6/19/2005

Frog (kawazu, kaeru)

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Frog (kawazu, kaeru)

***** Location: Japan, other regions
***** Season: Spring, Summer, Autumn (see below)
***** Category: Animal


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Explanation

There are many types of frogs and toads on our planet. And for haiku friends, the frog lives on a special podest because of Basho and his "old pond" haiku.



Let us look at some frogs the way they are used as kigo in various seasons.

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.. .. .. ALL SPRING

frog, kaeru, kawazu 蛙
This is a very general term and does not include the various species mentioned below.

red frog, akagaeru 赤蛙
Lord Frog, tonosama gaeru 殿様蛙
frog in the ground, tsuchi gaeru 土蛙

first voice of the frog, hatsu kawazu 初蛙
frog voice afar, toogaeru 遠蛙
frog voice during the day, hiru gaeru 昼蛙
frog voice in the evening, yuu-gaeru 夕蛙

frog in the mountains, yamagaeru 山蛙
frog in rice plantariums, nawajiro kawazu 苗代蛙
frog in mud, dorokawazu 泥蛙
frog concert, kawazu gassen 蛙合戦

Frogs tend to come out of their winter hiding from the earth at the end of Feburary. They enjoy to live in the wet ricefields during spring and summer.

My home in Okayama is surrounded by terraced rice fields and the annual frog concert season is quite something!

There is also a proverb about the frogs borrowing human eyes, expressing the drowsiness in late spring. This is also a kigo:

kawazu no me karidoki 蛙の目借時
time of borrowed eyes, mekari doki 目借時


Karl the Froggie
at GokuRakuAn, Gabi Greve




the BIG picture -
a frog is a frog
is a frog


Can you detect him? If not, check in here :
. My Karl in Spring 2012 .

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kigo for late spring

otamajakushi, o-tama-jakushi お玉杓子 (おたまじゃくし)
tadpole, tadpoles. Kaulquappe


kawazu no ko 蛙の子(かわずのこ)"child of the frog", baby frog
..... juzuko 数珠子(じゅずこ)"rosary children",
..... kato 蝌蚪(かと)
..... kaerugo かえるご
kaeru umaru 蛙生る(かえるうまる)frogs are born



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.. .. .. ALL SUMMER




green frog, aogaeru 青蛙 Species Hyla
tree frog, rain frog, amagaeru 雨蛙
summer frog, natsugaeru 夏蛙

river frog, kajika 河鹿, kajikagaeru 河鹿蛙 Polypedates buergeri
river frog song (lit. flute), kajijabue 河鹿笛
..... Kajika is noted for its attractive voice when singing in the river.


. kajika 鰍 (かじか) 杜父魚 bullhead fish, Okoze .

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toad, bullfrog, hikigaeru 蟇蛙 Bufo vulgaris
... also hiki 蟾 or gama 蝦蟇


but
kigo for mid-spring

hiki ana o izu 蟇穴を出づ (ひきあなをいづ)
toad coming out of its hole
..... hiki ana o deru 蟇穴を出る(ひきあなをでる)
..... hiki izu 蟇出づ(ひきいづ)


月の句を吐いてへらさん蟇の腹
tsuki no ku o haite herasan hiki no hara

let me spit out
poems to relieve the belly
of this toad


Buson refers to an old Chinese legend, where a bullfrog lives on the moon. When the frog has eaten too much, its belly begins to swell.
And tonight, Buson has eaten too much while watching the ful moon . . .

. Yosa Buson 与謝蕪村 in Edo .



source : mushroom frog art

The frog (or toad) in the moon
toad as a symbol of yin, and so many Chinese tales refer to the toad whose face is visible at the full moon.
- reference -

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.. .. .. MID-AUTUMN

frogs in autumn, aki no kawazu 秋の蛙 (あきのかわず)
frogs start to hibernate, kawazu ana ni iru 蛙穴に入る(かわずあなにいる)


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.. .. .. Late Winter

Tago frog, tagogaeru たご蛙 (たごがえる)

A variety of red frogs, about 4 cm ling, that live in Honshu and more south. Even in winter it calls for its mate, sounding guuguuguu.


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quote
Types of frogs
"So what's the difference between the two words for frog: kaeru and kawazu?" The common answer is that kawazu is the "old word" that got replaced by the "new word" kaeru, but this is a misconception. It's really just another case of semantic overlap combined with poetic versus everyday register.
It's true that there are no kaeru as such in the Manyōshū -- all the frogs that appear as frogs are kawazu (/kahadu/, at the time). But this is not because the word kaeru had yet to be invented.
snip
One reason was that kaeru was a general word, while the original meaning of kawazu seems to have specifically been "kajika frog". The kajika frog is so called because it lives in rivers (ka(wa)) and has a haunting call like a deer (shika), making it ideal for use in poetry. Virtually all of the Manyōshū poems that include a kawazu specifically refer to its call.

Maybe for this reason, kawazu also seems to have been the preferred word in poetry for frogs in general. There is a word for this in Japanese aesthetics: kago (歌語, "poetry word"). Another good example is references to cranes: the word tsuru is plenty old (some say it came over direct from the continent), but most early poems used the word tazu (たづ) instead. That was the kago.

So maybe kawazu originally meant "kajika frog" in particular, but it didn't take long before it just meant "frog [+poetic]" in general. Meanwhile, kaeru was a perfectly healthy synonym meaning "frog [-poetic]".

Eventually, poetry would be modernized in such a way that people felt quite comfortable using the word kaeru, which left kawazu stranded, gradually shifting towards meaning simply "frog [+archaic]". Kaeru, on the other hand, became simply "frog" (unmarked).
Kawazu would probably have been forgotten by all but the specialists by now (much like tazu) if it weren't for one thing: the Dark Side of the Moon of traditional Japanese poetry, that one haikai by Bashō that everyone knows...
source : no-sword.jp/blog


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Worldwide use

Kenya

The bull frog is a rainy season kigo.
It is extraordinarily hard to catch sight of it -- while its voice is an unmistakable sign of the rainy season!

