Haiku
by Sugita Hisajo
Selected, classified and translated by
Eiko Yachimoto |
 |
Group
1: Hisajo's Feelings and Observations
1-1:
hoku tanoshi (5) matsuba kuyurase (7) danro taku (5)
fun of writing haiku --
pine needles smoke
as the fireplace is lit
1-2:
aiyorite (5) kuzunoamekiku (7) kasafureshi (5)
each draws closer
listening to rain on kudzu --
our umbrellas touch
1-3: haruno hi ni (5)
kokoroodorite (7) eri kakenu (5)
spring firelight --
my heart dances as I choose tonight's
kimono collar
1-4: semi shigure
(5) himadaraabite (7) haki utsuru (5)
incessant cicadas --
bathed in mottled light
I sweep all corners
1-5:
mazushiki mureni (7) ochishi kokoro ya (7) yurini hazu (5)
into the ignoble crowd
my heart has fallen;
I see innocent lilies . . .
Group 2: Hisajo as a Mother
2-1:
asazamu no (5) kama taku ware ni (7) oki kuru ko (5)
morning chill --
as I build a cooking fire
my child wakes up and finds me here
2-2:
nuu kata o (5) yusurite suneruko (8) atsusakana (5)
while I hand
sew,
a cranky child shakes my shoulders:
oh, the hotness!
2-3:
kana kaki umishi (7) korani soramame o (8) mukasekeri (5)
............enough...of
kana practice
I let the children...shell broad beans
2-4:
atemo naku (5) ko sagashi aruku (7) susuki kana (5)
without a clue
I walk in search of my child --
obana grass sways
2-5: netsuno hitomi no
(7) urumite aware (7) mikan suu (5)
her feverish eyes...look so moist
........poor thing!...she
sucks an orange
Group 3: Hisajo and Nature
3-1: tsuchi nurete (5)
Hisajo no niwa ni (7) megumumono (5)
moistened soil:
all that buds
in Hisajo's garden
3-2: tsubaki koshi (5)
kamiyo no haru no (7) on-sugata (5)
rich camellia --
on her figure, springtime
of the mythical past
3-3: maiagaru (5)
habataki tsuyoshi (7) tazuru hyaku wa (6)
...skyward...flapping
of their wings
the power...of one hundred cranes
3-4: naga ame ya (5)
taisanboku no (7) hana ochizu(5)
....ling'ring
rain...yet magnolia
hasn't dropped...its
great white blooms
3-5: tokonatsu no (5)
aoki shio abi (7) waga sodatsu (5)
I grew up
bathing in the emerald sea
of everlasting summers
Group 4: Hisajo's Haiku
with (Astounding) Intensity
4-1: hina aishi (5) waga kurokami o (7) kirite ue (5)
love for the hina doll
led me to cut and plant
a lock of my black hair
4-2: aki miya ni (5)
kamimushiri naku (7) onna kana (5)
an autumn shrine --
violently pulling her hair
a woman sobs
4-3: na ni hishite (5) chinaki nogiku zo (7) konomoshiki (7)
if compared with thee
a nogiku with no blood
definitely favored
4-4: neji maite (5) gake otsu toki no (7) hito ha toshi (5)
in a screwy spiral
a leaf falls from the cliff
at blitz speed
4-5: ware ni tsuki ishi
(7) satan hanarenu (7) manjushage (5)
Satan sticks to me
and won't leave --
red spider lilies
Group 5: Hisajo's
Light Verses
5-1: aki kinu to (5)
safaia iro no (7) koaji kau (5)
autumn's here...I
can't resist
..........to buy...a
little sapphire fish
5-2: asama kumoreba (7)
komoro wa ame yo (7) soba no hana (5)
when Mt.
Asama's...cloudy
..Komoro gets rain...buckwheat
blooms
5-3: furi taranu(5)
sunaji no ame ya (7) hosenka (5)
.......not
enough...rain's fallen
on this sandy lot...touch-me-nots
bloom
5-4 hitode fumi (5) kani
to tawamure (7) iso asobi (5)
who stepped on starfish
and sported with crabs?
jolly, jolly seashore
5-5: yotto no ho (5)
shizukani ugoku (7) akino umi (5)
a yacht's
sail...gliding quietly
.......the lake...in
autumn season
Group 6: Hisajo's Religious Haiku
6-1: muyuuge no(5) kokage
wa izuko (7) bus-shooe (5)
...pray tell where...the
shady asoka
...............blooms...on
Buddha's birthday
6-2: bara kaoru (5)
maaburu no hi ni (7) aishi ari (5)
fragrance...of roses
..an elegy...engraved
into marble
6-3: genkan wo (5) iruyori tooroo(8) tomoriishi (5)
on entering...I see bon-lanterns
.............lit...for
the newly dead
6-4: baiburu o (5)
yomu sabishisa yo (7) hana no ame (5)
loneliness--
.....reading the Bible
.....as blossoms fall in the rain
6-5: yuki michi ya (5) kootansai no (7) mado akari (5)
.......window lights...on
a snowy path
tonight's the night...of Noel
Group 7: nagori no
nana ku
I have read all 1,384 of Hisajo's haiku included in her ku-shu. I wanted
to translate as many haiku as possible so readers can understand this
controversial poetess through her own poetry. It is a regret that I was able to
translate only 30 this time. Let me list 7 haiku as nagori no nana ku,
("seven verses presented with remaining enthusiasm"), in the romaji
renditions as a sigh -- that the conclusion of this translation project is only
a temporary one.
