Tanka by Chen-ou Liu in Canada (1)
2010/10/30
On September I received an e-mail from Chen-ou Liu.
And I would like to submit the following poems for your consideration for publication on the Akita International HST Network. I shall be pleased if you translate some that appeal you much.
Warm Regards
Chen-ou Liu
Chen-ou Liu was born in Taiwan and emigrated to Canada in 2002. He lives in Ajax, a suburb of Toronto, where he has been struggling with a life in transition and translation.
(accessed at http://simplyhaiku.wordpress.com/2010/06/18/interview-with-chen/).
And read more of his poetry at his website,
Poetry in the Moment (http://chenouliu.blogspot.com/).
All the best,
Chen-ou Li
Next I present some of his tanka with my Japanese translations.
Tanka:
stand along the road
in a row
seeing me off
to another world
裸の木列なし道に沿い立って我の他界を見送るごとし
of a thousand poems
dangle on
the tip of a crescent moon
over my attic
一千の詩の糸下がる三日月の先見えるなり屋根裏の上
between
that first gulp of air
and last breath –
a transitional flow
of yin and yang
初息から最後の呼吸一生は陰と陽とが替わりて流る
a blue bird
darts into blossoms and out
unsettled
I wander and yearn
my hometown an ocean away
青い鳥花へ飛びこみ落ち着かず我さすらいて故郷慕う
standing alone
by the main entrance
of the airport
I ponder the verb wait
transitive or intransitive
空港の入り口に立ち沈思する動詞の待つは他または自かと
my world
is coiled on rolls of film
and projected nightly
on the screen of my mind –
when is the reel world not real?
我が世界心のフィルム写し撮り夜ごとに映り実在すなり
Baker’s Bliss
sets out its morning bread
on the racks
I am drunk
on the spring breeze
朝パンを棚に並べるパン屋さん我酔いどれて春風を受く
yesterday
will be the same
for tomorrow never changes –
the kite of my days
cut from the string of Life
昨日また明日も変わらず同じかな我が世の凧は糸切られけり
if I put
a gun in my mouth
and splatter
my brain on cherry blossoms…
a timeless jisei?
口に銃桜の上の頭散る永遠の自制や起こすまじなり
my days
aren’t graphed in ideograms
but lined up
like the English alphabet –
Chinese in the promised land
我が日々は表意文字では示されぬ英文字のごと中国語なら
gazing
in the mirror
a stranger
stares back at me
a man with no eyes
鏡見る見知らぬ人が見返して我を見つめる目のない男
living alone
in a world of one color
loneliness
devours each hour
then neglects the rest
一色の世界にひとり住んでいる孤独時飲み他を無視すなり
I close
the valves of my heart
to the world of red dust
solitude and I
are now of the same race
塵の世に心臓弁を我閉じる孤独と我は今同種なり
The next posting ‘Haiku by Kaa. Na. Kalyanasundaram in India (1) ’ appears on November 6.
― Hidenori Hiruta
Haiku by Narayanan Raghunathan in India (2)
2010/10/23
On May 20, 2010, I received a comment on our website from Narayanan Raghunathan.
He says in his comment as follows:
Dear Hiruta-San:
I humbly request you to visit our site
http://www.wonderhaikuworlds.com/
Please translate Haiku which you like into Japanese.
Please post your Haiku and translation on our site: It will surely get translated into other languages.
Narayanan Raghunathan.
On June 8. I received another e-mail as follows:
Dear Hidenori Hiruta,
Here is a link two over 700 of my haiku at wonder haiku worlds.
http://www.wonderhaikuworlds.com/users/userPostings/4/1
I invite you to join our Haiku forum and post as many Japanese translations of my Haiku as you can. I will be highly honoured ~ We will be honoured. USE REGISTER ON TOP RIGHT to join then log in and get going !!
You can choose as many of my Haiku you like for your purpose !
i give you full access to translate all my work here or at
http://auminfinitecosmoses.com/
[ You have my bio here ]
cosmoses
http://auminfinitecosmoses.com/categories/view/37
[ You can access more of my Haiku etc. here ]
http://auminfinitecosmoses.com/categories/view/27
[ You have photos from my collection here.]
I hope we can collaborate on various translations.
