be intertwined with issues of pilgrimage, karmic efficacy and even literary genre in early medieval Japan. It also demonstrates how such narratives served as a medium through which underrepresented women influenced the history of Kiyomizudera, one of the best-known Buddhist institutions of Japan’s Heian period (794-1185).