Isabelle Prondzynski

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North America

Spring peeper
kigo for all spring

The Spring Peeper (Pseudacris crucifer, synonym Hyla crucifer) is a small tree frog widespread throughout the eastern USA.
More in the WIKIPEDIA !



new peepers
singing their song of
heart's desire


spring chorus
peepers sing love songs
at sunset


© bob


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source : Native American Design

little frog...
your pad is but a dot
in this old pond


opie, Texas


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Things found on the way


The famous scroll of the frolicking animals.
Choojuu-giga scrolls (choju giga) 鳥獣戯画

http://www.kokingumi.com/ChojuGiga/66.html

See comment Nr. 2 below.


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furuike ya Daruma tobikomu mizu no oto

this old pond -
the sound of water
as my Daruma jumps in

© Gabi Greve ..... Look at more !

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"If by sitting in mediation,
one becomes Buddha..."
坐禅して人が仏になるならば




. Sengai Gibon (1751–1837) 仙厓義梵 .


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Brother Bruno and the frog
When Brother Bruno was at prayer he was disturbed by the croaking of a bull frog. His attempts to disregard the sound were unsuccessful so he shouted,
“Quiet! I’m at my prayers”.

Now Bruno was a saint so he was instantly obeyed. But now another sound intruded – an inner voice – that said, “Maybe God is as pleased with the croaking of that frog as with the chanting of your psalms.
“What can please the ears of God in the croak of a frog?” was Bruno’s rejoinder.
But the voice refused to give up:
“ Why would you think God invented the sound?” Bruno decided to find out. He leaned out of his window and ordered the frog to sing. The croaking filled the air to the ludicrous accompaniment of all the frogs in the vicinity.
As Bruno listened their voices ceased to jar.
If he stopped resisting them, they actually enriched the silence of the night. With that discovery his heart became harmonious with the universe and, for the first time in his life he understood what it means to pray.


Joseph Stoutzenberger - Celebrating Sacraments
source : books.google.co.jp

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akagaeru uri 赤蛙売り selling red frogs
yanagi mushi uri 柳虫売り


source : www.tpa-kitatama.jp/museum

akahikigan 赤蛙丸 "red frog medicine", for children
It helped to quiet down nervous children.



For children, there are also some "mushi" connected with illness like the
san-shi no mushi 三尸の虫 -

kan no mushi 疳の虫 / 癇 insect of nervousness, short-temperedness
nakimushi 泣き虫 insect of crying too much
hara no mushi 腹の虫 insect causing diarrhea
. sanshi no mushi 三尸の虫 The Three Worms .

The red frogs were also eaten in Edo and many parts of the countryside..

. Doing Business in Edo .


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HAIKU


Furu ike ya kawazu tobikomu mizu no oto
古池や蛙飛び込む水の音

Old pond — frogs jumped in — sound of water
Translated by Lafcadio Hearn

To Japanese of sensitivity, frogs are dear little creatures, and Westerners may at least appreciate this animal’s energy and immediacy. Plop!

30 translations of this famous haiku online are here,
with a Commentary by Robert Aitken
http://www.bopsecrets.org/gateway/passages/basho-frog.htm


Sound of Water
a haiku discussion !!!


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little green frog -
even your voice
the voice of Buddha

Click on the photo to see the whole story
by Gabi Greve

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a frog farting -
this too is the
voice of Buddha

a frog farting -
this too is the
voice of God

More about the Voice of Buddha and Frog

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手をついて歌申あぐる蛙かな
te o tsuite uta mooshiageru kawazu kana

his hands bend down
offering a song -
this frog


or

with a formal bow
he offers a song -
this frog


Yamazaki Sookan 山崎宗鑑 Sokan
(1465 - 1553)

(The Japanese has the kireji KANA at the end of line 3.)


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- - - - - Yosa Buson - and the kawazu, one frog or more frogs . . .

古池の蛙老いゆく落葉かな
furuike no kawazu oiyuku ochiba kana

in the old pond
the frog is getting old
among the falling leaves . . .


The cut marker KANA is at the end of line 3.


春雨や蛙の腹はまだぬれず
harusame ya kawazu no hara wa mada nurezu

spring rain -
the belly of this frog
is not yet wet



朧月 蛙に濁る水やそら
oborozuki kawazu ni nigoru mizu ya sora

misty moon of spring -
water and sky are muddied
by the frogs



泳ぐ時よるべなきさまの蛙かな

oyogu toki yorube naki sama no kawazu kana

when it swims
its has such an unsteady figure
this frog . . .


The cut marker KANA is at the end of line 3.


たたずめば 遠くも聞ゆ蛙かな
tatazumeba tooku mo kikoyu kawazu kana

when I stand still
in the far distance I can hear
the frogs . . .


The cut marker KANA is at the end of line 3.


- - - - - and some personifications

日は日くれよ夜は夜明けよと鳴く蛙
hi wa hi kure yo - yo wa yoake yo to - naku kawazu

during the day "may sunset come"
during the night "may daybreak come"
call the frogs




風なくて雨降れとよぶ蛙かな
kaze nakute ame fure to yobu kawazu kana

"with no wind
let there be some rain !"
call the frogs . . .


During a summer drought, but please no typhoon . . .
The cut marker KANA is at the end of line 3.

. WKD : Yosa Buson 与謝蕪村 in Edo .


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Carpenter frogs
hammering nails out of synch:
"cu-tuck, cu-tuck, cu-tuck..."