I think it is great blessing we are brought together by Haiku.
http://auminfinitecosmoses.com/elements/view/1206
[ You have my photo here ]
Thank you
Yours sincerely
best regards
Narayanan Raghunathan
Now I am a member of their Haiku forum Wonder Haiku Worlds. I would like to present his haiku about October to you with my Japanese translations.
the storm over ~
the green mountain
soaks in sunlight
嵐過ぐ青山光に浸りけり
fallen leaves ~
white butterfly mizmazes
a new dream world
落葉や白蝶夢幻惑いたり
the last kite
descends the sky
twilight beach
ラスト凧たそがれの浜空くだる
a leaf falls
a starry sky dissolves
in the pond
落葉や星空消えて池になる
withered fields ~
a wild storm brews
on darkening skies
暗い空嵐が起こる枯野かな
clouded stillness
engulfs before the rains ~
a distant caw
雨の前の静けさ遠くのカーカー
sound of rain
i turn to look out and
see falling leaves
雨の音振り向き見るや落葉を
rain subsides ~
many yellow butterflies
bask in fresh sunlight
雨おさむ黄色い蝶たち日に浴す
earth coloured bird
rests on the red roof
scans the earth
土色の鳥赤い屋根から地を見たり
a fly lands
on a walnut tastes
golden sunlight
くるみの上光味わう蝿一羽
yellow butterfly
flies up and down ~
brown just cruises
巡航や黄蝶の上や下に飛
midnight ~
sobbing amidst
crickets’ cries
真夜中のコオロギの声に嗚咽かな
blue butterflies
flutter on cotton clouds ~
sunlight after rains
雨後の光綿雲の上の青い蝶
heavy raining ~
a nonchalant crow still
on the coconut tree
豪雨にもココナッツの木のカラスかな
I sincerely hope that you will enjoy haiku by Narayanan Raghunathan.
The next posting ‘Tanka by Chen- ou Liu in Canada’ appears on October 30.
― Hidenori Hiruta
Scots haiku by John McDonald (Part 4)
2010/10/16
John McDonald in Edinburgh writes haiku in Scots, one of the two languages native to Scotland as well as in English.
Last year John presented me with his three scots haiku books, whose titles are ‘THE THROU-GAUN CHIEL ‘, ‘FUME O PEAT REEK’‘, and ‘TUIM TIN TASSIE’.
He has a web-page of Scots haiku http://zenspeug.blogspot.com which he tries to update daily, and from which I post some of his scots haiku in the website today.
They are written in September, 2006, telling us a lot about the autumn season in Scotland. They are interpreted with my Japanese translations too.
freens oxter an pairt -
in the lift
soothboond geese
friends hug and part -
in the sky
southbound geese
友との別れ：
抱擁す雁別れ行く南空へ
Houyou su kari wakareyuku nankuu e
a trail o tuim
chessie huils
a trail of empty
chestnut shells
森中に実のない栗殻道をなす
Mori juu ni mi no nai kuri gara michi o nasu
leaves fawin
…the bonsai
leaves falling
…the bonsai
我が部屋の盆栽見舞う落葉かな
Waga heya no bonsai mimau ochiba kana
yin hauf sea-maws
yin hauf craws
one half seagulls
one half crows
カモメ対カラスの試合サッカー場
Kamome tai karasu no shiai sakkaa jou
an umwhile bummer
chacks ilka fuchsia bell
a late bee
checks each fuchsia bell
秋の蜂フクシアの花冠調べたり
Aki no hachi fukushia no kakan shirabetari
brucken shanks
blawn intae a neuk
aye flourishin
broken stalks
blown into a corner
still blossoming
茎折れる吹かれし角に咲いている
Kuki oreru fukareshi kado ni saiteiru
Haly Mass
aneath leaf umberellaes
speuggies
beneath leaf umbrellas
sparrows
葉の傘の聖なるミサや雀たち
Ha no kasa no sei naru misa ya suzume tachi
reid stour -
throuch the vinyaird
the rosary hums
through the vineyard
the rosary drones
赤き塵バラ園の雄バチぶどう園へ
Akaki chiri bara en no obachi budou en e
pilgrimers staun
umberellaes taigilt
pilgrims stand
umbrellas tangled
雨の中巡礼者立ち傘からむ
Ame no naka junreisha tachi kasa karamu
cluds rowe awa -
craw bangs up frae
a perk o yella gowans
crow rises from
a field of buttercups
行雲やキンポウゲの野でカラス鳴く
Kouun ya kinpouge no no de karasu naku
on’s carebed
he skews roon
hearkens tae the bell-ringers
he turns to listen
to the bell-ringers
病床で鳴鐘人に向き変える
Byoushou de meishounin ni muki kaeru
