Friday, December 7, 2012

poems and literature

My last post had been about books.
Yeah.. reviews on books.

Personally, my readings are more towards those of stories.. yep, that's right. Novels and manga alike.

But lately, after watching 超訳百人一首 (Chou yaku hyaku ninn isshu: Literally translated as a poem of 100 poets of Japan), I suddenly have an appreciation for it.

I did learn poems, sajak, syair, pantun, puisi and etc.  all through school, but it doesn't have that much of an impact of me until the anime. Yes, it's the anime that brought me back to why poems are in fact beautiful as it is.

My favorite poem from Hyakuninn Isshu is

Hana no iro wa,
Utsuri ni keri na,
Itazurani,
Waga mi yo ni furu,
Nagame seshi ma ni
- by Komachi Ono

The blossom's tint is washed away,
By heavy showers of rain;
My charms, which once I prized so much,
Are also on wane, ---
Both bloomed, alas! in vain 
-translated by William N. Porter 


-I copied from Random Curiosity blog... in no means this is mine, all credits must go to the author of this blog

Right now I am reading The Masnavi by Rumi. I had found one that captured my eyes, which is this.
Now listen to a further point, my friend,
Clear as the soul but hard to comprehend:
At one stage on this path snake venom changes
To wholesome food-it's God that rearranges:
Poison can be a drug that brings relief
And lawful things there are here unbelief,
Things harmful to the soul in that pure sphere
Can it be a remedy when they're down here:
Unripe grapes are too sour for us to eat
But when those same grapes ripen, they taste sweet:
As wine it's bitter and prohibited
But vinegar's use is unlimited

Till then,
ponders on the poem too,

HaHuHi