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79 items

  • Essays

    The Background to a Parting

    Online Manyo-shu: Volume 1Originally published: Prose translated; quoted poems remain in Japanese

    A reading of Night Platform explores wartime departure, loss and the emotional setting of a farewell song.

  • Essays

    A Woman’s Life Journey

    Online Manyo-shu: Volume 1Originally published: Prose translated; quoted poems remain in Japanese

    An interpretation of Red Shoes Tango considers a young woman’s desire and hardship against the social setting of early postwar Japan.

  • Poetry & creative work

    Roppongi in My Youth

    Lyricist: Seishu Hamano / Composer: Jun HayamaOriginally published: Full English translation available

    Lyrics recall a hillside street, a damaged flowerpot and a white chrysanthemum through images of youth, solitude and memory.

  • Poetry & creative work

    Habutae Mochi, Ponyo Ponyo

    Composer: Jun HayamaOriginally published: Full English translation available

    Playful lyrics in three verses move through shrine, temple and village celebrations, with music credits in the original.

  • Essays

    Parents’ Words Are Our Eternity

    Author: Seishu HamanoOnline Manyo-shu: Volume 1Originally published: Full English translation available

    An essay considers how a parent’s words and books can continue to sustain a relationship across generations and after death.

  • Essays

    Commentary on Contemporary Tanka

    Online Manyo-shu: Volume 1Originally published: Prose translated; quoted poems remain in Japanese

    An introductory posting provides a linked PDF of commentary on contemporary tanka.

  • Collections

    Romantic Poetry Forum: Spring, May 2022

    Online Manyo-shu: Volume 1Originally published: Prose translated; quoted poems remain in Japanese

    A May 2022 gathering finds poetic subjects in birds, fruit and fallen petals, with discussion of natural expression and closely observed detail.

  • Collections

    Romantic Poetry Forum: Spring, April 2022

    Online Manyo-shu: Volume 1Originally published: Prose translated; quoted poems remain in Japanese

    An April 2022 gathering discusses poems prompted by music, the memory of a friend and a grandchild’s first independent train journey.

  • Collections

    Romantic Poetry Forum: Spring, March 2022

    Online Manyo-shu: Volume 1Originally published: Prose translated; quoted poems remain in Japanese

    A March 2022 gathering links seasonal blossoms with personal remembrance and considers how conversational language can work within tanka.

  • Collections

    Romantic Poetry Forum: Winter, February 2022

    Online Manyo-shu: Volume 1Originally published: Prose translated; quoted poems remain in Japanese

    A February 2022 gathering considers the seasonal transition from snow to rain, energetic older people and the preservation of memories of the Showa era.

  • Collections

    Romantic Poetry Forum: Winter, January 2022

    Online Manyo-shu: Volume 1Originally published: Prose translated; quoted poems remain in Japanese

    A January 2022 gathering brings together New Year poems, reunion and hometown memories, with discussion of sound and expression in verse.

  • Collections

    Romantic Poetry Forum: Autumn, November 2021

    Online Manyo-shu: Volume 1Originally published: Prose translated; quoted poems remain in Japanese

    A November 2021 gathering considers newly prominent words and the value of fresh phrasing in poems drawn from everyday observation.