Impresie. Albastru inefabil…

the tales of ise

*******

One of the key aspects of the Tales is the celebration of language.
[…]
Another important element is the belief in ancient Japan that words contained spirits and were therefore sacred, hence uttering celebratory words could lead to fortuitous events coming to pass. Known as kotodama shinko, this distinctive feature of the Tales also underpins the concept of kotohogu, uttering words of felicitation either before or after an auspicious event.

*******

One of the most difficult phrases to translate in the Tales is mukashi otoko arikeri (literally, ‘long ago, there was a man’). Donald Keene once joked to me that he gave up translating the Tales when he realized how difficult it would be to translate this apparently simple phrase, which opens many of the episodes. The words in Japanese conjure up an entire world of both poetry and romance, and for many in Japan it is synonymous with both the Tales and Narihira, the hero.

*******
kotodama – unul dintre cuvintele mele japo preferate de pana acum. pentru concept, idee, credinta si sentimentele din mine…

2020:
sa port cu mine
luna haikurilor
in nesfarsire

2021:
in nesfarsire,
stele se aliniaza
printre cuvinte…

2022:
printre cuvinte,
parca se-ascund stele de
punctuatie.

2023:
punctuatie:
nesfarsitul ceresc in
punct si virgula…

2024:
punct si virgula;
o continuare, sau
un nou inceput?!…

2025:
un nou inceput –
prin poarta torii pasi spre
un taram magic…

2026:
un taram magic:
un cer cu flori de ciresi,
si pomi cu stele…

2020:
vis de octombrie –
curcubeu in culori de
toamna tarzie…

2021:
toamna tarzie –
scrisoare de iubire
scriind privirii…

2022:
scriind privirii,
file de manuscris ce
se smulg de ramuri…

2023:
se smulg de ramuri,
razele unui amurg
uitat de soare…

2024:
uitat de soare-
rasare, in suflet un
amurg permanent…

2025:
amurg permanent:
un cantec de adio,
prin vocea toamnei…

2026:
prin vocea toamnei,
o urma de accente –
vara sau iarna?!

the tales of ise

*******

Waka – the most ancient and prestigious of the traditional poetry genres – constitute the literary heart of the Tales.
[…]
The term waka (literally, ‘Japanese poem’) can be used to denote all the various traditional verse-forms in Japanese (tanka, renga, haiku), but it usually refers to poems of five lines in a 5-7-5-7-7 syllabic sequence.

*******

As they could not speak to or see each other, convention demanded that, in order to establish a relationship, they had to exchange poems, and proficiency in poetry composition was expected. Until they actually met, the way men and women evaluated prospective partners was based on the quality of the poems, the tastefulness of the paper on which they were written, and the beauty of the calligraphy.
These exchanges had to adhere to a particular code of conduct.
[…] And if one received a poem on spring, the poem composed in reply was expected to be on the same season; if it were on another season, it would be a sign of a lack of taste. Replies were also expected to cleverly pick up an element of the original poem and quote from it or refer to it in the reply. There would, of course, have been differing levels of skill in composing and appreciating poems, but a basic knowledge of the art of composing poetry was de rigueur for all courtiers; indeed, without such skills they could have expected little success in the art of love.

the tales of ise

*******

The title itself is a mystery. Only two or three of the episodes have any connection with Ise, the site of the great shrine of the Shinto religion, but these few episodes are so striking that they may have caused some editor to name the entire collection of stories after Ise.
[…]
to set the events of the episode in the past, a time that was deemed to be far more elegant than the present.
[…]
an evocation of an era when beauty and the quest for beauty were the most important elements of life. The poetry in each episode makes it possible for us to believe that such people really inhabited this refined court.
[…]
Some poems have inspired whole Noh plays and become familiar to every educated Japanese. The work has not been widely read outside Japan because of the lack of translations that are close to the qualities of the original.
[…]
It is the most poetic translation of this work to date, and adds to the treasures of Japanese literature that can now be enjoyed in English translation.
(Donald Keene Professor Emeritus, Columbia University March 2016, Tokyo)

*******
am chibzuit ceva asupra ce sa aleg drept volumul nr 100 al anului. dupa lungi deliberari si comparatii intre “makioka sisters”, “I am a cat” si “tales of ise”, am ales ise – daca tot ezitam intre clasici, de ce sa nu aleg una dintre scrierile de Inceputuri.
prefata scrisa de Donald Keene ma incanta, entuziasmeaza, copleseste, prevad o delectare – poate nemaiintalnita, si abia o astept!…

2020:
valuri de matcha
ametind simturile –
aroma de zen.

