Memoirs of a Geisha Page #3

Someday, if you are fortunate,

you will have a patron too.

Don't kneel. You are not

a servant girl anymore.

Step into the light.

I see water in you.

Does that displease you?

Water is powerful.

It can wash away earth,

put out fire and even destroy iron.

But you have not drawn

on those strengths, have you?

About your kimono...

You may apologize if you wish.

Why, that is a perfect bow...

...for a pig farmer.

Don't drop your head.

Fingertips together.

Elbows in. No weight on the hands.

Yes.

As for the kimono,

I'm no fool, Chiyo.

Hatsumomo cannot

tolerate competition.

She is jealous of you?

Not me, I'm afraid.

Someone closer to home.

Rise.

Not like a horse.

Slide your foot forward.

That's it. Now walk.

You are a magnificent geisha.

Tell me, Chiyo, does Mrs. Nitta

ever speak of the future?

Not to me.

Well, someday soon,

she will have to name an heir.

One of her own geisha

to succeed her.

Strange, isn't it,

she has not adopted Hatsumomo.

That would be like releasing

the tiger from its cage.

You have a gift for expression.

And if Mrs. Nitta adopts Pumpkin...

...that is hardly a threat.

But a young girl

with eyes like rain...

But Mrs. Nitta would never

choose me.

On the contrary, that is our goal.

- It is?

- Of course.

If you do not inherit the okiya,

then we will all be at the tiger's mercy.

Water's always in such a hurry.

Perhaps it is just as well.

We have no time to lose.

We must transform you.

And what takes years,

you must learn in months.

Say I'm entertaining the Baron.

Like so many clients, he's trapped

in an arranged marriage.

So in the teahouse, when he's

seeking my company instead...

...I reward him like this:

With a glimpse of my wrist.

Seeing this demure little trace

of naked skin...

Well, it gives him pleasure.

Or when you're sitting down...

...for the briefest moment,

press your leg against his.

Always by accident, of course.

Mameha, when does a geisha

choose her danna?

I'm afraid it's the other way around.

Focus on your studies, Chiyo.

Music, the art of conversation.

That's the surest way

to attract a danna.

On your feet, not off them.

Remember, Chiyo,

geisha are not courtesans.

And we are not wives.

We sell our skills,

not our bodies.

We create another secret world.

A place only of beauty.

The very word "geisha"

means "artist. "

And to be a geisha is to be judged

as a moving work of art.

Agony and beauty, for us,

live side by side.

Your feet will suffer,

your fingers will bleed.

Even sitting and sleeping

will be painful.

You cannot call yourself

a true geisha...

...until you can stop a man

in his tracks with a single look.

No one can do that.

Choose someone for me.

The grey hat.

Choose someone for me, Onei-san.

The boy on the bike, with one look.

You are ready.

Hurry up!

You are not making money

standing there gawking at yourself.

For luck!

This binds us together forever

as sisters.

Today you leave your childhood

and cast away your name.

From this day forward,

you will be known as:

"Sayuri. "

When Mameha granted me

my new name...

...I felt little Chiyo disappear

behind a white mask with red lips.

I was a maiko now.

An apprentice geisha.

From that moment, I told myself:

"When I make tea,

when I pour sake...

...when I dance,

when I tie my obi...

...it will be for the Chairman.

Until he finds me.

Until I am his. "

Ready?

Thank you.

Friends...

...we have the pleasure to witness

the debut of a new maiko.

I remember those eyes.

What was her name?

Sayuri.

Determined, isn't she?

If there'd been a drop of tea in that pot,

Sayuri would have gotten it out.

Don't tease, Baron,

it is her very first time.

What a beautiful dance,

yes, Pumpkin?

Her fans are so hypnotic...

...that you never notice her feet.

- What's her name?

- Her name is Sayuri.

Sayuri? A name as sweet

as she is.

I'm afraid these days...

...even a common chambermaid

can call herself a geisha.

So it's nice to see such

a sincere young maiko. Isn't it?

Why, yes.

Surely you would like

to thank Hatsumomo...

...for her gracious compliments.

There is so much I would like

to say to Hatsumomo.

Sometimes the smartest remark

is silence.

What better advice to follow

than your own?

Sayuri.

- I was a maiko myself once.

- Of course.

But it's been such a very long...

...long, long, long time.

I shall destroy you.

She can destroy you.

She will spread rumors...

...stalk you from teahouse

to teahouse, then steal your clients.

All in the hope that Mrs. Nitta

adopts Pumpkin instead of you.

- What can we do?

- We've got to outwit her.

To find a place somewhere

beyond her reach...

...where you can practice your skills

without any interference.

- Your first sumo match.

- What?

Today you will meet

Iwamura Ken.

He is head of the Iwamura Electric

Company in Osaka.

My client for years.

We will entertain him

and his partner, Nobu.

We may find Nobu

quite a challenge.

He does not like geisha.

Be attentive. I will do the rest.

Chairman Iwamura. President Nobu.

This is my new younger sister, Sayuri.

Nobu-san.

Nobu-san.

Injured in Manchuria. War hero.

Sayuri, is this your first sumo match?

Nobu-san will have to educate you.

I cannot tell one wrestler from the next.

That is the Chairman's diplomatic way

of saying he hates sumo.

Did you notice our contribution?

We are harnessing

the power of water...

...to bring electricity

to some of the smaller villages.

- It was in the newspapers, wasn't it?

- With the Chairman's picture.

You compensate for all

my shortcomings, don't you?

May I ask, how does someone

harness the power of water?

You should never ask an engineer

to explain a thing, because he will...

Let the girl watch sumo.

Hatsumomo, that snake.

Quick, turn your attention to Nobu.

But, Mameha-neisan...

Hatsumomo finds him repulsive.

She'd never steal him away.

Mislead her. Go.

Perhaps Nobu-san will be kind enough

to explain the rules of the match.

Three things matter in life:

Sumo, business and war.

Understand one,

you know them all.

But why should a geisha care?

You spend your time

plucking strings and dancing.

I humbly beg to differ.

What is sumo

but a dance between giants?

What is business

but a dance between companies?

I'd like to know about

every kind of dance.

They are throwing salt

to purify the ring.

That man is Miyagiyama,

the greatest fighter in Japan.

But he's so tiny.

Only compared to his opponent.

Miyagiyama may use hataki komi.

Are you listening?

Yes.

Hataki komi is a movement

the smaller combatant uses...

...to throw the larger man

off balance.

Victory does not always belong

to the powerful.

Look. There.

In his eyes.

I'm afraid our time

has come to a close.

- Going so soon?

- Not yet. I want her to see.

Now that is hataki komi!

I see now why you like sumo.

You can never judge a man's power

by his appearance alone.

Mameha.

You may bring her again.

I scoured the newspaper

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