on a lanesome roddin
a hinmaist breer
autumn
on a lonesome path
a last dog-rose
秋寂の道に花咲くイヌバラや
Suujaku no michi ni hana saku inubara ya
a deep puil
fisher…makar
gazing into
a deep pool
fisherman…poet
深き池見つめる漁師詩人かな
Fukaki ike mitsumeru ryousi sijin kana
nicht vaig -
aheid o me,
cat’s een an sterns
ahead of me,
cat’s eyes and stars
夜の旅猫の目と星前方に
Yoru no tabi neko no me to hoshi zenpou ni
frae the winnock
a hairst efternuin -
ma sheddae liggs on the bed
an autumn afternoon -
my shadow lies on the bed
秋の午後ベッドに映る我が影や
Aki no gogo beddo ni utsuru waga kage ya
straiks o yalla
…mair nor yestreen
amongst the trees’ green
streaks of yellow
…more than yesterday
今日の木や黄色い縞の多くなり
Kyou no ki ya kiiroi shima no ooku nari
rife fir pouin -
a rantin wunter
elder-berries
ready for picking -
a merry winter
ニワトコが摘まれる冬の楽しけり
Niwatoko no tsumareru fuyu no tanoshikeri
the-day
a rairin frae the
quate treen o simmer
a roaring from the
silent trees of summer
今日の日や夏の木々からうなり声
Kyouno hi ya natsu no kigi kara unarigoe
The next posting ‘Haiku by Narayanan Raghunathan in India (2)’ appears on October 23.
― Hidenori Hiruta
Haiku by Kirby Record at AIU, Japan (5)
2010/10/09
Professor Kirby Record teaches as director of English for Academic Purposes at Akita International University (AIU) (国際教養大学) in Akita.
He also writes haiku. He is a fellow haiku poet of mine.
Professor Kirby Record kindly contributed to me one of his poetry works, whose title is ‘From Leaf to Leaf: Haiku and Other short poems from Malaysia.’
First of all, he takes up his favorite phrase by William Blake:
“To see the world in a grain of sand”
William Blake
Secondly, he quotes his favorite words by Dogen.
What dreamwalkers men become,
Awakened, I hear the one true thing—
Black rain on the roof of Fukakusa Temple.
Dogen
Then he continues his haiku and other short poems from Malaysia.
all night long
a single drop of rain
from leaf to leaf
よもすがら雨滴一粒葉から葉へ
coconut crashes
from its dark silhouette
into moonlight
ココナッツ割れて影絵が月光に
bamboos lean
in the wind’s direction
wet with rain
雨にぬれ竹傾くや風向きに
summer afternoon:
evening begins edging
out of the forest
夏の午後森が縁取る夕べかな
under yellow skies
very yellow parasols,
and rustling dresses
黄色い空とパラソルさらさらのドレス
face cool and pale:
moonlight is trailing after
her black silhouette
涼しそうな淡い顔：
月光の彼女の影絵追いにけり
slow rain patters
on the patio orchids
of green branches
庭のらんパラパラと雨降りにけり
severed orchids stems—
she vows revenge on every
snail of the night
ランの茎が切断されるー
カタツムリ彼女の誓うリベンジや
waking to a storm
that shatters a closed window
in my dream of you
閉じた窓嵐に目覚む君の夢
upon her face and hair,
through the dark wooden shutters,
cool april moonlight
暗い木の雨戸からー
四月の月光が彼女の顔と髪に
spider web between my eyes and moonlight
目と月光あいだに見える蜘蛛の巣や
waking to morning cobwebs on my face
朝目覚む蜘蛛の巣顔にかかれけり
after the rain stops
lightning-flashes still lightup
raindrops here and there
雨上がり稲妻続く雨滴かな
a bird falls the blue of the sky on its wings
鳥一羽青空からの急降下
the crimson orchids
i’ve taken you here to see
dried up since morning
乾きし日共に来たるやランの花
dewy window pane
all the milky day a boy
sits watching the rain
乳の日や窓辺で雨見る男の子
candle light
mayflies, and big ants march in:
monsoon rain
季節風に伴う雨：
カゲロウと大アリ進むろうそくや
each fresh drop of rain
ripples a banana frond
to its very stalk
バナナの葉茎まで揺らす雨滴かな
orchid, stem and leaf
upright in a pot beneath
the Milky Way
天の川茎と葉が立つ鉢のラン
how different it sounds—
from one spot to another—
raindrops on the roof
聞く箇所で音の異なる屋根の雨
a month of rain
i only hear the pauses
between the drops
ひと月や雨滴の休止耳にせり
I sincerely hope that you have appreciated haiku by Kirby Record from Malaysia with my Japanese translations.
