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Paperweights This hokku -- by Kitô -- is one of those verses in which each part is reflected in the other. We see the paperweights on the books, and then we feel the spring wind, and realize -- actually feel -- that the books are weighted to keep the pages from fluttering in the gusting, unpredictable wind of spring. We feel the wind in the paperweights, and we feel the resistant weight of the paperweights in the spring wind. Both give us a harmony, a unity, a springtime oneness. The second line is a bit long. I could have translated it -- slightly losing accuracy -- as just "books," but knowing that these are picture books gives us a pleasant feeling of seeing much in little as the spring wind blows. David
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| yvonne May 2, 2007 09:17 AM PDT  I think using picture books is much better than just books. There is another diminish to think about and it does tie into Spring. Using an extra word when translating into English, or writing in English is important to get the meaning down in better ways. So many people write in this chop and cut way. This is not using English grammar correctly. It is something left over from the imagist and that was around the 1920s, I believe | ||
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