2021:
aroma de zen –
fuji cernind zahar pe
un mousse de matcha…

2022:
un mousse de matcha:
unduiri cromatice
in ceasca zilei.

2023:
in ceasca zilei,
urmele fericirii –
pictura in ceai…

2024:
pictura in ceai:
pe fond verde de matcha,
albul de fuji.

2025:
albul de fuji,
de-o puritate sfanta:
munte iconic.

2026:
munte iconic,
ce-si cerne prezenta in
pudra de matcha…

2020:
nuante de toamna –
lumina zambetului
divinitatii.

2021:
divinitatii,
toamna picteaza frunze-n
sangele verii…

2022:
sangele verii
se revarsa privirii.
pocal de nectar.

2023:
pocal de nectar –
bautura zeilor
se bea din priviri.

2024:
se bea din priviri,
si imprima in suflet –
ce se iubeste.

2025:
ce se iubeste:
cumulul pasiunilor,
in proiectie.

2026:
in proiectie,
traiesc dincolo; poate –
nici eu nu sunt eu?!

dead-end memories – banana yoshimoto

*******

But that’s how most people think. They don’t realize that your mind can be as spacious and as wide-open as you want. Most people don’t even try to see the treasure that lies inside the people they know.

*******

That time had been a gift from fortune, like a blanket gently laid over me by the heavens.

*******

“Keep looking out for happiness. Don’t stop,” I said, and my tears were coming, too. I hung up and cried for just a minute. These were good tears: an offering to accidents of timing.

*******
povestiri cu lumina si intuneric deopotriva, insa cu un final mereu orbitor.

2020:
parfumul iernii
precum un foc de vara.
antinomie.

2021:
antinomie –
prin fulgi de omat, kanji
imi mocnesc prin gand…

2022:
imi mocnesc prin gand
ninsori renascute din
fila unui an.

2023:
fila unui an:
pe tencuieli vechi si noi,
cerneala vremii…

2024:
cerneala vremii,
alba pe paginile
unui mare alb.

2025:
unui mare alb
vartej in parul iernii,
agrafe-sclipici.

2026;
agrafe-sclipici,
topindu-se in plete –
semn de efemer…

dead-end memories – banana yoshimoto

*******

I’m not quite sure how to put this, but it was almost as though—because Nishiyama had already come through the hardest times of his life—the gods had granted him a kind of grace in the form of permission to simply enjoy the remainder of it.
[…]
Keep Nishiyama with you, and fortune will be on your side! Find refuge from the anxieties and uncertainties of this world.

*******

Because what you choose to pay attention to defines your world. That was the conclusion I came to.

dead-end memories – banana yoshimoto

*******

Tomo-chan’s heart took her on so many journeys over the course of its movements and fluctuations that she didn’t feel the need to travel.

*******

Happiness descends on you suddenly, regardless of circumstance, and so indifferently that it seems cruel. It doesn’t care where you are, or who you’re with. You don’t see it coming. You can’t make it happen. It might arrive with your next breath, or you might never get to experience it no matter how long you wait.
Like the movements of waves, or shifts in the weather, the miracle lies in wait for everyone. I just didn’t know it then.

2020:
punct de vedere –
muntele fuji turtit,
privit din spatiu.

2021:
privit din spatiu,
pe fila atlasului
un varf de creta…

2022:
un varf de creta –
muntele perfectiunii
se deseneaza.

2023:
se deseneaza
pe peretele scoartei;
minuni vizuale.

