I hurl a firefly into the darkness
and sense the enormity of night.
—Kyoshi Takahama
Spring
stirs the clouds
in the sky's teabowl
—Kikusha-ni,
Tonight I saw
how the peony crumples
in the fire's embers
—Katoh Shuhson,
It fills me with anger,
this moon; it fills me
and makes me whole
—Takeshita Shizunojo
War
stood at the end of the hall
in the long shadows
—Watanabe Hakusen
Because he is slow to wrath,
I tackle him, then wring his neck
in the long grass
—Shimazu Ryoh
Pale mountain sky:
cherry petals play
as they tumble earthward
—Kusama Tokihiko
The frozen moon,
the frozen lake:
two oval mirrors reflecting each other.
—Hashimoto Takako,
The bitter winter wind
ends here
with the frozen sea
—Ikenishi Gonsui
Bitter winter wind,
why bellow so
when there's no leaves to blow?
—Natsume Soseki,
The lamp extinguished,
once-distant stars
enter my window.
—Natsume Soseki
Winter waves
roil
their own shadows
—Tominaga Fûsei
No sky,
no land:
just snow eternally falling...
—Kajiwara Hashin
Stillness:
a single chestnut leaf glides
on brilliant water
—Ryuin
The snake slipped away
but his eyes, holding mine,
still stare in the grass
—Kyoshi Takahama
Murmurs follow the hay cart
this blossoming summer day
—Ippekiro Nakatsuka,
