Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in A Tale for the Time Being, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Time, Impermanence, and the Present
The Difficulty of Communication
Life vs. Death
Coincidences and Connections
Sexual Perversion and Violence
Summary
Analysis
(1) Nao asks her reader if he or she is still there and thanks her reader for believing in her. She writes that when she was waiting at the station, she saw her father walking toward her. Nao says she was trying not to think about him, because every time she did, she pictured him suffocating to death in a car with the members of his suicide club. Nao could not believe that he was alive, and that he had come to find her.
Nao’s words seem to be directly addressed to Ruth, since Ruth believed in Nao and tried to save her life. Ruth wasn’t sure how her actions in her dream would save Nao, but Nao’s words show her that by stalling Haruki’s suicide attempt and telling him where to find Nao, Ruth gave Nao a renewed sense of hope. She showed Nao that she wasn’t completely alone, nor was she invisible.
Themes
At the temple, Nao and Haruki found a big crowd of people who had come because Jiko was on her deathbed—these included some parishioners, nuns and priests from other temples, and even some reporters who were there because Jiko was so old. Muji immediately took Nao and Haruki to see Jiko, who told Nao that she was glad that Nao made it in time. Jiko squeezed Nao’s hand, and her fingers feel like “hot sticks.” Nao tried not to cry and said nothing.
For the longest time, Nao was afraid that Jiko would one day die—and now, the moment seemed to be here. Even on the verge of death, Jiko’s fingers are “hot,” showing that she is still full of life.
Themes
However, it seemed like Jiko had something to say. She called for Muji, who helped her sit up and then placed a sheet of white rice paper before her and gave her some ink and a brush. Nao explains that it was traditional for Zen Buddhist master to write a final poem before they died.
Jiko seems to have waited for Nao and Haruki to arrive before writing her final message to the world. The fact that a Zen master’s final act is to write a poem emphasizes the importance of the written word, as writing can capture and preserve a person’s innermost thoughts even after they’re gone.
Themes
Slowly, Jiko wrote a single kanji on the paper, which meant “to live.” Right after, she lay down and took her last breath. As Muji began all the death rituals, Nao couldn’t believe that Jiko was really gone. Right before Jiko was cremated, Nao slipped some chocolate into Jiko’s hands, since she was so fond of chocolate. When she touched Jiko’s fingers, they were “stiff and cold,” and Nao realized that Jiko had already changed since she died—she was no longer Jiko.
Nao realized that Jiko was changed by death—her “hot” fingers were now cold. Like everything in the world, Jiko, too, was an impermanent “time being.”
Themes
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The reporters and the priests debated the meaning of Jiko’s final words, “to live.” No one really understood this except Nao and her dad, and they weren’t about to tell anyone else that it was a message to them. When Nao and Haruki were alone at the altar, Haruki asked Nao if she knew what was inside the white box. Nao opened the box to show him, and to her surprise, she found Haruki #1’s French booklet inside. They decided to take it home to figure out what it said.
Jiko’s final message was directed at Nao and Haruki. Jiko understood that they were thinking of killing themselves, and she wanted to urge them to live. She knew that they would be more likely to honor her dying wish, which is why she wanted them there before she died. Before Nao left the temple, she also found Haruki #1’s secret French diary where Ruth left it. This is more evidence that Ruth actually traveled back in time and did what she dreamed about—there truly is a “magical” or metaphysical connection between Ruth and Nao.
Themes
