"Stars and Dandelions"

Stars and Dandelions　( 星とたんぽぽ )

Misuzu Kaneko (1903-1930)

Deep down in the blue sky

Like pebbles on the ocean floor

They lie submerged till dark comes...

Stars unseen in the light of day.

You can't see them, still they're there.

Even things not seen are there.

Petals drop and withered dandelions

Hidden in cracks between roof tiles

Wait silently for spring to come...

Their strong roots unseen.

You can't see them, still they're there.

Even things not seen are there.

(translated by D.P.Dutcher)

Image via wikimedia

                                                                         

What we can see with our eyes is not everything that exists. The invisible things do exist sustaining the lives of all the living things.  They can be love, thoughtfulness, gratitude, attention, prayers, .......,  people we don't know directly, or earth's atmosphere, soil, sunlight and other cosmic power which embraces all the things on the Earth.  We tend to fail to appreciate or even notice why we are here and are able to live.

Kaneko chose dandelions along with stars.  Is it because dandelion flowers look like stars in the fields?  Stars in the heaven and stars in the daytime on the Earth.

 

About the importance of the invisible things, some people would quote from Saint-Exupery's:  "What makes the desert beautiful is that somewhere it hides a well."  or "It is only with the heart that one can see rightly, what is essential is invisible to the eyes."   I introduce "Hoshi to Tannpopo" as a Japanese example.

Misuzu Kaneko (1903-1930) is a female poet for children.  I like it when she touches the truth of existence both animate and inanimate, gazing at them gently and compassionately.  Her profound thoughts reach straight my heart because of  her simple and plain words.  I wonder if her soft spoken-Japanese like a gentle child is conveyed by translation to non-native speakers of Japanese.   

I got to know her poems in 2003 when the centenary of her birth was commemorated.  She passed away young at the age of 26.

 

Misuzu Kaneko's room

"Hoshi to Tannpopo" as well as "Suzume no Kasan" (Sparoow's Mother) is currently recited on TV advertisement of Hihakai Kensa (Nondestructive Testing) Ltd. in Japan. 

"The Name of the Rose" by Umberto Eco

(The name of this rose is "Cherry Parfait". This photo is from the Website.)

What kind of story do you imagine from the title of the book, The Name of the Rose, by Umberto Eco? It is a murder mystery set at the abbey in the northern part of Italy in 14th century. William of Vaskerville tries to solve why monks dying mysteriously one after another with Adso of Melk, a narrator. It's not as simple as just a detective novel due to rich layers of contents surrounding the central plot. At first I felt it very difficult and cruel for me to follow. It is difficult due to detailed historical religious background of the Middle Ages, Biblical analysis, and various arguments: it is cruel, bloody and grotesque not only because of serial murders but also barbarous lynching during the inquisition of the alleged heretics and witches. In the meantime, I was absorbed into the story.

The central argument is about Aristotle's book on comedy. According to William, Aristotle devoted his second book of Poetics on comedy as an instrument of truth. Some monks believe a monk shouldn't laugh because Jesus Christ never laughed (William asks if they can be so sure) and laughter is the instrument of Devil. So, successive monks as a head of the library have hidden it afraid of the book threatening to the faith. At last one monk's frantic desire for the book not to be discovered causes mysterious serial murders. How did he stop the spread of what he considers dangerous ideas? Victims were killed by reading the book. The hint is blackened fingers and tongues of the victims. Can you guess how?

I was impressed with William's rational thoughts in the chaotic times. He was once an inquisitor, but he recalls he saw evil in him during the inquisition to punish evil. He says many people tend to make mistakes for the sake of things they believe as truth and people must free themselves from insane passion for truth.

Umberto Eco starts the Prologue with the beginning of Gospel According to John, "When all things began, the Word already was. The Word dwelt with God, and what God was, the Word was." I wonder if this phrases have something to do with Aristotle's book or the power of the written words?

The original book seems to contain lots of Latin phrases and in it's Japanese work of translation which I read, the Latin words are written with "katakana." One example is 過ギニシ薔薇ハタダ名前ノミ、虚シキソノ名ガ今ハ残レリ　(The beauty of the past now disappeared, we hold only the name of the rose.)" This sentence is a key to understand the title "The Name of the Rose." So, what is the "rose"? I simply thought the lost "rose " is a beautiful peasant girl whose name is unknown and who Adso had only once earthly love with. According to the Japanese translator, the lost "rose" can be thought to be Aristotle's book on comedy because it is forever lost, that is, there is no contents now, only name remains.

I saw its film adaptation, too. It was fun to follow the plot, but rich contents are not revealed enough in the film. Having said that, I know I couldn't digest well the rich contents of the book but I only have a sense of accomplishment that I finished reading thick two volumes of the book.

"Tsugumi" by Banana Yoshimoto

I read Tsugumi by Banana Yoshimoto in original Japanese.

Maria is a narrator of this story. She has been raised by her mother who is a mistress to Maria's father. She is thoughtful and matured for her age in spite of the circumstances. Upon the marriage of mother and father and her entrance to university, her family moves to Tokyo leaving the memory in the seaside town.

Maria has grown with Tsugumi and Tsugumi's sister Yoko. They are cousins. Tugumi has been so frail since her birth that her parents thoroughly spoiled her by giving in. She is outrageous; she is pale but beautiful, she is mean and rebellious, she provokes fights and lies constantly to leave people around her miserable. While she is so to her familiar people, she is soft and sweet in public. She has double aspects. Maria has disliked her but they become real friends after an incident. Maria admires her at times because Tsugumi can be amazingly kind and true to herself even in the middle of disaster, and is full of energy despite her lifelong illness.

One summer, Maria goes back to her hometown and a bittersweet incident happens. What happens? How will be their frindship? How will Tsugumi's health? I will stop the introduction of this story here. Enjoy reading to see what's going on if you feel inclined to.

I've been a fan of Banana Yoshimoto's books since I read "Kitchen." She shows something fascinating and moving in small things and mundane everyday life with her poetic prose.

Summary of "Animal Farm"

(This is an assignment of EWII.)

Animal Farm (Japanese here)by George Orwell was published in 1945. At first it looks like a fable for children but actually it is a satire on how the utopian ideas fall into totalitarianism.

Animals of Manor Farm get rid of humans from the farm to be free from misery and slavery. They try to establish a utopia. They are supposed to strictly follow the Seven Commandments of Animalism. The most important commandment is that "all the animals are equal." Pigs are the most intelligent on the farm and take leadership. Gradually a clever elite pig takes control. He gets rid of his rival, another elite pig, by a cunning and ruthless way. Then he amends each guiding principle one by one. One pig plays the role of advertisement. He tells lies repeatedly. Other animals are honest, good-hearted, hardworking, but not intelligent or aware enough to see through the lies and they come to believe eventually. The most important article is altered to "All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than other animals." It's too late when animals realize what's going on. For most of animals, their revolution has caused only a change of the ruler from humans to pigs. They are in worse misery than before.