Akebono (曙) is the moment when the sky first begins to lighten — not sunrise, but the suggestion of sunrise. The darkness is still present, but it is retreating. Sei Shōnagon wrote in The Pillow Book that spring is most beautiful at dawn — at akebono — when the sky gradually turns pale.

Going Deeper

Explore this concept further in Spring in Japan by Takeshi Mori.

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