Howling at the Moon: poems and prose of Hagiwara Sakutarō

by Sakutarō Hagiwara, Hiroaki Sato

Born into a wealthy family, Hagiwara Sakutaro (1886–1942) was able as a young man to devote himself to poetry. Although he did not finish college, he read Western authors, including Poe, Nietzsche, Schopenhauer, and Dostoevsky. His major works of poetry, written in 1917 and 1923, were Howling at the Moon and Blue, collected in this volume. These books transformed modern Japanese poetry, and changed forever the face of the future poetic landscape in Japan.

Brilliantly translated by Hiroaki Sato, this book was originally published by the University of Tokyo Press, and has long been out of print.

Genres: Poetry, Japan, Japanese Literature

316 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1978

About the author

Hagiwara Sakutarō (萩原朔太郎) was a Japanese writer of free-style verse, active in the Taishō and early Shōwa periods of Japan. He liberated Japanese free verse from the grip of traditional rules, and he is considered the “father of modern colloquial poetry in Japan”. He published many volumes of essays, literary and cultural criticism, and aphorisms over his long career. His unique style of verse expressed his doubts about existence, and his fears, ennui, and anger through the use of dark images and unambiguous wording.

Reviews

[Nadia Kay]

i am not the person to rate this collection because i don’t think i quite feel poetry the way others seem to. but surely some things leapt from the page.

CLIMBING A MOUNTAIN …. [on a trip, sent to a woman]

At the mountaintop there is a pretty grass lot,
on it we were lying down.
Looking up and surveying the distant mountainslope, all around, it felt like a view of a spacious ocean.
In the sky a wind is flowing,
I picked a stone and putting it to my mouth,
purposelessly as to where,
was walking the mountaintop with profuse growths,

even now, I am thinking of you.

[Daisy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved reading Hagawara’s thoughts on poetry. I was incredibly moved by his view that the individuals are inherently lonely as all our emotions, thoughts and senses belong solely to each individual and can only be felt and understood by each individual, however, despite this isolation of senses and feelings, there must be something that connects us -something perhaps quite ineffable-and poetry can bridge the gaps between each lonely souls.
( the above is my horrible and probably inaccurate paraphrase.)

I feel that Hagawara was such a lonely soul, whose tremors await understanding and response from the readers. That’s why I felt so bad that I was unable to connect with what he was feeling when I was reading the poems and I felt that I failed him as a reader.
The only consolation is that I know that there are probably thousands of other people who have read his works and felt the same tremors in their souls as Hagawara when he wrote the words down.

“诗不是神秘之物，不是象征，不是幽灵。
诗只是在安慰着有一副病灵魂的人，和孤独者的寂寞。
我想到诗歌，就要为人情之怜悯而落泪”

[Jon Holt · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked the revised, expanded edition Sato did here (which includes "Cat Town" I think). Although I can't say I feel that any translation does Hagiwara's poems justice, I must say I've read Sato's translations many times now and his take on Hagiwara has always stayed with me.

[Federica · Rating 4 out of 5]

A bit creepy, but I loved the little scenes that let you in the mind of the poet

[إســرٰاء☾ · Rating 3 out of 5]

"A person, individually, is always terribly lonely forever and ever."

[Bayu Priambodo · Rating 5 out of 5]

its good to read this book