Deep Kyoto

good places - good people

  • About Deep Kyoto
  • About Michael Lambe
    • ARTICLES BY MICHAEL LAMBE
    • ARTICLES FOR INSIDE KYOTO
  • Translation Service
  • Books
  • Deep Kyoto Hotels
  • Flea Market
    • Anime Stall
    • Art Stall
    • Bag Stall
    • Ceramic Utensils Stall
    • Confectionary Stall
    • Furoshiki Stall
    • Kimono Stall
    • Nintendo Playing Cards
    • Pottery Fair
    • Stationery Stall
    • T-Shirt Stall
  • 日本語

Kyoto & Poetry on Japan Navigator

May 30, 2012 By Michael Lambe Leave a Comment

A miniture replica of the Rashomon Gate - picture source Wikipedia

Ad Blankestijn, the writer of the Japan Navigator site, is an incredibly prolific blogger on all kinds of subjects, among them travel, history, art, literature, film, music, Japanese cuisine and sake. So many subjects in fact, it is quite hard to keep track. Readers of this blog will certainly be interested in his ongoing (and ambitious) Kyoto Guide. This post for example, on the site of the legendary Rashomon Gate, is fascinating.

The Rashomon Gate was 32 meters wide and 8 high. It had red pillars and double green roofs, a bit like the present Heian Shrine. On the top floor of the gate originally a stern statue of Tobatsu Bishamon was placed, looking like a soldier standing guard. Tobatsu Bishamon originated in Central Asia and acted as a protector of cities. I imagine him glaring at the lands beyond, to protect Heiankyo from evil… LINK

Recently though, I have also discovered his “Walking Waka Tracks”; verses from the Ogura Hyakunin Isshu with a brief guide to their respective locations. Today the writer introduced the one verse in the collection that includes our beloved Mount Ogura. Two days ago he introduced the poetry of famed Heian scholar and statesman Sugawara no Michizane, who was later deified as the God of Learning Kita no Tenjin. Here he is introducing the first poem of the anthology, Dew in the Hut:

The Hyakunin Isshu anthology of waka poetry, collected by Fujiwara Teika, opens with a poem by the Emperor Tenji (626-671), who ruled from Otsu (then briefly Japan’s capital)…  …Although the poem resembles a simple folk song about thwarted love (and surely is one, the attribution to the emperor is contested), the traditional interpretation is that the poem expresses Tenji’s compassion for the lot of the peasants. That is why it was considered suitable as the starting piece of the anthology… LINK

The translations of the poems and the unfolding of their meaning and intent are both clear and precise. I wonder if Mr. Blankestijn plans to continue this series until he has finished all 100 waka. I sincerely hope so. I am enjoying them a lot.

Here are two more entries in the Walking Waka Tracks series:

The Ausaka Barrier – Semimaru
Nakoso Falls – Kinto

See also:
Cycle Kyoto
Other Recommended Kyoto Sites

Filed Under: Culture & Tradition, Poetry, Websites

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Search hotels and more...

Destination

Check-in date

Fri 03 Feb 2023

Check-out date

Sat 04 Feb 2023
Booking.com

Kyoto: A Literary Guide #AD

Deep Kyoto’s Best…

BARS
CAFES
DINING
EVENTS
HOTELS

Deep Kyoto Essentials #ad

ADS






Follow Deep Kyoto on Twitter

Tweets by @deepkyoto

Japan Station

Japan Transportation Guide
Japan Transportation Guide
Kyoto Transportation Guide
Kyoto Transportation Guide
Osaka Transportation Guide
Osaka Transportation Guide



Copyright © 2023 · Deep Kyoto.