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(Post split in two for length.)
Around 1235, Fujiwara no Teika compiled for the father-in-law of his son Tame’ei a collection of one hundred poems by one hundred poets, a common anthology of the time. Partly because of Teika’s stature as Japan’s last great classical poet and partly because, within its roughly chronological history of Japanese poetry to date, he selected a variety of subjects and styles in interesting patterns, it became the exemplar of the genre—to the point that referring to just the Hyakunin Isshu without modifier means this “100 People, 1 Poem (Each).” It was treated a mini-manual of classical poetry, taught in the standard school curriculum, and used as the basis of a memory card game still sometimes played at New Years.
Not every poem is the best, or even most representative, poem by the poet (Narihira, I'm looking at yours) but in context, in the ebb and flow of conversation, Teika's choice usually works. He was not only a very good poet but a canny editor—not to mention an important scholar, responsible for establishing the standard texts of such classics as the Kokinshu and Tale of Genji.
The collection has been translated, in whole or in part, many times, by good scholars and good poets. There is therefore no reason to translate it again except as exercises in an archaic form of Japanese of no use to any modern student.
So of course I did.
( Commentary and bibliography )
( Background notes )
For information about the book for which this post is an early draft, see here.
( One Hundred People, One Poem Each (1-50) )
Continued in part 2.
(Index for this project)
Around 1235, Fujiwara no Teika compiled for the father-in-law of his son Tame’ei a collection of one hundred poems by one hundred poets, a common anthology of the time. Partly because of Teika’s stature as Japan’s last great classical poet and partly because, within its roughly chronological history of Japanese poetry to date, he selected a variety of subjects and styles in interesting patterns, it became the exemplar of the genre—to the point that referring to just the Hyakunin Isshu without modifier means this “100 People, 1 Poem (Each).” It was treated a mini-manual of classical poetry, taught in the standard school curriculum, and used as the basis of a memory card game still sometimes played at New Years.
Not every poem is the best, or even most representative, poem by the poet (Narihira, I'm looking at yours) but in context, in the ebb and flow of conversation, Teika's choice usually works. He was not only a very good poet but a canny editor—not to mention an important scholar, responsible for establishing the standard texts of such classics as the Kokinshu and Tale of Genji.
The collection has been translated, in whole or in part, many times, by good scholars and good poets. There is therefore no reason to translate it again except as exercises in an archaic form of Japanese of no use to any modern student.
So of course I did.
( Commentary and bibliography )
( Background notes )
For information about the book for which this post is an early draft, see here.
( One Hundred People, One Poem Each (1-50) )
Continued in part 2.
(Index for this project)