Shiki - Beichman

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. - Masaoka Shiki 正岡子規 Introduction - .

Selected Poems of Masaoka Shiki, Translated by Janine Beichman
quote from the University of Virginia

- quote
Poem numbers are not native to the original source but were derived from the page number and position of each poem in the Beichman edition.
For example, 50.2 refers to the second poem on page 50.

16.1
水無月の虚空に涼し時鳥
minazuki no kokū ni suzushi hototogisu

In the coolness
of the empty sixth-month sky...
the cuckoo's cry.

48.1
木をつみて夜の明やすき小窓かな
ki o tsumite yo no akeyasuki komado kana

the tree cut,
dawn breaks early
at my little window

49.1
一重づゝ一重つゝ散れ八重櫻

hitoezutsu
hitoezutsu chire
yaezakura

scatter layer
by layer, eight-layered
cherry blossoms!

49.2
名月の出るやゆらめく花薄

meigetsu no
deru ya yurameku
hanasusuki

at the full moon's
rising, the silver-plumed
reeds tremble

50.1
ちる花にもつるゝ鳥の翼かな

chiru hana ni
motsururu tori no
tsubasa kana

entangled with
the scattering cherry blossoms—
the wings of birds!

50.2
麥蒔やたばねあげたる桑の枝

mugi maki ya
tabane agetaru
kuwa no eda

wheat sowing—
the mulberry trees
lift bunched branches

50.3
松杉や枯野の中の不動堂

matsu sugi ya
kareno no naka no
Fudōdō

pine and cypress:
in a withered field,
a shrine to Fudō

51.1
すゝしさや神と佛の隣同士

suzushisa ya
kami to hotoke no
tonaridoshi

in the coolness
gods and Buddhas
dwell as neighbors

51.2
御佛に尻むけ居れば月涼し

mihotoke ni
shirimuke oreba
tsuki suzushi

I turn my back
on Buddha and face
the cool moon

51.3
見下せば月にすゞしや四千軒

mioroseba
tsuki ni suzushi ya
yonsenken

looking down I see,
cool in the moonlight,
4000 houses

52.1
月涼し蛙の聲のわきあがる

tsuki suzushi
kawazu no koe no
wakiagaru

the moon is cool—
frogs' croaking
wells up

52.2
すゞしさや瀧ほとばしる家のあひ

suzushisa ya
taki hotobashiru
ie no ai

coolness—
a mountain stream splashes out
between houses

52.3
春風に尾をひろげたる孔雀かな

harukaze ni
o o hirogetaru
kujaku kana

fanning out its tail
in the spring breeze,
see—a peacock!

53.1
柿くへば鐘が鳴るなり法隆寺

kaki kueba
kane ga narunari
Hōryūji

I bite into a persimmon
and a bell resounds—
Hōryūji

57.1
稻の花道灌山の日和かな

ine no hana
Dōkanyama no
hiyori kana

rice flowers—
fair weather on
Dōkanyama

57.2
稻刈るや燒場の烟たゝぬ日に

ine karu ya
yakiba no kemuri
tatanu hi ni

rice reaping—
no smoke rising from
the cremation ground today

63.1
古庭や月に湯婆の湯をこぼす

furuniwa ya
tsuki ni tanpo no
yu o kobosu

old garden—she empties
a hot-water bottle
under the moon

64.1 -
庭前
鷄頭の十四五本もありぬべし


"teizen"
keitō no jūshigohon mo arinubeshi

"Before the Garden"
cockscombs...
must be 14,
or 15


65.1
いくたびも雪の深さを尋ねけり

ikutabi mo
yuki no fukasa o
tazunekeri

again and again
I ask how high
the snow is

65.2
雪ふるよ障子の穴を見てあれば

yuki furu yo
shōji no ana o
mite areba

snow's falling!
I see it through a hole
in the shutter...

66.1
雪の家に寢て居ると思ふばかりにて

yuki no ie ni
nete iru to omou
bakari ni te

all I can think of
is being sick in bed
and snowbound...

66.2
障子明けよ上野の雪を一目見ん

shōji ake yo
Ueno no yuki o
hitome min

open the shutter!
I'll just have a look
at Ueno's snow!

69.1
春雨や傘さして見る繪草紙屋

harusame ya
kasa sashite miru
ezōshiya

spring rain:
browsing under an umbrella
at the picture-book store

69.2
榎の實散る此頃うとし鄰の子

e no mi chiru
konogoro utoshi
tonari no ko

the nettle nuts are falling...
the little girls next door
don't visit me these days

70.1
しぐるゝや蒟蒻冷えて臍の上

shigururu ya
konnyaku hiete
heso no ue

it's drizzling...
devil's tongue, cold on
my belly button

70.2
鬚剃るや上野の鐘の霞む日に

hige soru ya
Ueno no kane no
kasumu hi ni

getting a shave!
on a day when Ueno's bell
is blurred by haze...

