Kobai-iro

The name evokes red plum blossoms, but it is a pale, bright color of spring. Among the beni (safflower) dyes loved in the Heian period, deep beni was a forbidden color, while light beni dyeing was especially favored and widely used. In The Pillow Book, Sei Shonagon disliked its overuse, calling it a "susamajiki" (dispiriting) color. In Murasaki Shikibu's The Tale of Genji, Beni, Kobai, Red, Hi, and Akane are portrayed as colors of passion and as tokens of a man's love.