Discussion

In Greek mythology, Narcissus was a beautiful youth who was so enamored of his own reflection in a pool of water that he attempted to embrace it and drowned. There are variations of the myth, but excessive self-love is at the core of all of them. Narcissus (the flower) got its name because it supposedly sprang from the place he died.

This oil on canvas depiction of Narcissus, owned by the Prado Museum in Spain, was painted by Jan Cossiers (1600-1671) around 1636 - 1638.

Narcissus is the Latin name for daffodil and is a member of the amaryllis family. The impression given is that there is no difference between narcissi and daffodils. That is not true, however; at least not for varieties in Japan. The photos below show that a daffodil has only one blossom per stem while a narcissus has many. Also, the trumpet-shaped corona surrounding the stamen in daffodils is longer than in narcissi.

daffodil narcissus

The Japanese word for both narcissi and daffodils is suisen. Its literal meaning is "hermit who lives in the water". There is another more subtle meaning for physical suisen plants, however, in the "language of flowers", floriography in English or hanakotoba (花言葉) in Japanese. Floriography, practiced for thousands of years, used to be more prominent in the West than it is today. It is form of cryptography in which flowers send messages of various sorts. Lingering remnants of it remain when one considers such things as the significance of long-stemmed red roses, particularly in bunches of a dozen; white calla lilies at funerals or around Easter time; holly or poinsettias around Christmas; and mistletoe any time, especially when hung overhead at parties.

Hanakotoba is still practiced in Japan, though I'm not sure how prominent it is. Though suisen is the word used for both daffodils and narcissi, the flowers themselves mean different things. When represented by daffodils, suisen means respect. When represented by narcissi, it means self-esteem. In that regard, the tragic Greek youth is connected with the Japanese suisen.

Here is an anatomy illustration of narcissi.

Note the ovary at the base of the lower, narrow part of the blossom. When painting a narcissus, you may want to do something to indicate its presence.

These are definitely narcissi:

Suisen (specifically referring to narcissi, not daffodils) are spring blooming perennials that grow from bulbs. Reproduction is by bulb division or insect pollination. The blossoms have six tepals (like petals) spaced around a cup-shaped corona surrounding the stamen. Blossoms are generally white or yellow, but garden varieties also come in orange or pink. The tepals and corona may be the same or different colors. Leaves are sword-like and colored dark green.

This field of flowers is at Hitachi Seaside Park, located in Ibaraki Prefecture in Japan.

Suisen is sometimes used in ikebana flower arrangements.

Pictures of classical Japanese art with suisen in them are tough to locate, but I finally found this partial image of a hanging scroll by Hōitsu Sakai (1761-1829), a Rinpa school artist of the Edo Period. He is known for having revived the popularity of Ogata Kōrin (1568-1716) and reproducing many of Kōrin's most famous works.

Isoda Koryūsai (1735–1790) was a very prolific ukiyo-e (Japanese woodblock print) artist. A samurai who became a rōnin (masterless man) when the lord he served died, he moved to Edo (now Tōkyō) and became a designer and artist. His early prints were mostly of samurai themes, but he soon branched out into other areas. Many were kachō-ga (bird-and-flower prints), a very popular category, like the one here.