Daimonji Mountain (Daimonji yoru no kiyamachi)

On the night of August 16th, the character "dai" (great) blazes in fire on Nyoigatake mountain above Kyoto, marking the climax of the Obon festival when the spirits of the dead are guided back to the afterlife. Suizan depicts this scene from Kiyamachi, the narrow street running alongside the Takase Canal, where the city's nightlife district meets the Kamogawa riverbank. The fiery kanji character glows orange against the dark mountain silhouette, its reflection suggested in the waters below. This is a uniquely Kyoto subject: the Daimonji bonfire is the city's most iconic summer ritual, visible from rooftops and riverbanks across the eastern part of town. Suizan, who would have witnessed the event annually from his home city, renders it not as spectacle but as a familiar seasonal marker woven into the rhythm of Kyoto life.