Darkened ditch –
the harsh “rraak, rraak, rraak”
of a squirrel tree frog

Pinewood tree frogs
tapping out a telegraph:
"dik-dik-dikadik..."

Zhanna P. Rader

Read more of Zhanna's frog haiku here:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/happyhaiku/message/1621

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frog jumps
reflections
ruined

a tiny frog leaps
out of the moon
creates ripples


Marella Vinodh

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I remember the very first time that a Japanese friend offered to drive me from the local town to the next one. Sitting in a car offers a great opportunity to say "Stop!" and have a look -- in my case, at a rice field with a young and growing crop. And a green frog on top of one of the blades.
An unforgettable memory.

out of the car --
growing rice field holds a
tiny green frog


Isabelle Prondzynski

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marine gallery
army outnumbered
by the navy

M. Shanna Moore, Hawaii

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a big splash
and down he went
the prince



© Geert Verbeke
http://users.skynet.be/geert.verbeke.bowls

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> yasegaeru makeru na Issa koko ni ari

> skinny frog
> don't give up the fight
> Issa is here!

Remarks from Larry Bole : Haiku Information Board

I wonder if thinking of this as a frog "sumo" match, with two frogs facing each other, doesn't give the wrong impression. I think I've seen this activity in some nature film at some time or other, so I have more of an impression of a number of male frogs fighting for position in the process of attempting to mount a female frog.

According to David G. Lanoue, "In his diary, Issa explains, 'I stooped to watch a frog scuffle on the 20th day of Fourth Month.' "
http://www.worldhaikureview.org/3-1/haikuined_dl.shtml


It's a shame that more translators don't include contextual information like this with their translations. I wonder if Issa included anything else in his diary about the writing of this haiku.


Both Makoto Ueda and Haruo Shirane mention the militaristic phrasing found in this haiku.
In his book "Dew on the Grass," Ueda writes:
Issa wrote the frog poem after seeing several frogs fighting for a lone female. The hokku has since become well known for its expression of sympathy toward the weak, but we should also take note of the self-confidence implied in it. Although he himself is a faltering old man,
he is still strong enough to help a frog. "Issa is here," which mimicks the self-announcement of a samurai on the battlefield, adds a touch of humor. [end of comment]

And Haruo Shirane, in his book "Early Modern Japanese Literature: An Anthology 1600-1900," writes:
"Don't give up!" ('makeru na Issa kore ni ari') is a military phrase used by a commander to urge on his troops. [end of comment]


I wonder, when a Japanese person hears this haiku, if they are struck by the military nature of the expression.
Even after over 200 years of relative peace in Japan, a military-style phrase still comes tripping off of Issa's tongue!

I think a spirit of nationalism must have been in the air. Issa certainly felt it when he wrote about geese now being "geese of Japan."

kyoo kara wa Nihon no kari zo raku ni neyo

From today
You're Japan's geese, wild ones,
Rest then in peace!


Issa, trans. Lewis Mackenzie


I wonder even if the "black ships" hadn't appeared when they did, if there still wouldn't have been a "Meiji restoration" at some point, and the renewed militarism which followed.

Larry Bole, February 2008

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Speaking of Frogs
Haibun by Larry Bole, February 2008

Even though it's still winter here in New York City, spring is in the air, or just around the corner, as is said.

So I'm walking down the street in my neighborhood, and suddenly I hear a frog croaking! A frog in this mostly cement-covered neighborhood, with no appreciable body of water nearby except for a few stray puddles left over from last night's sleet shower? A frog in the midst of large apartment buildings crowded up against small, huddled groups of attached houses which have been split up inside into rental apartments, legally or illegally?

Well, some of those attached houses still have pocket-sized gardens out in front which haven't yet been cemented over. So I began my search. The frog croaking seemed to be coming from a small patch of dirt, about five feet by five feet, which was crowded with white plaster rabbits, ducks, and several sets of cherubic children. In the growing season there will barely be room for plants!

Looking and looking I finally spotted it: an accurately painted green ceramic frog sitting on a green ceramic lily pad, afloat on the garden dirt.

A little hole in the frog's open mouth indicated the presence of some sort of electronic soundmaking device hidden inside. Ah, the wonders of modern technology!


spring is in the air!
even the ceramic frog
goes "ribbit! ribbit!"


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Haiga by Emile Molhuysen, February 2008


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watching the seeds sprout-
guarding a pail of tadpoles
like a mother frog


Lisette Root
Happy Haiku December 2010


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a tiny frog
dancing the jig -
facebook encounters



Look at him here
. Gabi Greve .
July 2012


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Related words


2008, the Year of the Frog
***** Leap day, leap year 2008


. ANIMALS in all SEASONS - SAIJIKI


The word for frog is pronounced "kaeru."
It is a pun with the word "return home."
Therefore travelers carry a small frog amulet with the intent of returning safely to their family.

. Kaeru omamori カエルお守り 蛙 Frog amulets .