71.1
臥病十年
首あげて折々見るや庭の萩


"Gabyō Jūnen"
kubi agete
oriori miru ya
niwa no hagi


"Sick in Bed Ten Years"
lifting my head,
I look now and then—
the garden clover

72.1
餘命いくばくかある夜短し

yomei
ikubaku ka aru
yo mijikashi

how much longer
is my life?
a brief night...


84.2
楊貴妃の寐起顏なる牡丹哉

Yōkihi no
neokigao naru
botan kana

the peony seems
to think itself Yōkihi
as she awakes



97.1
藤の花長うして雨ふらんとす

fuji no hana
nagōshite ame
furan to su

wisteria plumes
sweep the earth, and soon
the rains will fall

97.2
黒きまでに紫深き葡萄かな

kuroki made ni
murasaki fukaki
budō kana

purple unto
blackness:
grapes!



99.1
病牀の我に露ちる思ひあり

byōshō no
ware ni tsuyu chiru
omoi ari

I thought I felt
a dewdrop on me
as I lay in bed



100.1
紅梅の散りぬ淋しき枕元

kōbai no
chirinu sabishiki
makura moto

crimson plum blossoms
scattered over the loneliness
of the bed...

100.2
紅梅の落花をつまむ疊哉

kōbai no
rakka o tsumamu
tatami kana

fallen petals of
the crimson plum I pluck
from the tatami


102.2
絲瓜咲て痰のつまりし佛かな

hechima saite
tan no tsumarishi
hotoke kana

the gourd flowers bloom,
but look—here lies
a phlegm-stuffed Buddha!

103.1
痰一斗絲瓜の水も間に合はず

tan itto
hechima no mizu mo
ma ni awazu

a quart of phlegm—
even gourd water
couldn't mop it up

103.2
をとゝひのへちまの水も取らざりき

ototoi no
hechima no mizu mo
torazariki

they didn't gather
gourd water
day before yesterday either

113.1
ごて／＼と草花植し小庭かな

gotegote to
kusabana ueshi
koniwa kana

a jumble of
flowers planted—
see, the little garden!




134.1
絲瓜さへ佛になるぞ後るゝな

hechima sae
hotoke ni naru zo
okururu na

hey!—even snake gourds
become Buddhas—
don't get caught behind!

134.2
成佛ヤ夕顏ノ顔ヘチマノ屁

jōbutsu ya
yūgao no kao
hechima no he

Buddha-death:
the moonflower's face,
the snake gourd's fart

136.1
病牀の財布も秋の錦かな

byōshō no
saifu mo aki no
nishiki kana

the wallet
by the bed is my
autumn brocade

136.2
栗飯ヤ病人ナガラ大食ヒ

kurimeshi ya
byōnin nagara
ōkurai

chestnut rice—
though a sick man,
still a glutton

136.3
カブリツク熟柿ヤ髯ヲ汚シケリ
kaburitsuku jukushi ya hige o yogoshikeri

I sink my teeth
into a ripe persimmon—
it dribbles down my beard

136.4
驚くや夕顏落ちし夜半の音
odoroku ya yūgao ochishi yowa no oto

surprise!
a moonflower fell—
midnight sound


source : etext.lib.virginia.edu


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- quote

Shiki' Last Writing
http://www.cc.matsuyama-u.ac.jp/~shiki/kim/newlast3haiku.html

Because of a debilitating disease Masaoka Shiki had to be confined to his bed for almost 7 years until he passed away. Despite the pain, he continued writing poems while lying on his back. When Shiki came near to death, one of his disciples, Hekigoto was at Shiki's bedside. Hekigoto wrote about how Shiki wrote his final three haiku as follows.
It was around 10 o'clock on the morning of September 18.
I dipped his old writing brush ,whose stem and brush were both thin, full of ink and had him hold it in his right hand.
Then quite abruptly in the center of the paper Shiki began to write readily "sponge gourd has bloomed " , and a little below that phrase, he again moved his brush in a breath "choked by phlegm"
I was a little curious what he was going to write next and was watching the paper closely, then at last he wrote "a departed soul", which bit into my heart.
Hekigoto was very touched when Shiki began to write the poem. Shiki was so weak, and desperately coughing, but he still had a determination to write these haiku.

