No. 19 A Lover's Reproach
9th century. The writer, the Lady of Ise, was the daughter of the governor of Ise, on Honshu, and the mother of a Prince, and a scholar in her own right.
A Lover’s Reproach
Even for a space,
Short as joint of tiny reed
From Naniwa’s marsh,
We must never meet again
In this life? This, do you ask?
Lady of Ise
Naniwagata
Mijikaki ashi no
Fushi no ma mo
Awade kono yo wo
Sugushite yo to ya.
Ise
About this poetry
At Salty Dog Digital we’ve decided to gradually republish Clay MacCauley’s translation of Single Songs of a Hundred Poets – a collection of japanese poetry from the seventh through thirteenth centuries. Sixty four of these poems are the rewards in our game fourtex zen.
No. 20 Resolve in Despair
No.18 Secret Love