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"Frog Sumo"
Ogata Gekkō (1859-1920)

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Freezing (itsuru)

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Freezing, frozen (itsuru, kooru)

***** Location: Japan, other areas
***** Season: All Winter
***** Category: Season


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Explanation

There are many ways to describe the freezing process during cold spells in winter. Let us look at some examples.




waking up
to the morning sun -
the heart still freezing


Photo and Haiku by Gabi Greve, 2005

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freezing, itsuru 冱つる
..... kooru 凍る, 氷る
..... shimu 凍む(しむ)
..... ite 凍て

freezing and splitting, itewaruru 凍割るる (いてわるる)
freezing over, itetsuku 凍て付く、凍てつく

freezing, tooketsu 凍結

freezing morning, asajimi 朝凍(あさじみ)
freezing evening, yuujimi 夕凍(ゆうじみ) 

frozen light, tookoo 凍光
freezing moon, tsuki itsuru 月凍つる
freezeing wind, kaze itsuru 風凍つる

fine weather but freezing, itebare 凍晴
freezing sky, itezora 凍空 いてぞら
freezing clouds, itegumo 凍雲
freezing mist, itegasumi 凍霞
..... itemoya 凍靄

frozen cheeks, hoo itsuru 頬凍つる

sound of the frozen temple bell, kane itsuru 鐘凍つる


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waterfall iced up, itetaki 凍滝
..... taki kooru 滝氷る たきこおる
..... hyoobaku 氷瀑(ひょうばく)

iced lake, hyooko 氷湖 hyōko
iced sea, hyookai 氷海 hyōkai

ice bridge, kooribashi 氷橋
frozen harbour, tookoo 凍港
frozen road, itemichi 凍道

frozen ground, itetsuchi 凍土
..... toodo 凍土(とうど); toojoo 凍上(とうじょう); itetsuchi 冱土(いてつち); tsuchi itsuru 土冱つる(つちいつる) 
..... frozen road, itemichi 凍道(いてみち) 
..... michi itsuru 道冱つる(みちいつる)

frozen window, itemado 凍窓


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frozen butterfly, itechoo 凍て蝶
..... Butterfly in Winter(fuyu no choo) Japan

frozen bee, wasp, itebachi 凍蜂

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Some things are rather "frozen in time" or slow motion, like a smile, a gesture in mid-air and more. Here the FREEZE has nothing to do with cold weather.
These are not kigo.

Frozen food, like frozen chicken from the refrigerator can be enjoyed all year, so it makes for haiku topics.

A chicken frozen to death in an icecold barn, on the other hand, would be a real winter happening.


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Photo Gabi Greve

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Worldwide use


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Things found on the way



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HAIKU


tookoo ya kyuu-Ro no machi wa ari to nomi

A frozen harbor —
what was once a Russian town
there and nothing more.


Yamaguchi Seishi 山口誓子

The harbour is the old town of Oodomari in 1926.
Read a discussion of this haiku by
Vaughn Seward, Translating Haiku Forum


... ... ...

This frozen harbor...
what was once a Russian town,
barely there anymore.

Гавань в тисках мороза...
от старого русского посёлка
мало что осталось.


Gavan' v tiskah moroza...
ot starogo russkogo posiolka
malo chto ostalos'.

Zhanna P. Rader

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奥山の 凍て滝の声 響きおり
okuyama no itetaki no koe hibiki ori

deep in the mountains -
the frozen waterfall
still roaring


Gabi Greve, Japan, January 2007


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freezing night chill
we both seek warmth
in close whispers


N.K. Singh, India


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Related words

***** Ice, Icicle (koori, tsurara) (Japan)

***** Frost (shimo, Japan) , Late Frost

***** Winter (fuyu, Japan)


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Please send your contributions to Gabi Greve
worldkigo .....

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6/16/2005

Food from Japan (washoku)

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The Japanese Food Saijiki

和食歳時記  


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. . . . . . . . . . This entry has moved !


WASHOKU - JAPANESE FOOD SAIJIKI



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Fox Shrine Festival (Inari Matsuri)

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. Inari 稲荷と伝説 Legends about the Fox Deity .
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Mr. Fox is on the watch!

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Fox Shrine Festival (Inari Matsuri)

***** Location: Japan
***** Season: Late Spring
***** Category: Observance


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Explanation

For other kigo related to INARI see below.

Inari 稲荷 the "Fox Deity", "Fox God". Inari's foxes, or kitsune, are pure white and act as their messengers.

quote   
Inari Ōkami (稲荷大神, also Oinari)
is the Japanese kami of foxes, of fertility, rice, tea and Sake, of agriculture and industry, of general prosperity and worldly success, and one of the principal kami of Shinto. In earlier Japan, Inari was also the patron of swordsmiths and merchants. Represented as male, female, &/or androgynous, Inari is sometimes seen as a collective of three or five individual kami. Inari appears to have been worshipped since the founding of a shrine at Inari Mountain in 711 AD, although some scholars believe that worship started in the late 5th century.
- More in the WIKIPEDIA !




Fox God Festival, Inari Matsuri 稲荷祭 いなりまつり
visiting Fushimi Fox God Shrine Festival
... Inari Matsuri oide 稲荷祭御出、稲荷祭のお出
... Inari Shinkoosai 稲荷神幸祭, 還幸祭
Fox God Ceremony Group, Inari koo 稲荷講

visiting the Fox God Shrine for the first time,
Inari hatsumoode 稲初荷詣


This tradidional Japanese festival occurs on the first day of the horse according to the Asian lunar calendar.
The horse is the messenger of the Inari Deity.
. Inari fox on a horse .

There are many Fox Shrines in Japan and this is the first large festival of the New Year.
The great fox god shrine festival at Fushimi, Fushimi Inari in Kyoto is the most famous.


年中行事絵巻 稲荷祭(© 伏見稲荷大社蔵)

Click HERE to look at some photos !






Fushimi Inari Taisha Festivals 伏見稲荷大社
source : inari.jp



source : amamori.exblog.jp

Ukanomikami, Uka no Mikami 宇迦之御魂神 / 倉稲魂神
The deity for a good harvest, venerated at Inari shrines.
Miketsu Kami 御食津神 / 三狐神 "Three Foxes Deity"
Inari Kami 稲荷神 Deity to provide food

- quote
Ukanomitama
A kami of foodstuffs, thought to refer specifically to the spirit of rice. Kojiki describes the kami as the offspring of Susanoo, while Nihongi states that it was the offspring of the two kami Izanagi and Izanami. The Engishiki's comments on the Ōtono no hogai norito further identify the kami with Toyoukehime.
Ukanomitama is most commonly known as the kami Inari. From the medieval period, the kami was linked to popular combinatory kami such as Ugajin and Uka Benzaiten. Ukanomitama is enshrined at Kyoto's Fushimi Inari Taisha and other Inari shrines throughout Japan.
- source : Kadoya Atsushi, Kokugakuin 2005


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quote
Fushimi Inari Taisha (伏見稲荷大社)
is the head shrine of Inari, located in Fushimi-ku, Kyoto, Japan. The shrine sits at the base of a mountain also named Inari, and includes trails up the mountain to many smaller shrines.

