Fifteen Poets of Modern Japan
translated by Glenn Arthur Hughes and Yowan T. Iwazaki
Poem by Takeko Kujo
4420115Fifteen Poets of Modern Japan — PoemGlenn Arthur Hughes and Yowan T. IwazakiTakeko Kujo

Takeko Kujo

1

This quiet is so precious!
No voice sounds in heaven or on earth.
The moon and I are alone.

2

I do not know
If it be the fire of God
Or the fire of Satan,
But where its light leads me
I will go.

3

This rain,
Unlike the gentle showers of spring,
Reminds me of your voice
When you are angry.

4

Spring days, they say, are long.
Yesterday seemed so short,
But today—alas!

5

You are not here,
And I am waiting and waiting for the moon,
Which does not rise.
It is a heart-breaking night
For man and sky.

6

The evening breeze
Blows the cherry-blossoms
Back to heaven.
They are too beautiful
For man’s earth.

7

The sinking sun
Is the soul of a giant.
Like my soul
It is bloody and burning.