One of the most influential essays of the 20th century. Tanizaki's masterpiece for the first time translated directly from Japanese. Deluxe Edition. Through silent contemplation of the world around him, Tanizaki unveils the mystery of the shadow, which is none other than the very essence of beauty, with a simple and pleasant style, but surprisingly balanced, serene and subtle. A short essay that will delight anyone interested in Japanese culture and art in general. After the apparent simplicity of its pages, Tanizaki breaks down his aesthetic thought and reveals, in a brilliant and continuous line of examples, a mysterious world, perhaps disappeared, which we can access as a source of inspiration to create an aesthetic world of its own. It is the world of the shadow, in which the smallest experience or the most banal act can be sublime.