Original Documentation - Missing The Point

Heian Japan, Poetry

Pennsic XLII 28th July, 2013

Entrant: Sugawara no Tokihira

Liner Notes For the Knowne World Poetry Competition at Pennsic XLII, I have composed a poem in a period Japanese style. The style, choka, or "long poem," is a form of poetry native to Japan called Waka. It was popular during the Omi and Nara eras (roughly the 7th-8th century C.E.). Choka are written with a repeating 5/7/5/7/... syllable scheme, finishing with a verse of 5/7/7, without any rhyming or meter. Strictly speaking, it is phonemes (called on) not syllables, but syllables are a closer analog in the way English is structured and spoken and is my preferred method as well as the modern convention. In addition to the main body, many choka are accompanied by one or more hanka (repeating poem), which are short poems that serve to emphasize a key point in the poem. Poetic devices are built upon imagery and layered meaning. Nature was a common thematic device, and proper use of seasons was very important. Finally, the poems should convey a moment in time, a fleeting sense of the ephemeral. The theme for the competition is “Passion” and as inspiration for this poem, I explored my relationship with my wife, Fujinami no Kaede-hime This allowed me to explore many different modes of passion, and was also compatible with the style of poem. By the time of my persona, choka was considered old fashioned, and generally only used when struck by the need to write extensively, in a manner unconstrained by the 5 line tanka (short poem), the most popular style at the time. For example, the Kagero Diary, contemporaneous with my period, only contains three choka, the second of which is a response from her husband to the first choka. The epitaph is typical of choka of that period, being an apology stating the necessity of writing in choka. It also sets the idea that the poem can’t be limited to a single season or the strict conventions of tanka or renga. The poem itself runs through the four seasons, each season corresponding to a phase of our relationship. The seasons are marked by the use of kigo, seasonal words that typify things, events, or activities of the season. The first kigo, plum trees blossoming, also adds layers of meaning. The author’s family is strongly associated with the plum tree, and mentions of plum should be construed to be referring to him or his family. Also, blossom acts as a makurakotoba (pivot word), as it refers not just to the flower, but to the act of developing. Also contained in the spring section are the two types of kakekotoba (pillow words). The first type is similar to the Homerian permanent epitaph (“swift-footed Achilles”), in which a word, typically of 5 or 7 on, is traditionally prepended to certain words. The second type is where words evoke other words or ideas due to some perceived relationship, like how grass for pillow stands in for a journey because that is what one sleeps on while travelling. Japanese poems often use features of a place to invoke that place; Traverse City, where we met, is known as the Cherry Capital. Finally, kireji (cutting words) are words or sounds that primarily serve as a breaking emphasis; it is difficult to translate in English. Refer to the sidebar for the list of these words that are present in the poem The first season is spring, which represents our meeting and engagement. It was a long distance relationship, involving much travel and many letters sent back and forth. Summer starts with our marriage, which in Heian Japan is marked by sending three night together. Changing of robes represents both the new clothing worn in summer, and the change in jobs I experienced at about that time. Rain can mean tears, and during this time my father passed away, while I was studying for the professional engineering exams. Fall is marked by my wife’s departure to spend a year out of the country, studying water issues. The third choka in the Kagero diaries uses the phrase “watching to see if the white waves roll up” to mean she was watching to see if her husband would visit her – I travelled often to visit my wife that year. “The Woodland Stream” is the title of a piece of art we bought then, on a day when there was a sudden downpour. “Soaked to the bone“ implies a feeling that pierces to the very marrow of your being. Water drying up is the beginning of winter, in our relationship corresponding to a move to our current residence. Searching for plum blossoms here hints at having kids. At the first full moon of the new year, women make a special gruel. It is held that a woman struck between the legs with the sticks used to stir the gruel will soon bear male children – leading to a great deal of chaos and subterfuge as women try to ambush each other. A number of our friends have recently had children or are pregnant. The hanka warns that we might be next. Writing a Japanese style poem in English is very difficult, as Japanese language and writing is much more conducive to multiple meanings. Being able to take advantage of my life experiences enabled me to add layers otherwise not available. I believe I was successful in interlacing the my relationship and Japanese traditions to create a poem that meets the challenge of layering meanings.

wakatsu yori Since parting from you, ashita no sode zo these sleeves of morning have been nure ni keru drenched with dew, nani wo hiruma no what to do for consolation nagusame ni semu the long day while they dry (Arntzen 1997: 395)

Sources Sugawara no Michzane and the Early Heian Court, Robert Borgen, 1986 The World of the Shining Prince, Ivan Morris, 1964 The Kagero Diary, trans. Sonya Arntzen, 1997 The Pillowbook of Sei Shonagon, trans. Ivan Morris, 1991 1000 Poems from the Manyoshu, Japanese Classics Translation Committee, 2005 edition ---------------------------------The 500 Essential Japanese Season Words, Kenkichi Yamamoto, www.2hweb.net/haikai/renku/50 0ESWd.html