Since in early Japan Inari was seen as the patron of business, each of the Torii is donated by a Japanese business. First and foremost though, Inari is the god of rice.
Merchants and manufacturers worship Inari for wealth. Donated torii lining footpaths are part of the scenic view.

This popular shrine is said to have as many as 32,000 sub-shrines (bunsha (分社)) throughout Japan.
The shrine became the object of Imperial patronage during the early Heian period. In 965, Emperor Murakami ordered that Imperial messengers were sent to report important events to the guardian kami of Japan. These heihaku were initially presented to 16 shrines including the Inari Shrine.

The earliest structures were built in 711 on the Inariyama hill in southwestern Kyoto, but the shrine was re-located in 816 on the request of the monk Kūkai. The main shrine structure was built in 1499.
At the bottom of the hill are the main gate (楼門, rōmon, "tower gate") and the main shrine (御本殿, go-honden). Behind them, in the middle of the mountain, the inner shrine (奥宮, okumiya) is reachable by a path lined with thousands of torii.
Kodama-ike こだま池 (木霊池) is a pond where people come when a relative was lost. You clap your hands and listen carefully. The direction of the kodama (echo) tells you where to look for the lost person.
To the top of the mountain are tens of thousands of "honorable mounds" (御塚, o-tsuka) for private worship.
source : wikipedia


Yakuriki Sha 薬力社 Yakuriki Shrine
薬力大神
無病息災、薬効、薬害防止、安産、医学技術向上、健康長寿、家内安全、商売繁盛
(薬関係のお仕事、薬局、製薬会社等)
The deity in residence is a god for health and medicine, there are sub-shrines around the area of Yakuriki Shrine are also visited for a long life, advance in medical technology and treatment, success in medical operation and for other specific health related problems.
A deity for protecting the throat, 薬力大神 Yakuriki Ookami, is worshiped by people from performing arts such as singers and actors to perform daily on stage.
- reference -

. . . CLICK here for Photos !


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- quote
On the way down are two "waterfalls,"
or rather places where water pours forth from an overhead trough so supplicants might stand beneath and test their faith while praying in the cold downpour, a religious austerity. The powerful Buddhist protector, Fudo Myo-o, is present in both spots.
- source : www.kyotoguide.com/ver2


. Fudō Myō-ō, Fudoo Myoo-Oo 不動明王 Fudo Myo-O
Acala Vidyârâja - Vidyaraja .

- Inari and Fudo 稲荷と不動明王 -


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Another shrine which was founded by the immigrant clan Hata-uji (秦氏, Hata clan), Fushimi Inari Taisha (伏見稲荷大社).
In 711, Hata-no-Irogu (秦伊呂具), who is considered as the brother of Hata-no-imikitori (秦忌寸都理), established this shrine by enshrining the Inari deities at Mt. Inari (稲荷山) in Kyoto.

- Shared by Taisaku Nogi -
Joys of Japan, 2012


quote
The Hata clan (秦氏)
was an immigrant clan active in Japan since the Kofun period, according to the epic history Nihonshoki.
Hata is the Japanese reading of the Chinese (state and dynasty) name 秦 given to the Qin Dynasty (the real family name was Ying), and given to their descendants established in Japan. The Nihonshoki presents the Hata as a clan or house, and not as a tribe; also only the members of the head family had the right to use the name of Hata.
..... Members of this clan also served as financial advisors to the Yamato Court for several centuries. Originally landing and settling in Izumo and the San'yō region, the Hata eventually settled in the areas of what are now Japan's most major cities. They are said to have aided in the establishment of Heian-kyō (modern-day Kyoto), and of many Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples, including Fushimi Inari Taisha, Matsunoo Taisha, and Kōryū-ji.
© More in the WIKIPEDIA !


. The Hata Clan 秦氏 Hata Uji .
and the Korean and Christian connection


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. Inari Myojin 稲荷明神 Honorable Inari Deity .

INARI refers to the Fox as the divine messenger and thus a deity himself.
KITSUNE refers to the fox as an animal. See below.


. Inari Daimyojin 稲荷大明神 .
and 小石川伝通院 Koishikawa Denzu-In, Dentsu-in, Tokyo
多久蔵主 (たくぞうす) Takuzosu. Also spelled 澤蔵主 / 澤蔵司 / 沢蔵
and the Inari fox priest Hakuzooshu 伯蔵主 Hakuzoshu / Hakuzosu

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Other New Year kigo for the
First Day of the Horse

in the second lunar month

. first day of the horse, hatsu uma, hatsu-uma 初午 .
horse festival, uma matsuri 午祭
first horse, ichi no uma 一の午



初午に狐の剃りし頭哉
. hatsu-uma ni kitsune no sorishi atama kana .
Matsuo Basho 松尾芭蕉 


. hatsu-uma kyoogen 初午狂言(はつうまきょうげん)
Kyogen on the first day of the horse
 




source : blog.livedoor.jp/chino17jidai

taiko uri 太鼓売り vendor of drums

On the first day of the horse during the Inari festival, children walked around drumming, and since there were so many Inari shrines in Edo, the vendors made good business.
They sold all kinds of drums in various sizes and prices. They did not call out to announce their merchandise, but drummed on them, usually on the biggest one they carried, which was not for sale.


