Akiko Yosano (1878 – 1942) was a Japanese poet and feminist who wrote mostly Haiku, Tanka, and other short poems. I recently found a box of old books I had stashed at my mother’s, and this poem is in one of them. As a writer of short poetry, it’s one of my favorites.
The word for poem in Japanese is ‘uta’. It’s also the word for song. Traditionally Japanese poetry was chanted.
Because my songs are brief,
People think I hoarded words.
I have spared nothing in my songs,
There is nothing I can add.
Unlike a fish, my soul swims without gills.
I sing on one breath.
The word for poem in Japanese is ‘uta’. It’s also the word for song. Traditionally Japanese poetry was chanted.
Because my songs are brief,
People think I hoarded words.
I have spared nothing in my songs,
There is nothing I can add.
Unlike a fish, my soul swims without gills.
I sing on one breath.
