Written on the Sky: Poems from the Japanese

by Eliot Weinberger (Editor), Kenneth Rexroth (Translator)

“Rexroth’s readings from the Japanese master poets are breathtaking in their simplicity and clarity.”—The New York Times

I go out of the darknessOnto a road of darknessLit only by the far offMoon on the edge of the mountains.—Izumi ShikobuOver the years, thousands of readers have discovered the beauty of classic Japanese poetry through the superb English versions by the great American poet Kenneth Rexroth. Mostly haiku, these poems range from the classical and medieval to modern poetry, with an emphasis on folk songs and love lyrics. Because women played such an outstanding role in Japanese literature, included here are selections from their work, including the contemporary, deeply sensuous Marichiko. This elegant, beautifully designed gift book of poems spanning many centuries presents the original texts in romanji, the transliteration into the Western alphabet.

Genres: Poetry, Japan, Japanese Literature

97 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Eliot Weinberger is a contemporary American writer, essayist, editor, and translator. His work regularly appears in translation and has been published in some thirty languages.
Weinberger first gained recognition for his translations of the Nobel Prize winning writer and poet Octavio Paz. His many translations of the work of Paz include the Collected Poems 1957-1987, In Light of India, and Sunstone. Among Weinberger's other translations are Vicente Huidobro's Altazor, Xavier Villaurrutia's Nostalgia for Death, and Jorge Luis Borges' Seven Nights. His edition of Borges’ Selected Non-Fictions received the National Book Critics Circle Award for criticism.

Reviews

[Edita · Rating 2 out of 5]

The mists rise over
The still pools at Asuka.
Memory does not
Pass away so easily.

[Matthieu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Small flower, small heart, small stream, small iris, small tragedy, small midpoint, small sound, small rain, small mountain, small smoke, small tree cut low.

[Tatyana · Rating 4 out of 5]

"We are, you and me,
Like two pine needles
Which will dry and fall
But never separate."
-- Anonymous

"Following the roads
Of dream to you, my feet
Never rest. But one glimpse of you
In reality would be
Worth all these many nights of love."
-- ONO NO KOMACHI

[Samar Abdel Jaber · Rating 4 out of 5]

In all the world
There is no way whatever.
The stag cries even
In the most remote mountain

Fujiwara No Toshinari

[Robert · Rating 5 out of 5]

https://withagreenscarf.wordpress.com...

[Frutis · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5/5⭐️"I was sure I would never get lost in the tangled roads of love. Now I have been caught in the karma of past lives."

[Kristine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Small selection of Kenneth Rexroth's translated classical Japanese poetry. It's a beautiful little (4" x 6") paperback of 88 short poems (tanka, haiku) published by New Directions. There is also a New Directions edition of Rexroth's translated Chinese poetry, Songs of Love, Moon & Wind.

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm an ancient Japanese poet trapped in the life of a 21st century Web editor.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a beautifully made book, elegant translations--now I just want to find some of Rexroth's own poems...

[Lynna Howard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Most of these poems are worth reading multiple times.

Everyone is asleep
There is nothing to come between
the moon and me.

-- Enomoto Seifu-Jo (1731-1814)