太鼓売り無言で歩きやかましさ
taiko uri mugon de aruki yakamashisa

the drum vendors
walk around not talking
but ever so noisy



. The Big Drum (taiko, oodaiko 大鼓、太鼓、大太鼓)and other drums .

. senryu, senryū 川柳 Senryu in Edo .

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Inari no bushasai 稲荷の奉射祭 (いなりのぶしゃさい)
first shooting at the Inari shrine

bushasai, busha sai 歩射祭(ぶしゃさい)
onyumihajimesai, on yumi hajime sai 御弓始祭(おんゆみはじめさい)

At Fushimi Inari on January 12.

With a special bow and arrow to ward off evil for the coming year.
Arrows are shot into the four directions to purify the place.
Finally the head priest shoots one big arrow.


source : sw21akira

hamayumi 破魔弓 bow to ward off evil
kamiya 神矢 "arrow of god"


. Hamaya, 破魔矢, arrow for the New Year .
Busha matsuri 歩射祭 or 奉射祭 - Introduction -


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Inari 稲荷 <> The Fox Cult and Daruma
by Gabi Greve


Fushimi Fox God Shrine and Daruma
by Gabi Greve



ooo ooo ooo ooo ooo ooo ooo ooo ooo ooo ooo ooo


Inari is one of the most well known kami in popular folk Shinto. He (or she) is the god of rice and is related with general prosperity. In earlier Japan, Inari was also the patron of sword smiths and merchants. Primarily, however, Inari is associated with agriculture, protecting rice fields and giving the farmers an abundant harvest every year.

One of the main myths concerning Inari tells of this kami coming down a mountain every spring when it is planting season and ascending back up the mountain after the harvest for the winter. Both events are celebrated in popular folk festivals.

Read the details here and then come back :

INARI = Shinto Rice Kami
Mark Schumacher



Japanese Fox Belief 狐信仰 -


. Toyouke no Ookami 豊受大神
The Great Deity that gives Bountiful .

Deity of Rice and Food


. Myoobu Kitsune 命婦狐 Myobu fox court lady of the Heian period .


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Toyokawa no Dakini Shinten 豊川のダキニ真天

She always appears riding on white fox.

. Dakiniten (Vajra Dakini) 荼枳尼天 .


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The "voice" of the fox

霰こんこんこん触ル狐哉
arare kon kon kon fureru kitsune kana

going nuts in hailstones
crashing down...
a fox


Issa
Tr. David Lanoue

Onomatopoetic Words used in Haiku

Voice of an Animal and Haiku


Compiled by Larry Bole :
Translating Haiku Forum

In Japanese, a fox's bark is written, "Kitsu! Kitsu!"

This myth comes from a folk etymology of the word "kitsune," in which "kitsu" is onomatopoeia for a fox's bark and "ne" means "sound."
Therefore, a fox is something which makes the noise "kitsu." Whether this derivation of the word is true or not, it's been a long, long time since Japanese foxes said "kitsu." Modern Japanese write the fox bark as "kon kon."
http://academia.issendai.com/fox-misconceptions.shtml#bark

In English, the official words for foxes are "bark" and "yelp".  
In Japanese it's simply "naku" なく 鳴く and the onomatopoeia is kon-kon こんこん
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080604112441AAkjxob


Kitsune soba:
buckwheat noodles with fried tofu on top
きつねそば【狐蕎麦】

CLICK for more photos
The fox is an indigenous, if not notorious creature in Japan. It is believed to have the power to bewitch or possess the spirit of anyone who looks into its eyes. The fox is also honored by business owners as a patron spirit animal. Stone images of foxes can be seen guarding almost every temple, great or small, in Japan. The golden bean curd omelet is called ABUR AGE (pronounced Ah-boo-rah-gay) and is often placed upon the altars of the temples as an offering to the gods who reside there.
Foxes are fond of aburage and are said to steal into the temples under the cover of darkness to whisk away the tasty fare left there for them. And thus, this bewitching bit of lore gives Kitsune
soba its name.
http://www.thingsasian.com/stories-photos/1488


My suggestion is to translate 'kon' as "yip:"

'kon kon kon' = "yip yip yip"

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According to Nozaki, the word kitsune was originally onomatopoeia. Kitsu represented a fox's yelp and came to be the general word for fox. -Ne signifies an affectionate mood, which Nozaki presents as further evidence of an established, non-imported tradition of benevolent foxes in Japanese folklore. Kitsu is now archaic; in modern Japanese, a fox's cry is transcribed as kon kon or gon gon.
© More in the WIKIPEDIA !



A famous childrens book in Japan
by Niimi Nankichi 新実南吉

His Memorial Museum in Handa town, Aichi
source : www.nankichi.gr.jp/sanpo


CLICK for more photos

GON, the little fox
Gongitsune ごん狐, ごんぎつね

...  More in the WIKIPEDIA !


My free translation of the above ISSA haiku

hailstones falling
kon kon kon
on Kon, the fox

Gabi Greve


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Worldwide use


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Things found on the way


. gankake torii 願掛け鳥居 miniature gate to make a wish .
Fushimi Inari Taisha Shrine 伏見稲荷大社


WASHOKU
Inarizushi, Inari Sushi いなりずし/ 稲荷寿司
 



. Sen Sotan Inari Jinja 宗旦稲荷神社 .
The tea master Sen Sotan and the Fox 宗旦狐 Sotangitsune, Sotan Kitsune


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HAIKU


spring rain--
showing a sake cup
calling foxes

harusame ya sakazuki misete kitsune yobu
春雨や盃見せて狐よぶ

by Issa, 1810
Tr. David Lanoue
http://cat.xula.edu/issa/


More Fox Haiku by Issa


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Related words

***** Oyama Fox God Festival
Inari Ooyama sai 稲荷大山祭
kigo for the New Year

shimehiki 注連曳き(しめひき)bringing sacred ropes
Inari shimehari 稲荷注連張(いなりしめはり) Inari sacred rope
shimehari shinji 注連張神事(しめはりしんじ)
kawarake hiroi 土器拾い(かわらけひろい)picking up ritual clay dishes
okawarake, o kawarake 御土器(おかわらけ)honorable clay dishes

On January 5

The sacred ropes along the stone wall are renewed.

