The Kanshi Poems of Taigu Ryōkan Translated by Mei Hui Liu Huang & Larry Smith
Honoring the Tomb of Shi Yo
[…]
And then we parted
and lost our bond.
By the time I returned you had already joined the earth.
How can I face your soul?
I sprinkle your grave with both hands full of water.
to present some token of my respect. Suddenly the sun sets in the west.
The mountain meadows are filled with pines.
I have lingered so long here
my clothes are damp with tears.
imi propun sa citesc cu intentie. cu intentia de a gasi in fiecare zi cel putin cuvinte, o paradigma, o fraza – un citat de consemnat.
acum vreme, aveam un caiet cu citate; cumva, cu timpul, a devenit mai usor sa doar absorb pagini, sa exclam in mine si sa mai intorc o fila… poate sa le notez este un fel de a pastra impresii, amintirea, si de a rasplati, umil, scriitura…
cartea curenta e de poezii. le-am notat si in japo, in speranta naiva ca poate, cu timpul, voi reveni la ele si le voi putea deslusi in propria-mi intelegere.
*ce e poezia?
*minuni interconectate
*”the ballad of the bouncing ball”
*univers intr-un bulgare de nea
*singurate si speranta
*“Nothingness hangs everywhere like a bell.”
si raze de luna…
*****
The Kanshi Poems of Taigu Ryōkan Translated by Mei Hui Liu Huang & Larry Smith
A Tri-Lingual Edition English/ Chinese/ Japanese
Who says my poems are poems?
My poems are not poems.
When you can understand this,
Then we can begin to speak of poetry.
*******
No Mind
With no mind, flowers lure the butterfly;
With no mind, the butterfly visits the blossoms.
Yet when flowers bloom, the butterfly comes;
When the butterfly comes, the flowers bloom.
*******
Easygoing
My walking skirt is short, my holy gown long.
I go through life free yet disciplined.
Later children stop me in the street,
Clap and sing the ballad of the bouncing ball.
*******
Snow on the Shrine
This morning snow piled high on the shrine gate.
The trees on this sacred land shines with flowers.
Out in the cold a boy throws snowballs as if the world were only his.
宮門 新雪の朝
千樹 春の還るに似たり。
誰が家の少年子ぞ
等閒に狂顚を打す。
*******
Jottings
The rain stopped around midnight.
Morning light lays across my loneliness.
Beyond the door, the rain sings again.
A black cane hangs on the wall.
I have run out of fire wood,
yet who will help be heat my stove?
So many books piled on my bed,
and I, too lazy to read them now.
Tonight’s mood only I can understand
yet how will I describe it tomorrow?
*******
At Gogo-An
This hall is rather bare and cold.
Nothingness hangs everywhere like a bell.
Outside a thousand fir trees; tacked to the wall are several Zen poems
The pot is covered with dust.
The cooking ware is meant only for fish.
From time to time an old villager from the
east knocks at the door in the moonlight.
2021:
trepte catre nori,
si ocol necunoscut –
ce cale alegi?
2022:
ce cale alegi
catre nemarginirea
vietii-n paradis?…
2023:
vietii-n paradis
tu construieste-i punte.
leagan de suflet.
2024:
leagan de suflet:
zambete si lacrimi in –
joc copilaresc.
2025:
joc copilaresc:
frunza mereu verde, azi –
doar cazatoare…
2026:
doar cazatoare –
de-ar fi stele frunzele,
cate dorinte!…
sufar ca nu am putut folosi “dorinti”; m-a tentat sa folosesc “nazuinti” – mi se pare ca suna la fel de arhaic-eminescian-junimist, insa “nazuinta” parca are un strat aditional de tanjire si intensitate – o dorinta la prezentul continuu englezesc…
Impresie. Albastru inefabil... 