Tag: Valentine’s Day

Twin Peaks: Poem Number 13

The second poem in our series devoted to Valentine’s Day is this one:

JapaneseRomanizationTranslation
筑波嶺のTsukubane noLike the Mina River
みねより落つるMine yori otsuruthat falls from the peak
みなの川Minano-gawaof Mount Tsukuba
恋ぞつもりてKoi zo tsumoriteso my longing has collected
淵となりぬるFuchi to naru nuruand turned into deep pools.
Translation by Dr Joshua Mostow

The poem was composed by Yōzei-in (陽成院, 868 – 949), known in English as Emperor Yōzei. According to commentaries, the poem was intended for “the princess of Tsuridono” who was Emperor Kōkō’s daughter. Sadly, Emperor Yōzei is better known for his severe mental instability in later years, and his other poetry was seldom never published.

Nevertheless, the analogy of Mount Tsukuba, pictured above, was an excellent choice. The mountain is famous in Japanese culture, especially for the two peaks: one called nantai (男体, “Man”) on the western side, and nyotai (女体, “Woman”) on the eastern side. It was a frequent topic used in love poetry back in the day. Even today, it is a very popular destination for tourists and nature lovers.

Love Burns Like A Torch: Poem Number 49

The first of a series of poems dedicated to Valentine’s Day:

JapaneseRomanizationTranslation
みかき守MikakimoriLike the fire the guardsman kindles,
ゑえじのたく火のEji no taku hi noguarding the imperial gates:
夜はもえYoru wa moeat night, burning,
昼は消えつつHiru wa kie tsutsuin the day, exhausted,
物をこそ思へえMono wo koso moeover and over, so I long for her.
Translation by Dr Joshua Mostow

The author, Ōnakatomi no Yoshinobu Ason (大中臣能宣朝臣, 921 – 991), was the grandfather of Ise no Tayū (poem 61) and a prolific poet in his time, and one of the Thirty-Six Immortals of Poetry. According to Mostow, was also one of the “Five Gentlemen of the Pear Chamber” (nashi tsubo no gonin 梨壺の五人), with the Pear Chamber referring to a special room within the Court ladies’ residence of the Imperial Palace, which in turn was named after a special pear tree within the Palace gardens in the Ladies’ Quarter. This implied a very high honor indeed for Yoshinobu who was a member of the Inner Court.

Interestingly, Mostow suggests that the poem was in fact not written by Yoshinobu, owing to the fact that it does not appear in Yoshinobu’s personal collection and is listed as “anonymous” in other collections.

Love Poetry in the Hyakunin Isshu

A scene from the Genji Monogatari (Tales of Genji), Metropolitan Museum of Art, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

With Valentine’s Day fast approaching, it seems appropriate to post some of the many love poems from the Hyakunin Isshu. So, starting tomorrow, I’ll post one poem a day until the 14th.

The Hyakunin Isshu has two very popular topics frequently used in poetry: love poems and seasonal poems. While seasonal poems have been frequently posted here, love poetry probably comprises the majority of poems in the anthology. There are many reasons for this:

  1. Poetry was a very popular past time among the nobility of the Nara and Heian Court. Poetry contests were very common, and a skillful poem could earn high praise among Court circles, and possible promotion. Poetry topics frequently included lurid subjects such as a jilted lover, broken promises, or secret love. Poems 40 and 41 are among the best examples in the anthology.
  2. Courtship in the Nara and Heian periods frequently involved indirect exchanges between men and women. In fact, men and women rarely saw each other face to face even while flirting with each other. So, poetry was a very useful medium of expression. Some of the more brilliant poems were preserved and praised by later generations.
  3. Confucian values, which were very popular even then, stressed the importance of cultivating one’s self through the arts. Naturally this included poetry. The martial culture that characterized medieval Japan and its samurai rulers had not taken hold at this period of time..

Anyhow, enjoy the next several poems, and feel free to use them on the ones you love. 🙂