At Fushimi Inari, Kyoto, on the Inari Yama 稲荷大山 mountain shrine.
In the valley below Gozendani 御膳谷 thre used to be two halls for the deities to feast : Miae dono 御饗殿 and O-Kama dono 御竈殿.
Food offerings were made on the sacred stone Mike ishi 御饌石 .
Now on the sacred stone 神石 70 small sacred clay dishes 斎土器 (imi doki) are placed, filled with ritual white sake (中汲酒 nakakumi sake) and prayers for a good harvest are offered.
Priests wear special ropes made from local vines (hikage no kazura 日陰のかずら) and a branch of sacred cedar.


CLICK for more photos !

The sacred dishes were auspicious amulets and people could take them home. The fight for getting one of the dishes was part of the festival, some people even got hurt in the wrangling.
The sacred dishes were a favorite of the local sake breweries, which took them as a sign for a good brewing season.



. Kawarake throwing at Mount Atago .

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***** Fox God Arrow Shooting Festival
Inari no Busha sai 稲荷の奉射祭
kigo for the New Year
At the Fushimi Fox God Shrine (Fushimi Inari) in Kyoto. To pray for good harvest and luck in the new year, arrows are shot in all directions to war off evel spririts and bad luck.


***** Inari Sushi (inarizushi いなり寿司)
kigo for summer
Food. Cold rice wrapped in a sheet of tofu.




***** . WKD : Horse (uma 馬) .


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kigo for late winter

. Ooji no kitsunebi 王子の狐火 (おうじのきつねび)
”fox fire" at Oji Inari Shrine .


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kigo for all winter


***** Fox (kitsune 狐)
Vulpes vulpes



akagitsune 赤狐(あかぎつね)red fox
kurogitsune 黒狐(くろぎつね)black fox
gingitsune 銀狐(ぎんぎつね)silver fox
shirogitsune 白狐(しろぎつね)white fox


juujigitsune, juuji gitsune 十字狐(じゅうじぎつね)
lit. "fox with the number ten", a pattern on its shoulder
. . . CLICK here for Photos !

kitakitsune 北狐(きたきつね)"northern fox"
Vulpes vulpes schrencki

hokkyoku gitsune 北極狐(ほっきょくぎつね)"polar fox" arctic fox
Alopex lagopus

Chishima gitsune 千島狐(ちしまぎつね)
fox from Chishima islands, Kuriles

kangitsune 寒狐(かんぎつね)fox in the cold

kitsunezuka 狐塚(きつねづか) fox den
Fuchsbau



kitsune wana 狐罠 (きつねわな) trap for fox hunting and more winter kigo

The Fox and the Badger (tanuki) are well known in Japanese legend as tricksters.


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Fox Haiku by Issa (Tr. David Lanoue)


Will-o'-the-wisp (kitsunebi 狐火 , onibi) Japan


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. Yosa Buson 与謝蕪村 in Edo .

春の夜や 狐の誘ふ上童
. haru no yo ya kitsune no izanau ue warawa .

公達(きんだち)に狐化けたり宵の春
. kindachi ni kitsune baketari yoi no haru .

狐火や髑髏(どくろ)に雨のたまる夜に
. kitsunebi ya dokuro ni ame no tamaru yo ni .

kannagi ni kitsune koi suru yosamu kana

kitsunebi no moetsuku bakari kareobana

meshi nusumu kitsune oi utsu mugi no aki

suisen ni kitsune asobu ya yoizukiyo


草枯れて狐の飛脚通りけり
. kusa karete kitsune no hikyaku tori keri .
This is a hokku about a special famous fox from Tottori, called
Hikyakugitsune 飛脚狐 "the fast messenger "flying" fox"
He even has a Shrine in his honor.


- quote -
THE FOX BETWEEN TWO WORLDS

Withered grasses;
A fox messenger
hurries by.


That makes no sense in a Western context. To us — at least traditionally — a fox is a rather sly and clever animal. In traditional Japan, however, a fox (kitsune) is a creature that lives between two worlds — ours and the “spirit” world. In Japan, foxes were believed to be able to take on human form, and woe to the young man who happened to become infatuated with a fox spirit! He would just fade and waste away like a shoot of grass withering, and would eventually die.

Buson has reflected this notion in the withered grasses of the autumn fields in his hokku. He sees the fox hurrying past not as just an ordinary animal, but rather as a courier passing swiftly with a message to deliver, involved in his task and giving no attention to the human. Buson regards the foxes as living their own lives in their own eerie society, separate from that of humans, but occasionally coming in contact with them.

This verse has a feeling that we in the West would associate with Halloween. It is far from the best kind of hokku, but it did exist, and it does have its effect.
- source : Hokku David -


Withered grasses
where a fox messenger on flying legs
passed through.

Tr. Yuki Sawa & Edith Marcombe Shiffert


In withered grass
a fox carrying messages
passes by

Tr. Allan Persinger


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. Basho Inari Jinja 芭蕉稲荷神社 .
Matsuo Basho Fox Shrine in Sumidagawa, Tokyo

. Fukushima Inari Jinja 福島稲荷神社 
Fukushima Inari Shrine


. Handa Inari Shrine 半田稲荷神社 Tokyo .

