Disclaimer: "Gensomaden Saiyuki, Saiyuki: Reload, Saiyuki: Gaiden" and all of its characters were created by Kazuya Minekura. They belong to her and were used without prior permission. No monetary profit is made through this story.
The following is my personal take of the covers of the Saiyuki tankoubon Vol. 1 to 4. Thanks go to BloodDebt, who gave me a link to pin down the flower type for the purple blooms on the cover of Vol.3. Minekura-sensei states in Vol.4 “By the way, the flowers on the covers have no relationship to each of the characters.” So read on McDuff.
Artless Ikebana by Zan
It was a heavenly hand that held the bouquet. It was delicate and almost feminine, although the lithesome arm to which the hand was attached had strength hidden within its sinews. The spray of blooms was no less Arcadian, with all its variety, colour and heady fragrance. Immortal eyes watched through a mirrored portal of a pond framed with Lotus pink and white; as the posy moved along its westward way.
The Prima Donna of the bunch was the large blossoms of Oriental Lily Casa Blanca. The majesty of these cannot be denied, being true to its hue. It is a celebration of its chasteness. The perfection very slightly marred by the faint markings on the strong silk-like petals. It gives off a waxen luminescence like the full moon in a deeply, dark sky. On the other hand the golden coloured pollen is reminiscent of blond locks catching and toying with beams of sunlight. There are many things that have been said of the lily; that it can be used as possessing the power to avert the evil eye and another (which amuses the celestial who bears vigil) is an obscure referenceto the lily as the voice of cicadas.
Next in the nosegay to catch the eye would possibly be the flash of almost violent violet. The Purple Hollyhock’s overlapping petals tease the butterflies with their colour and sway tauntingly on willowy stems in the breeze. These are flamboyant in their fruitfulness and abundance. These biennials also attract the bees, another nectar gatherer. It is as if the Hollyhock just needs to give out and share its sweetness sported within its showy papery seedheads. The royal colour is incongruously partnered with the soft of just budded White Rose; straight stemmed and genteel. Not yet in their full flush and delicate satin to the touch. Like rubbing the sleep from your eyes, it is just awakened purity.
And as a complement to the Hollyhock, the Yellow Gladiolus lends its strength to the stalks. It is a hardy plant possessing a beauteous substance of character and sincerity. A protector if you will. For was not the bloom so named to honour the gladiators? ‘Gladius’ is from the Latin, meaning sword. The ‘glad’ is grown from a corm covered by layers of brown fibrous tunics, and when grown to full height produces up to ten long narrow blade like leaves encased within a sheath. Also called the ‘Sword Lily’; it is a golden and green emanation of healing and shielding. The blooms are large and scented like the Casa Blanca, but unlike it the Yellow Gladiolus doesn’t seem to blind you with its brightness. It also differs from most other flora in that the heart of this flower is hidden.
Lastly, perhaps to break up the austerity of the white, bring out the warmth of the yellow and even out the cool of the indigo, the Windflower pops up here and there. Like youth in springtime to temper the wisdom of the ages imbued within the pristine aloofness of our great white lily. They are always ever so cheerful and playful in tints of coral, crimson and crème. In fact these have been used in remedies for emotional distress, another tidbit that seems to humour the divine sentinel. It is also called Anemone, and has often been mistaken for the poppy and the daisy. The myth is that the Goddess Flora in a fit of jealous fury (of her husband’s attentions towards the nymph Anemone) turned the naiad into the Windflower to be left at the mercy of the North Wind. And even though it is left to the inclemency of the boreal tempests it will flourish, if nourished by access to sunlight. The meaning of the Anemone in a bouquet is abandonment. However, whether it is a fear or a threat of being left behind still remains to be seen. At least with this mixed bunch anyway.
The fragrances of the flowers mingle and mix, bringing forth a signature scent. An aural perfume you could say. So a leading Lily, a guarding Gladius, the jaunty Hollyhock with its accompanying subtle spirit of Rose and the wayward Windflower (which will follow the sun, its sun,) together as they track an arduous journey from East to West.
And this especial spray is bound by a roll of green and ivory parchment; seemingly as frail as three ply tissue but as strong as silk. All secured with a length of almost silver white ribbon with a pair of ruby clasps.
And so, Heaven’s Mercy directed the floral collection towards the ever setting sun. Grasping human hands and youkai fists and even Gods try to catch at it. These extremities attempt to grab the scroll, to break the bouquet, with its band of merry colours. With each failed effort they still ‘Go to the West’. The journey is not as smooth as sailing overhead (which would have been safer and faster, but much less fun — depending on whose point of view). More like a jagged, jumpy and bumpy ride over unpredictable and ever changing terrain. No one knows when it will land on the floor, at the door of a forbidding castle and much less the fate that awaits these blooms then. The only certainty is that there will be eyes from above that watch. The first is a pair with a hint of laughter in the lilac and as always these are accompanied by an anxious pair of dark. The last is an unmoving, still pair of golden eyes clutching at whispered memories in a screamingly silent prison.
Fin
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Just in case anyone needs clarification:
Volume 1 — Oriental Lily Casa Blanca; Sanzo
Volume 2 — Anemone (or Windflower); Goku
Volume 3 — Purple Hollyhock and White Rose; Gojyo
Volume 4 — Yellow Gladiolus; Hakkai