English Original
the stillness
of these rocks
covered in snow --
sipping green tea
I gaze and gaze
One Moment at a Time, 2022
Aya Yuhki
Chinese Translation (Traditional)
這些
被雪覆蓋岩石
的寂靜
品嚐綠茶
我凝視又凝視
Chinese Translation (Simplified)
这些
被雪覆盖岩石
的寂静
品尝绿茶
我凝视又凝视
Bio Sketch
Aya Yuhki was born and now lives in Tokyo. She started writing tanka more than thirty years ago and has expanded her interests to include free verse poetry, essay writing, and literary criticism. Aya Yuhki is Editor-in-Chief of The Tanka Journal published by the Japan Poets’ Society. Her works are featured on the homepage of the Japan Pen Club’s Electronic Library.
Aya's tanka builds, line by line, to an unexpected yet thematically significant and emotionally effective ending that reveals the theme of "silent meditation." The use of repetition in L5 enhances the visually and emotionally suggestive power of the tanka.
ReplyDeleteAnd this meditative gaze is called "Trataka, a word from Sanskrit meaning 'to gaze.'" It is a form of one-pointed focus meditation, in which you concentrate on a single object ("these rocks" covered in snow in Ls 2&3). The object may be seen on the outside, in your environment, or on the inside where it is pictured in your mind.