7-1: tsumi kisou (5) kiku no yomena wa (7) kagoni miteri (6)
7-2: nusa tatete (5) hikoyama odori (7) tsuki no de ni (5)
7-3: sakura saku (5) usa no kurehashi (7) uchiwatari (5)
7-4: kaze ni otsu (5) yookihi zakura (7) fusano mama (5)
7-5: waga ayumu (5) ochibano oto no (7) aru bakari (5)
7-6: yuujora no (5) suzumeru mae wo (7) toorikeri (5)
7-7: shinkon no (5) Masako utsukushi (7) sanma yaku (5)
Special thanks to Debi (Debra W. Bender) who read my translation drafts, for her
essential help and sincere encouragement. All responsibility belongs to me,
should you find errors and problems. While no translation is perfect, thanks to
her help I feel very happy about the results.
Let me conclude this current
project by thanking and honoring Ishi Masako for her life long efforts of
letting the world find the truth of her precious mother, the great poetess, in
the face of tremendous adversity.
- Eiko Yachimoto
Read
Essay - "Echoes Over Hills:
the
haiku of Sugita Hisajo"
Notes:
* All poems
were selected and arranged according to the translator's classification.
1-2:
Kuzu:
kudzu vine: In Japan, kuzu is seen in fields and mountains all year round
but it is a season word for autumn. Kuzu, by itself, means the large leaf
of the plant. Its flower, which blooms in autumn, has a rich red-purple color
and soft thick petals shaped like butterflies. A sweet fragrance adds to its
charm. The root is made into a starch powder used in cooking; it is called kuzuko.
(With it, a famous sweet desert is made, called kuzukiri. It is also used
for medicinal, healing purposes.)
1-3: This
haiku was composed when Kyoshi, who lived in Kamakura, visited her kukai.
1-4:
In Japan, a volcanic island, dusting and sweeping is necessary all year around.
The semi or cicada
is an insect which, when in its development as a nymph to adult, sheds its
skin or husk. In the summer, the loud, buzzing drone of many rises and falls
together as one (there are about 2000 cicada species throughout the world).
2-1: In
Hisajo's time, rice was often cooked outside the kitchen while the husband
slept, warm inside the home.
2-3:
Kana
is Japanese phonetic or syllabic script for written language. There are two
forms of kana, both having 48 ideograms or characters:
1) hiragana
- or hirakana (a phonetic variation). Used only by women in olden
times, it is for writing native Japanese words, particles, verb endings, and
often for writing those Chinese loan-words that cannot be written with the
characters officially approved for general use.
2) kana
- called katakana script, which is chiefly used for writing
loan-words other than Chinese, emphasizing words, for onomatopoeia, and for the
scientific names of flora and fauna. Each has 48 characters.
2-4:
Susuki
is often translated as pampas grass, but in fact it is not the brushy
pampas grass. The seed part shines silvery in autumn wind, and is very slender,
bending elegantly! It is also called obana, meaning, tail flower,
and eulalia (meaning beautiful speech or well-spoken), is an academic
name of the plant.
3-3: Tazuru
hyaku - meaning "100"
4-3:
This haiku is about a nurse. Nogiku,
a tiny wild-flower, meaning field chrysanthemum, was near Hisajo's pillow
when she was in her hospital bed.
6-1: Hisajo
is often praised for her broad lexicon, creating elegance and music in her
poetry. These qualities are evident in this particular verse, which is one of
the most highly acclaimed of her haiku. Like 'kodamashite yama hototogisu hoshii
mama', in 'muyuuge no kokage wa izuko bus-shooe', the linguistic effect of
repeating the sounds, 'o' and 'ge' ('e'), makes music.
The asoka
tree is no-sorrow tree under which the Lady Maya, gave birth to Shittarda [Siddhartha
Gautama, the Buddha c. 563-483 BC]. It is said that the birth and labor caused
her no pain. Elements of the asoka/ashoka tree [meaning "unsorrowing"
or "no-sorrow" or "without grief"] have been used throughout
history for its medicinal benefits, especially for women."
6-2: Written at Gaijinbochi,
a cemetery for foreigners in Yokohama.
6-3: Visiting
a bereaved family in the first summer after a death.
References
Gendai Haiku Taikei Vol.9
(Complete Anthology of Modern Haiku);
Showa 48, Kadokawa Shoten, JP (the whole of Hisajo ku-shu, including Kyoshi's
introduction and Ishi Masako's essay on her mother are in this volume). Multiple
editors include Yamamoto Kenkichi, Mizuhara Shuoshi, Kusama Tokihiko, Nozawa
Setsuko.
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