Matari
Encyclopedia
Matari is a book written by Luke Rhinehart, a pen name
of George Cockcroft
. Matari was published in the UK in 1975, and is currently out-of-print and very hard to find. It was published in the US under the name of White Wind, Black Rider (2002).
, and features a conflict between four very different characters - Oboko (nb, Obaku
is a form of Zen
), a poet of the wind and Buddhist
monk; Izzi, court poet and extrovert; Lord Arishi, samurai
and lord of the realm; and finally Matari, beautiful, intelligent, and on the run for her life. The story might be described as a love story - all three of the men are, in their own way, in love with Matari. Yet they each have their own outlook on life
, and their own sense of honour
and morality
. While individually we might applaud them as good men and true, the meeting of the three results in tragedy.
This is a comparatively traditional novel; the story runs in a linear fashion, and the plot is such as you might find in any other book. George Cockcroft uses his knowledge of Zen
well, though, and the book gives an insight into the thinking of both Buddhist and Samurai
thinking that feels well-rounded.
Oboko survives the story and is later mentioned in The Book of the Die by the same author.
The various ISBNs of the different editions are:
Pen name
A pen name, nom de plume, or literary double, is a pseudonym adopted by an author. A pen name may be used to make the author's name more distinctive, to disguise his or her gender, to distance an author from some or all of his or her works, to protect the author from retribution for his or her...
of George Cockcroft
George Cockcroft
George Cockcroft is an author who writes under the pen name Luke Rhinehart.-Biography:George Cockcroft was born in the United States, son of an engineer and a civil servant. He got his BA at Cornell University, and his MA at Columbia University. Subsequently he got a PhD in psychology, also at...
. Matari was published in the UK in 1975, and is currently out-of-print and very hard to find. It was published in the US under the name of White Wind, Black Rider (2002).
Plot summary
The story is set in 18th century JapanJapan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, and features a conflict between four very different characters - Oboko (nb, Obaku
Obaku
Ōbaku is the Amur Corktree. It may refer to:*Mount Huangbo , a mountain in China's Fujian province, noted for its Buddhist temples*Mount Ōbaku , a mountain in the city of Uji in Japan...
is a form of Zen
Zen
Zen is a school of Mahāyāna Buddhism founded by the Buddhist monk Bodhidharma. The word Zen is from the Japanese pronunciation of the Chinese word Chán , which in turn is derived from the Sanskrit word dhyāna, which can be approximately translated as "meditation" or "meditative state."Zen...
), a poet of the wind and Buddhist
Buddhism
Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th...
monk; Izzi, court poet and extrovert; Lord Arishi, samurai
Samurai
is the term for the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. According to translator William Scott Wilson: "In Chinese, the character 侍 was originally a verb meaning to wait upon or accompany a person in the upper ranks of society, and this is also true of the original term in Japanese, saburau...
and lord of the realm; and finally Matari, beautiful, intelligent, and on the run for her life. The story might be described as a love story - all three of the men are, in their own way, in love with Matari. Yet they each have their own outlook on life
Personal life
Personal life is the course of an individual's life, especially when viewed as the sum of personal choices contributing to one's personal identity. It is a common notion in modern existence—although more so in more prosperous parts of the world such as Western Europe and North America...
, and their own sense of honour
Honour
Honour or honor is an abstract concept entailing a perceived quality of worthiness and respectability that affects both the social standing and the self-evaluation of an individual or corporate body such as a family, school, regiment or nation...
and morality
Morality
Morality is the differentiation among intentions, decisions, and actions between those that are good and bad . A moral code is a system of morality and a moral is any one practice or teaching within a moral code...
. While individually we might applaud them as good men and true, the meeting of the three results in tragedy.
This is a comparatively traditional novel; the story runs in a linear fashion, and the plot is such as you might find in any other book. George Cockcroft uses his knowledge of Zen
Zen
Zen is a school of Mahāyāna Buddhism founded by the Buddhist monk Bodhidharma. The word Zen is from the Japanese pronunciation of the Chinese word Chán , which in turn is derived from the Sanskrit word dhyāna, which can be approximately translated as "meditation" or "meditative state."Zen...
well, though, and the book gives an insight into the thinking of both Buddhist and Samurai
Samurai
is the term for the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. According to translator William Scott Wilson: "In Chinese, the character 侍 was originally a verb meaning to wait upon or accompany a person in the upper ranks of society, and this is also true of the original term in Japanese, saburau...
thinking that feels well-rounded.
Oboko survives the story and is later mentioned in The Book of the Die by the same author.
The various ISBNs of the different editions are:
- ISBN 0-246-10811-8 - January 1975 (Matari, hardcoverHardcoverA hardcover, hardback or hardbound is a book bound with rigid protective covers...
) - ISBN 0-586-04116-8 - September 2, 1976 (Matari, paperbackPaperbackPaperback, softback or softcover describe and refer to a book by the nature of its binding. The covers of such books are usually made of paper or paperboard, and are usually held together with glue rather than stitches or staples...
) - ISBN 1-4033-4796-4–27 November 2002 (White Wind, Black Rider, hardcover)
- ISBN 1-4033-4795-6–27 November 2002 (White Wind, Black Rider, paperback)