The next posting ‘Scots haiku by John McDonald (Part 4) ‘ appears on October 16.
― Hidenori Hiruta
Haiku by Wahyu W. Basjir in Indonesia (1)
2010/10/02
On September 15, Wahyu W. Basjir sent me an e-mail with his brief bio, a photo of his family, and haiku included, as follows:
Dear Hiruta-san
I was born in Central Java in 1967 and have been spending more than half of my age in Jogjakarta with my wife and three children.
As a son of an elementary school teacher, I realized that I love writing and poetry when i was in 5th grade. However, poetry writing was not my biggest passion but journalism, and writing op-ed articles on economic development and governance for indonesian newspapers. In the last few years I contributed to and edited books on local governance, budget analysis, anti corruption, foreign debt, participatory development and advocacy. It was before I fell in love with haiku and other related forms, namely tanka and haibun some years back.
In 2003. I started to learn more intensely on the genre and tried to work on my first haiku in my national language. Unfortunately, haiku poets are very rare in Indonesia so that it was hard to receive critiques and comment by which I could learn and improve my writing skill. This is probably the first reason why I write english haiku (sad to say, I don’t speak Japanese). I usually write bilingual haiku (english-indonesian) so that i could make it easier to share my works with wider audience (english speaking readers) while keeping my fellow indonesian (they speak english but more familiar to poetries in our national language). And these days, I’m seeking sponsor to publish my first haiku/poetry book in print.
The thing I am now still struggling with is seasonal haiku. As you know, I live in tropical/equatorial country with only two seasons, rainy and dry (but if you like joking, we can say that tropical countries actually have more seasons; rainy, dry, mango, rambutan, durian, and many more kinds of fruits! Hahahahaha…). Four-season is beyond my experience so that my haiku is usually considered non-seasonal.
Thank you for this opportunity. May this lead to an artistic friendship that lasts forever.
busy roadside
the day moon fills up
a beggar’s bowl
繁華街：
昼の月乞食のお椀を満たしけり
superficial lie
hovering under the branches
:paper birds
見えのうそ枝下止まる紙の鳥
cricket song
how familiar it is
my mother’s voice*
親しさやコオロギの歌母の声
*Ambrosia, issue 5 Summer 2010
tell me
how it feels to be
sour tamarind
どんな感じ酸っぱいタマリンドって
new lunar year’s eve
fireflies
flew to the moon
元日の夕蛍は月に飛べり
clouds and dawn–
who’s gonna be the first
to steal the moon?
雲と日の出どっちが月の盗人や
monday–
another wrinkle
on his skin
月曜や別のしわ出る彼の皮膚
spring water–
i turn myself into
slope and valley
春水や我身を変える坂と谷
fly high–
i wish i had the eyes
of a kite
高く飛び我持ちたしや凧の目を
before the mirror
i wish i were not one
of the twin
鏡見て双子でないと願いけり
cloud
over sand dunes
are you travelling alone?
独り身や砂丘の上の旅の雲
seasons shift
a bird nest on the roadside
stalking the monsoon
鳥の巣の路傍に吹くや季節風
morning dew
lingers on tobacco leaves
smell of ashes
タバコの葉朝露を置く灰の香
morning drizzle
new pond in the frontyard
fishless
朝の霧雨：
池できる魚のいない前庭や
my window cracks
a fleurdelis crops out
thru the fence
割れる窓塀からのびるアヤメかな
Warmest regards,
Wahyu W. Basjir
Dsn. Nglarang RT 5.35, Wedomartani
Ngemplak, Sleman, Jogjakarta
http://drifter-haiku.blogspot.com
I sincerely hope that you have appreciated haiku by Wahyu W. Basjir with my Japanese translations so much.
The next posting ‘Haiku by Kirby Record at AIU in Japan (Part 5)’ appears on October 9.
― Hidenori Hiruta
