As
we unroll, Genji himself appears in the upper left, while two unidentified
companions sit outside on the veranda below, seemingly absorbed in a private
conversation. Notice the tremendous distance between father and son: Yûgiri
with not a care in the world, facing outwards and playing his flute; and
Genji, facing inwards with head bowed, half-hidden by a pillar which cuts
him off from Yûgiri. His loneliness seems acute, and as we move further
into the painting we learn why.