. Inari 稲荷 the Fox Deity amulets . .

Tanuki, a badger posing as Daruma

. Inari 稲荷と伝説 Legends about the Fox Deity .


[ . BACK to WORLDKIGO . TOP . ]
[ . BACK to DARUMA MUSEUM TOP . ]

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6/13/2005

Fly, Flies (hae)

[ . BACK to WORLDKIGO  TOP . ]
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Fly, flies (hae)

***** Location: Japan, worldwide
***** Season: All Summer and see below
***** Category: Animal


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Explanation




kigo for all summer


house flies, iebae 家蝿、家蠅、いえばえ、ハエ
may-fly, sabae 五月蝿 さばえ
meat-fly, nikubae 肉蠅

black fly, kurobae 黒蠅 くろばえ
golden fly, kinbae 金蠅
silver fly, ginbae 銀蠅

horse fly, umabae 馬蠅
cow fly, ushibae 牛蠅

paper to catch flies .. haetorigami > Fly-swatter


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kigo for all spring


haru no hae 春の蠅 (はるのはえ) fly in spring
Fliege im Fruehling


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kigo for late spring

hae umaru 蠅生る はえうまる flies are born
..... hae no ko 蠅の子(はえのこ) "fly children"
fly babies, young flies


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kigo for all autumn

aki no hae 秋の蠅 (あきのはえ) flies in autumn
nokoru hae 残る蠅(のこるはえ)remaining flies
okure hae 後れ蠅(おくれはえ) late flies


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kigo for all winter

fly in winter 冬の蠅 (ふゆのはえ) fuyu no hae
kanbae 寒蠅(かんばえ)fly in the cold
itebae 凍蠅(いてばえ) freezing fly


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quote
True flies are insects of the order Diptera
(from the Greek di = two, and ptera = wings). They possess a pair of wings on the mesothorax and a pair of halteres, derived from the hind wings, on the metathorax. Apart from secondarily flightless insects (including some flies), the only other order of insects with any form of halteres are the Strepsiptera, and theirs are on the mesothorax, with the flight wings on the metathorax.

source : Wikipedia


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Worldwide use


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Things found on the way




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HAIKU


留主にするぞ恋して遊べ庵の蝿
rusu ni suru zo koi shite asobe io no hae

while I'm away
enjoy the lovemaking
hut's flies


Issa
Translated by David Lanoue

Issa was off to a trip.
Did Issa suspect of Kiku's adultery during his long absence?

Larry comments on this:

Well, Issa seems to have loved Kiku, or at least was very fond of her. And since it's hard to keep secrets in small towns, I imagine the same would hold true in Kashiwabara.

According to Lewis Mackenzie, in the introduction to his book of Issa translations, "The Autumn Wind:"

"Early in 1814 he married Kiku, a farmer's daughter from the neighboring hamlet of Akagawa, whose family were distantly related to his mother's. Kiku was a rosy, good-humoured lass of twenty-eight whose like is to be seen about the countryside to this day [mid-1950's], dressed in the baggy blue and white trousers tight at the ankles (monpe), light-colored kerchief and scarlet braids that still form their daily costume.
. . .

"Whatever were Kiku's feelings about her elderly husband, it is clear from the number and nature of references to her in both journals and poems that she inspired him with deep affection. This is often expressed humorously, but as well as her own wholesome rustic charm she had the merit for him of being the first woman, since his mother, to give him the daily sympathy and steady companionship that can crown relations between the sexes after ardour has had its day.
. . .

"Some of the letters survive which Issa wrote to Kiku during his absences from home. They salute her with respect and speak of his solicitude for her health and regret for the tedium to which he had left her."

Mackenzie goes on to mention that Issa's diary entry for the day he married Kiku is disappointing to biographers and students:

"For instance, his marriage in April, 1814 is chronicled thus:

11th April--Fair--wife came, Tokuzaemon ['go-between' for the wedding] stayed"

However, Mackenzie goes on to say:

"On the other hand, a great number of verses at this time are playful conceits about the name Kiku, and even the diary records his joy and anxiety when she told him that she was with child.

[O Kiku no sandara-boshi ya kesa no yuki]

The Chrysanthemum
In her round straw hat--
This morning's snow."
. . .

"Kiku fell ill after the birth of another son. She had a long period of illness made more painful by arthritis and died in the spring of 1823. Issa had hurried to her bedside when her illness began and tended her with all his deeply bought experience of sickness. Perhaps it was because his love and sorrow were so deep that he wrote little about her death but mourned her even with a gentle smile.

[Kogoto iu aite mo araba kyo no tsuki]

The moon tonight!
If only she were here
To hear my grumbles."


Recent surveys have claimed that as many as 40% of married women admit to having had at least one affair. So it's your call. I think it would be amusing though to see a shunga haiga dealing with flies, perhaps with a lonely wife in the background watching them and yearning for her absent husband.

Larry Bole
Translating Haiku Forum



........................ Other versions

Now we are leaving,
the houseflies can make love
to their heart's content.

Sam Hamill  



I'm going out now,
So enjoy yourselves making love,
Flies of my hut!

Blyth ("A History of Haiku," Vol. One, third printing 1968, p.382)
MORE : Translating Haiku Forum


I'm going out,
flies, so relax,
make love. 

Tr. Hass  


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やれ打つな はえが手をする 足をする
yare utsu na hae ga te o suri ashi o suru

don't swat the fly!
wringing hands
wringing feet

Tr. Lanoue


. WKD : Kobayashi Issa 小林一茶 in Edo .



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Related words





***** Fly-swatter

***** Gadfly (abu)

***** Mosquitoes (ka)


. ANIMALS in all SEASONS
SAIJIKI


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