Nippoem

Journal of Japanese Poetry Translation

  • 4

    Nasal mucus; on the very tip of the nose, sunset afterglow still lingers

    水洟や鼻の先だけ暮れ残る

    mizubana ya hana no saki dake kurenokoru

    (Akutagawa Ryūnosuke 芥川龍之介)

    *

    The verb kurenokoru refers to something being lit by the afterglow that lingers in the sky for a while after the sun has set. In the poem, the redness of the runny nose is likened to this kind of faint, indirect light.

  • 3

    Enjoying the coolness in the bamboo grove’s shade as mosquitoes bite me hard

    藪陰に涼んで蚊にぞ喰はれける

    yabukage ni suzunde ka ni zo kuwarekeru

    (Natsume Sōseki 夏目漱石)

  • 2

    Full moon of autumn; on the tatami mat—a pine-tree shadow

    名月や畳の上に松の影

    meigetsu ya tatami no ue ni matsu no kage

    (Kikaku 其角)

    *

    Meigetsu, literally “famous moon,” refers to the full moon of mid-autumn—the one on the eighth month according to the lunar calendar (which roughly corresponds to the modern month of September).

  • 1

    With the boundless ocean in front of me—taking a leak

    はてしない海を前にして尿する

    hateshinai umi o mae ni shite bari suru

    (Santōka 山頭火)