2024:
minuni vizuale:
din ceruri, zeii-l privesc;
el, ca un covor…

2025:
el, ca un covor
se intinde molatic.
pufosenie.

2026:
pufosenie
in con de inghetata:
zapada rasa…

かきごおり 【かき氷】
noun, food term
Ⓐ shaved ice (usually served with flavored simple syrup), Italian ice, snow cone

2020:
fascinatiile –
tatuaj pe sufletul
unei alte vieti

2021:
unei alte vieti,
nelinistea tanjelii
i-l port in clipiri…

2022:
i-l port in clipiri –
magicul efect de vis,
soarele noptii.

2023:
soarele noptii –
visurile luminand
in intuneric…

2024:
in intuneric,
o poveste se scrie
cu foc inflorit…

2025:
cu foc inflorit,
parfum de primavara
peste noul an.

2026:
peste noul an,
explozii de lumina
si motive de…

dead-end memories – banana yoshimoto

*******

And yet, when I traveled to other cities, I always found that a view without a river was of no interest to me at all. Perhaps that was because the inherent stillness of my nature made me crave the sight of things that moved.
[…]
That was when I learned how easily I could slip into feeling at home in a city with a river flowing through it. I also discovered that sitting in a café watching people go by was just like watching a river. It could only happen in a city with a long history.
[…]
It was how I came to understand that what made a river frightening was the chilling infinitude of time itself.

*******

In a similar vein, I once spent a long time thinking about light.
[…]
Once, he said to me, “Mitsuyo, there’s something round and beautiful and lonely inside of you. Kind of like a firefly.”
[…]
It was only much later that I learned the light came from me, and what Makoto had done was to be its witness and protector.
[…]
“I think the light you see comes from the people inside. The light inside them shines out, and that’s where the glow really comes from. Because you can easily feel lonely even with all the lights on.”
“It’s the people that shine?”
“It’s the light inside the people that makes it seem bright. It must be. Isn’t that why you wish you could be in there with them, or feel like you want to go home?”

dead-end memories – banana yoshimoto

*******

I felt as though all the toxicity that had been stored in my body for years, which had been brought to the surface by the poison in the curry, had been cleared out along with my tears.
[…]
Like many people after going through some calamity, I realized that I’d never appreciated how peaceful and precious my life had been before.

2020:
lumini si umbre –
Japonia si cu mine.
soare invingand.

2021:
soare invingand
ternul, in culori de-apus;
autoportret.

2022:
autoportret –
rosu si albastru, si
cerul si pamant…

2023:
cerul si pamant –
in trupul ce-i e barca,
timpul vasleste…

2024:
timpul vasleste –
prin cascada uitarii,
coloane de fum…

2025:
coloane de fum:
fuiorul amintirii,
din fire rupte.

2026:
din fire rupte,
val din voal de mireasa
peste privire…

dead-end memories – banana yoshimoto

*******

I was amazed to think, now, that I’d been going through life believing I understood anything about people, only to have nearly been killed by one of them, and then saved by several others. The whole chain of events seemed like the plot of some made-up story. Good days followed bad days.

*******

I’d always believed I didn’t take up a lot of space in this world—that it hardly mattered whether I was here or not.
When a person left, the people around them got used to their absence. That was true enough.
But when I pictured the world without me, and the people I loved living on in it, I couldn’t help but feel like crying.
The only thing missing from these tableaux was me, but suddenly they looked much lonelier. And even if the hole I left was only temporary, until the other characters all moved on into the unknown future, the space where I belonged suddenly seemed to harbor a rare glow. It felt as precious as trees, or sunlight, or cats I met on the street.
Astonished by this revelation, I looked up at the sky again and again. Here I was, with a body, looking up at the sky. I existed. As beautiful as the sun setting in the distance, life lived inside this, the only body I would ever have.

2020:
imi este calea
ninsa cu lumina de
dor si infinit…

2021:
dor si infinit –
continuu de emotie
fara de sfarsit…

2022:
fara de sfarsit,
hotare estompate
intre viata si…

2023:
intre viata si
scrierile in kanji –
sensul sinelui.

