The Kokinshu: Weekly Reading
Irrationally, I long for my love;
whether asleep or awake-
Where can I send my heart
that it may forget you in peace?
The Kokinshu contains so many poems of yearning for a love that is absent or cannot be obtained. These are the poems that speak to me the most.
The Kokinshu is a compilation of well over a thousand short poems composed by Japanese poets in the Heian period (as ordered by Emperer Uda). It dates all the way back roughly to the year 905. I have fallen in love with these poems!
The book I'm pulling these poems from deserve the following credits:
John Timothy Wixted (Author), Leonard Grzanka (Author), Laurel Rasplica Rodd (Translator), Mary Catherine Henkenius (Translator)
The book itself can be purchased on Amazon if you follow this link.
Please keep in mind that The Kokinshu has been published by many different publishers and translated by many different people over time. I'm simply sharing with you the translations from one book.