Poems of Days Past 在りし日の歌

by Nakahara Chuya, Ry Beville, 中原 中也

This beautifully designed bilingual book is the first complete translation of the second volume of poetry by renowned Japanese poet Nakahara Chuya (1907-1937). Originally titled "Arishi hi no uta," it is the second volume by the translator in a planned set of three that will comprise the complete poems of Nakahara Chuya. This volume contains a lengthy introduction in which the translator, a scholar of Japanese poetry, provides an historical context for the poetry, as well as analyses of some of its aesthetic devices. He also gives a compelling argument for his decision to use verse translations. The full English translations are accompanied by the Japanese originals, complete with the original glosses for some of the more obscure kanji characters. This book will appeal to readers of world poetry and Japanese literature alike, and is an essential volume for any library. Chuya is a cultural icon in his own country, with literally millions of readers, including the many students for whom he is a mandatory subject of study. Although the poet is relatively obscure outside Japan, this new volume is certain to make great strides in correcting that imbalance.

Genres: Poetry, Japan

83 pages, Paperback

First published July 15, 2005

Reviews

[Shari · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a beautiful, but sad, collection of poems. Poems of Days Past is simply what the title says and from most of these poems one could easily tell without reading the introduction that Chuya's life had been filled with sadness so deep that any reader could only attribute it to the passing of a loved one. (It was Chuya's two-year-old son, whom he loved so much that he never fully recovered from the loss in spite of having another child after.)

The poems are melancholic, nostalgic, and, oddly, romantic. They are filled with dark images, predominantly of winter, autumn, dark skies, night, snow, water, and the moon. They are depressing, without doubt, and yet beautifully worded and given contrasting images that threw me off track at first. As I progressed, however, I found myself captivated. I couldn't anticipate the images the poet would use to illuminate his intentions. In the process, I found myself discarding my usual propensity to predict and be swept away by the clashing and seemingly mismatched images. Take the last two stanzas of "Emptiness" as an example.

A gathering of girls close to dawn
All are friends of many years

Contorted diamond===facets everywhere
A fiddle's whine is floating to the ears

Chuya died at the age of 30. So young... And the last few years of his life were filled with hardships. Not only was he grieving he was fighting tubercular meningitis as well. There was one particular poem that perhaps described his last remaining years - "Halfway Through This Life". It is simply worded but filled with a kind of sadness that any reader would never wish to go through.

I've suffered much along the way.
Relating the nature of my suffering though
Concerns me very little.
And whether my suffering
Has any value to me
Is nothing I give any thought to, either.

Whatever the case, I've suffered along the way.
I've suffered along the way, indeed!
And now I find myself
Right here before my desk.
All that I can really do
Is steady this hand and stare.

It's evening outside, and leaves are rustling.
It's a Spring evening of subtle reminders.
And I - I'm quietly dying,
Sitting just as I am, fading away.

[Duncan · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've tried several times over the years to get into this book, but have finally accepted it's not my thing.

Maybe it's the translation. Maybe there's no good way to preserve the meter, the meaning and the feeling from the original Japanese. Maybe I just don't get symbolist poetry. From all the positive reviews of Nakahara's work, there's surely something I'm missing.

Certainly there were poems I got something from. June Rain and Noon have nice rhythm. Memory of a Winter's Day movingly captures the pain and loss of Nakahara's life; and Yoneko that feeling of 'What if...?' An irreverent sense humour comes across in Bones and The Village Clock.

But to me, so much of the rhythm, imagery and phrasing throughout this volume just feel clumsy. The bits I liked kept getting drowned out, and overall I really struggled to get through this book.

[Shin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I merely read poems, however I really like his poems. Maybe it is difficult to understand if you do not read by Japanese. He made 360 poems, but almost all were negative and sad. However, it is very strange his poems give us positive power.