sponge gourd has bloomed
choked by phlegm
a departed soul

gallons of phlegm
even the gourd water
couldn't clear it up

the gourd water
of the night before yesterday
they didn't get it either

-------------------------------------------

Spring



Spring frost
dancing in the air
a shimmer of heat

a cock crows
at the foot of the small Mt. Fuji
peach blossoms


my hometown
many cousins-
peach blossoms

at the root
of a pine tree
light lavender violet

moon at twilight,
a cluster of petals falling
from the cherry tree

an iris
whiter at twilight
My hometown

My hometown
wherever I look
mountains laugh with vendure

a fancy-free cat
is about to catch
a quail

perching on a mud wall
in the spring rain
a crow

spring breeze
show off the castle
above the pine tree

Mountains in spring
overlapping each other
all round

cherry blossom petals
blown by the spring breeze
against the undried wall

blooming azaleas
in a hollow on a cliff
a Buddha stands



Summer



aiming at
deutzia blossoms
little cuckoo


Mountains are
yellow green, pale yellow-
a cuckoo cries

castle hill
high above
breezy green

at the front gate
dropping their heads
lilies blooming

through a growth of weeds
runs an open path
baseball diamond

It's a boy
after five daughters
carp streamers

two rainbows
have risen over
the green paddy field


stillness - -
fireflies are glowing over
deep water

summer storm
white paper on the desk
all flies away

In Japan summer storm can be described as a green wind, because all trees in summer are full of green leaves. In this haiku, the color contrast of green and white paper gives a very sharp and clear and refreshing feeling.

leaving me
something on my chest
tears on my mosquito net

my remaining days
are numbered
a brief night

pruning a rose
sound of the scissors
on a bright May day

a yellow green spider
crawling on
a red rose

a snail
luring rain clouds
with feeler tips

my hometown
parents are well
taste of sushi

relieved of a burden
in the everyday life
an afternoon nap

a hollyhock
shot up to meet
the summer solstice

summer mountain
all creatures are green
a red bridge


The singing stopped
a flying cicada
I saw it!

loneliness
after the fireworks
stars' shooting


an evening breeze
white rose petals are
all ruggled


one spoonful
of ice cream brings me
back to life


biting into a bitter weed
alone I bear
my feelings


Ten year's sweat
washed away
back at Dogo Onsen

at nightfall
a sunner moon, white --
on the white sail


hydrangeas
pale blue in the rain
blue in the moonlight

hydrangeas ---
rain splashing upon
the crumbling walls

an old pond-
floating upside down
a cicada's shell




Autumn



Locusts fly low
over the levee
in the fading sunshine

Autumn wind -
met, returning alive
you and me

Matsuyama castle
the keep is higher than
the autumn sky

clouds're running past
running after clouds
the Storm Day

autumn is leaving
tugging each others' branches
two pine trees

on a stormy night
while reading a letter
wavering mind

almost black
deepening purple
ripe grapes

with advancing autumn
I am without gods
without Buddha

I am going
you're staying
two autumns for us

my fate,
a fortune tells
- autumn wind

peeling a pear
sweet drops dripping
along the knife edge

hometown -
festivals are over
flavorful persimmons

lights
far way, through
leaves of dense autumnal tints

the buight moon
something in my breast
I am alone


the bright moon
I wonder where the clouds
are flying off to


following
clouds torn apart
autumn wind


morning coolness
purple clouds are
vanishing


the setting sun
remains on the mountain
castle flowering rice

crimson sunset
even through clouds
vernal equinox



looking through
three thousand haiku eating
two persimmons


sounds of a temple bell
reverberate in a circle
a long night


a dog howling
sound of footsteps
longer nights



Winter



two or three rocks
strewn about
dried up field

winter camellia
I wish I could offer it
to the sooty Buddha

coldness
looking down from above
Matsuyama Castle

splitting wood
my sister alone -
wintering

behind the stand
of winter trees
a red sunset


just outside the gate
the road slopes downward
winter trees


It is cold, but
we have sake
and the hot spring

* * *

New Year's greetings
with a plum branch
in hand

the sky draws near
such a bright sunrise
New Year's Day

New Year's Day
has come -
quiet streets

The year begins
on New Year's day
our life is Now


the stars vanished
and then --
five-colored New Year's mist

-------------------------------------------

Facing away from me
Darning old tabi –
My wife.

When the loofah bloomed
He choked on phlegm
And died.

-------------------------------------------

Devotion to the Great Saint,
the temple of Ishite...
rice plants abloom.

(Alas my) fortune;
drawing divine lots,
the aurumn wind.

-------------------------------------------

2001 Shiki Haiku Calendar

New Year's decoration –
the table with my inkstone
becomes narrow
(1898)

Moon and plum blossoms:
night after night
thea come closer
(1893)

Weary of reading
I go out into a field
a hazy field
(1897)

The Great Buddha
sinking in its whiteness:
cherry blossom cloud
(1897)

Full sail, reefed sail
how far do you go?
fresh summer gale
(1891)

May rain
falls as if falling
into a sleep
(1896)

One by one
letting the cool breeze through:
finger holes of the flute
(1893)

Asleep in a boat
I lie side by side with it:
the River of Heaven
(1894)

Pain from coughing
the long night's lamp flame
small as a pea
(1897)

Oh, autumn
in the boundless world!
its traces
(1893)

A light
newly lit –
first winter srizzle
(1892)

My heart
withering in winter
only the hokku...
(1896)

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- source : terebess.hu/english



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