2024:
sensul sinelui:
capete de curcubeu
ce se regasesc…

2025:
ce se regasesc
caile sortii intr-un
suflet optimist!…

2026:
suflet optimist:
privind inainte spre
un etern soare…

dead-end memories – banana yoshimoto

*******

Different things came together, threads that were far apart suddenly joined up, and circumstances reeled me in, smoothly and inescapably.

*******

I was also learning that every single person in the world had been hurt by their family at some point. I wasn’t special at all—some people dealt with it well, and some didn’t, but that was the only difference, and either way, we were all nourished and cherished by our families, and at the same time limited and defined by them—that was what it meant to be human, I understood.

*******

I felt the silence might swallow me up, that I might disappear inside it. When I remember how small I felt then, it still makes me feel lonely.
[…]
In that moment, something so enormous and fundamental that I normally forgot its existence amid daily things and loved ones and life was trying to crush me along with the quietness. In my ignorance of what was about to happen, I went out into the darkness, defenselessly. To be shown just how small I was.

2020:
visez armonii:
aburul ceainicului –
seninatate.

2021:
seninatate –
privesc perfectiunea prin
cercul ferstrei…

2022:
cercul ferestrei:
in aroma unui ceai,
gust de infinit…

2023:
gust de infinit –
peste buze, sarutul
amintirilor…

2024:
amintirilor
le luminez culoarea,
din intuneric.

2025:
din intuneric,
si roua diminetii,
bulbi de lumina…

2026:
bulbi de lumina
vie: ciresi-mesageri,
inflorind ramuri…

dead-end memories – banana yoshimoto

*******

And then, suddenly, time was flowing differently than usual. It didn’t turn back, or even pause. Time simply floated open and started to expand. Time held the two of us in light, inside a space so vast it might have reached the heavens, and turned eternal.
[…]

The best words I can find to describe it is to say I felt we were being blessed.

*******
…iar eu am simtit in mod distinct ca mi-a fost sete de banana yoshimoto. nu dor, melancolie, lipsa, ci literalmente, nestiut, simteam nevoia de cuvintele ei pe buzele mele.

2020:
ceata mistica –
universuri tainice
asteptandu-te.

2021:
asteptandu-te
la necunoscut, umbre
te inconjoara…

2022:
te inconjoara
povestile altor vieti –
permutatie.

2023:
permutatie:
schimbul de imaginar,
intre mine si…

2024:
intre mine si
un timp de reverie,
spatiul se pierde.

2025:
spatiul se pierde:
in spatele privirii,
ce mai e Real?!…

2026:
ce e mai Real?
traind vis continuu, nu-i
tot vietuire?

the passengers on the hankyu line – hiro arikawa

*******

Masashi thought that Yuki was always snatching up the books he wanted to read, but apparently Yuki’s interest was also piqued by the books that Masashi chose.
Hmm, I wish I could ask him what made him pick up a book like that, she had mused.

*******

o carte de citit zambind. intamplari de-a lungul liniei de tren hankyu, cu personaje care se gasesc si re-gasesc, in pluri-perspectiva.

2020:
ploua-ti gradina
gandurilor cu viata –
flori de lumina.

2021:
flori de lumina
de toamna explodeaza –
ce artificii!…

2022:
ce artificii!
curcubeu autumnal
le-ncercuieste…

2023:
le-ncercuieste
misterul ne-luminii –
seara de toamna…

2024:
seara de toamna,
si floarea anilor se
scutur-a iarna.

2025:
scutur-a iarna,
beteala frunzelor la
sfarsit de toamna…

2026:
sfarsit de toamna:
culorile se retrag
in non-culoare…

the passengers on the hankyu line – hiro arikawa

*******

Ami, for her part, was upset that Tokié hadn’t chosen a more charming name but Tokié was unmoved. She was certainly not the type of grandmother who would go to such lengths to indulge her granddaughter.

*******

I see that you too like to point out when things don’t make sense. I wonder where you get that from?

*******

‘It’s true, winning is about believing you can win,’ said the young man with another amused smile.