I was sure I would never get lost
in the tangled roads of love,
Now I have been caught
in the karma of past lives.
~Kenrei Mon-in Ukyo No Daibu*
*cited:
The Burning Heart
Trans & Ed, K Rexroth & Ikuko Atsumi
japanese poetry
in this deep mountain…
In town
there are sounds
of flutes and drums.
But in this deep mountain
only a pine rustles.
~Ryokan*
*cited:
Sky Above, Great Wind
Kazuaki Tanahashi
a gift from heaven
the cloud-covered sky
is all open
the heart of takuhatsu
as it is–
a gift from heaven
~Ryokan*
*cited:
Sky Above, Great Wind
Kazuaki Tanahashi
all moving things…
all moving things
come to an end:
a knotty willow
~Enshi*
shadow dancing
*cited:
Japanese Death Poems
Yoel Hoffmann
at night…summer shadows
At night my sleep
embraces the summer shadows
of my life.
~Oto*
Fort Collins Museum of Discovery
*cited:
Japanese Death Poems
Yoel Hoffmann
i watch over
Sleeplessly
I watch over
the spring night –
but no amount of guarding
is enough to make it stay
~Izumi Shikibu*
*cited in:
The Ink Dark Moon
Trans: Jane Hirshfield with Mariko Aratani
a meditative journey 
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