Translations

Below you can find the translations I have done of various works (and parts of works) of Japanese literature.

Natsume Soseki - Kanshi

from Remembrances, chapter 5

The man of refined taste has yet to die
In sickness, he takes time for leisure
Day after day, he concerns himself with the mountains
Morning after morning, watching the green mountains

from Remembrances, chapter 24

Autumn dew drops into the ravine
Radiant chrysanthemum lights my face
I want to follow the ravine into the distance
But I can only return with the clouds

Natsume Soseki - Haiku

Parting,
In one strand of a dream
The milky way

Lightning,
Often times visible
At the bottom of the waterfall

A new house
Where an umbrella lies open
Like a chrysanthemum

Is it a bright star
That shines through my window
When I turn off the light?

In a world of dreams,
There are even people
Who spend their lives slumbering

I wish I was born
A person as small
As a violet

Going to the moon,
Soseki has forgotten
His wife

The shimmering heat
Rises over
The cat’s grave