To appear in Echoes 2020: Writers in Kyoto Anthology #4, which will be available from Amazon
Horikawa-dori2 at the grave of Lady Murasaki3
her guardian tree
spreading its yukata4
beckons
Horikawa-dori at the grave of Lady Murasaki
grizzled gray visitor
hands gloved in white gauze
bandied legs spread wide apart
slow short steps to the grave
and bows as deep as he is able
Horikawa-dori at the grave of Lady Murasaki
alpha raven comes to call –
his reasons are the same?
I wonder
Horikawa-dori near Imadegawa
red face, white helmet
tengu5 nose, orange baton
he bows – I return
Rokkaku-dori at Rokkaku-do6
telephoto lens
penetrates the temple –
rapist who leaves no scar
Shishigadani-dori near Eikando
laden down with bags
chattering in foreign slang –
the happy shoppers
Tetsugaku no Michi7
fat white bird
nibbles early berries –
branch bowing under weight
The path to Ishiyama Dera8
with heavy brows
this rock rebukes
my petulence and pride
Golf Road near Shibutani-kaido
parting mothers
voice a crescendo
of bye-bye’s and mata-ne’s9
Notes
- Miyako, (lit. “capital”) is an ancient name for Kyoto, dating back to the time when Kyoto was the imperial capital.
- The suffix -dori means street or avenue.
- Lady Murasaki Shikibu (973 – 1014) was a poet and novelist of the Heian Period. She is best known as the author of The Tale of Genji.
- A yukata is a cotton kimono, worn in the summertime or in the evening at home. The bark formation at the trunk of the tree resembles a spreading kimono.
- The tengu is a Japanese mythological creature, noted for its ferocity. Typically depicted with a scarlet face and an extremely long nose.
- Rokkaku-do (lit. “six corner temple”) is a hexagonally shaped temple in central Kyoto. It is reputed to be the site of Shinran’s visionary encounter with Kannon, the bodhisattva of mercy. For more on this encounter, see the forthcoming “Crazy Fuckers” article on Shinran.
- Tetsugaku no Michi (lit. “path of philosophy”) is a walking path alongside a canal that runs from Kyoto University and Ginkakuji southward to Nanzenji. The name honors the Japanese philosopher and Kyoto UniversityNishida, who used the path frequently for walking meditations.
- Ishiyama-dera is a temple along the shore of Lake Biwa just outside Kyoto. It is best known as the place where Lady Murasaki conceived the idea for The Tale of Genji.
- Mata-ne (lit. “see you again” is a common Japanese expression on parting. Japanese women also frequently use the English expression “bye-bye”. Often, both are used together, in alternating sequence.