The Spell of Japan Part 14

Previous to the introduction of the Chinese ideographs in the early Christian centuries, the j.a.panese had no written language. A knowledge of these ideographs places all Chinese literature at the service of the j.a.panese scholar. There are over eighty thousand characters, and three ways of writing as well as of p.r.o.nouncing each, but one finds that most people know only about five or six thousand.

The great cla.s.sical period, corresponding perhaps to the Elizabethan Era, covers about five hundred years, from the eighth to the twelfth centuries. During this time history, romance, and poetry flourished. The j.a.panese record of ancient happenings, dealing with early history and mythology, dates back to 712 A. D. and is sometimes called the Bible of j.a.pan. The romances, many of which were written by women, described the Court life of the tenth and eleventh centuries. Most of the verses were written in the short _tanka_ form, but longer ones, comprising groups of these stanzas, were common.

In later times Bakin (1767-1848) became famous for his novels. One of these--the "Tale of Eight Dogs"--contains no less than one hundred and six small volumes.

In spite of the fact that Kozo Ozaki was born less than fifty years ago, he is regarded as the Father of j.a.panese Literature. His work may be likened to that of making a stone palace from a prehistoric cave, for he simplified and unified the language, which was a mixture of the scholarly speech of the stage with the modern vulgar tongue. Ozaki was a perfect type of the gentleman of Old j.a.pan. He was an artist as well as an author, and also an orator, people flocking to hear him speak. A group of young writers was formed in his time, but he was distinctly the leader. His stories were mostly of love. Among the seventy volumes published before his death (at the age of thirty-seven) "The Confessions of a Lover," "Three Wives," and "The Golden Demon" are especially well known. Among his most noted contemporaries were Rohan Koda and Kyoka Izumi, the latter of whom was termed the j.a.panese Maeterlinck.

To-day Osaki Batsume is one of the most prominent writers. He was born in Tokyo in 1867, and is said to have taken George Meredith as his model. One of his best known works is "Botchan," which is on the order of "Tom Brown's School Days." Much satire, and much philosophy, are found in his books, but he shows little sympathy with the follies of this life. His local colour and descriptions of social life are excellent, and he attacks the imperfections of his day with good effect.

He is considered the master writer of modern times.

Many writers and books might be mentioned, but I want to speak of Dr.

Nitobe, whose "Bushido" and "j.a.panese Nation" are known the world over.

His wife is a charming American woman, and he has been exchange professor with America. I quote two of his essays that I especially like.

HEART AND CONSCIENCE

In thy sweet tremulous voice whisper in my ears what thou fain wouldst have. And the Heart confided her secret of love to Conscience. Said he in harsh tones of rebuke, "Thou most foolish one! Thy love is born of flesh. Thou shalt never behold the face of thy beloved. Thou art utterly corrupt." The poor Heart wept its bitterest; but her sobs stern Conscience heeded not; they reached the ears of the angels only.

THE SOUL'S QUEST OF G.o.d

Oft have I asked the question, O G.o.d, who art Thou? Where art Thou? And each time the answer comes in softest voice, Who art thou that askest Who I am? What thou art, that I am, and what I am art thou. And where art thou that askest where I am? Where thou art, there am I--and where I am, there art thou.

In worshipping G.o.d we worship ourselves, and in worshipping ourselves we worship G.o.d. The real self is within us, the essence of the Ego is divine. We clothe it in the rags of flesh and of fleshly desires, until the divine self is hid; and we call that self which does not strictly belong to it.

j.a.panese poetry differs very largely from anything with which we are familiar. It has little if any rhythm, as we understand rhythm. The _tanka_ was for many years the only form of verse known. It has five lines and thirty-one syllables, which are arranged 5-7-5-7-7. This is an unusual metre to our ears, and translators are obliged to change the verses somewhat in order to make them sound more familiar to English readers. The following poem by the late Emperor is typical:--

THE NEW YEAR PINE

"Atarashiki Toshi no hogigoto Kiku niwa ni Yorodzu yo yobo-o Noki no matsu kaze!"

"While New Year celebration fills my mind and heart, I seem to hear above the palace eaves apart, Winds calling midst the pines my garden doth adorn; The voice of countless generations yet unborn!"

BY MEIJI TENNO.

_Translated by Mrs. Douglas Adams._

j.a.panese cla.s.sical poetry consists of poetical ideas expressed in flowery language and packed into the regulation metre. It abounds in word-plays and all sorts of puns, but is absolutely free from any trace of vulgarity. In those early days philosophy, religion, and satire were not considered fit themes for poetic treatment.

There is an even more Lilliputian form of verse than the _tanka_, called the _hokku_, which contains only seventeen syllables, often with little or no rhyme. An example of this form given by Lafcadio Hearn is known as "Vagabondage," and is a good example of much in little: "Heavily falls the rain on the hat that I stole from the scarecrow." Two others of quite a different trend are particularly exquisite: "What I saw as a fallen blossom returning to the branch--lo! it was a b.u.t.terfly." "So lovely in its cry--What were the cuckoo if it laughed?"

The j.a.panese believe that if the beauty suggested in the five lines of a _tanka_ verse cannot be fully appreciated by the reader, there is something hopelessly deficient in that reader. They do not believe in "smothering the soul with many words."

Perhaps what strikes one most in connection with the cla.s.sic verses is the dates at which they were written, for many that have come down to us were composed a thousand years ago. Indeed, j.a.panese poetry is older than j.a.panese history, and tradition says that there were many versifiers even in the days of the mythological Emperor, Jimmu Tenno. At any rate, j.a.pan had a literature of its own long before the Northmen found America!

In the old days only n.o.bles, Court officials and church dignitaries wrote poetry. The lower cla.s.ses were not supposed to know anything about the art. Love and "picture" poems were popular, and it is wonderful what perfect thumb-nail sketches were composed. It has been said that "the predominating feature, the under-current that runs through them all, is a touch of pathos. ... It shows out in the cherry blossoms which are doomed to fall, the dewdrops scattered by the wind, the mournful cry of the wild deer on the mountain, the dying crimson of the fallen maple leaves, the weird sadness of the cuckoo singing in the moonlight, and the loneliness of the recluse in the wilds.

"The souls of children are often pictured as playing in a celestial garden with the same flowers and b.u.t.terflies they used to play with while on earth. It is just this subtle element of the childlike disposition that has helped to discover the secrets of flowers and birds and trees, has enabled them to catch their timorous fleeting shadows and to hold them, as if by magic, in a picture, on a vase, or in a delicate and wistful poem."

"'Do not say anything unkind, but compose a poem. Is your best-beloved dead? Do not yield to useless grief, but try to calm your mind by making a poem. Are you troubled because you are about to die, leaving so many things unfinished? Be brave, and write a poem to death. Whatever misfortune or injustice disturbs you, put aside your resentment or your sorrow as soon as possible, and write a few lines of sober and elegant verse for a moral exercise.'" Thus Hearn translates from an ancient writer, and then goes on to say:

"In the olden days every form of trouble was encountered with a poem.

Bereavement, separation, disaster, called forth verses in lieu of plaints. The lady who preferred death to loss of honour composed a poem before piercing her throat. The _samurai_ sentenced to die by his own hand wrote a poem before performing _hara-kiri_. Even in this less romantic era of Meiji young people resolved upon suicide are wont to compose some verses before quitting the world."

These three little love-poems, which have been translated into English by William Porter, were written during the tenth century--the first one in 961 A. D. by the Imperial Adviser, Asa-Tada.

"To fall in love with womankind Is my unlucky fate: If only it were otherwise, I might appreciate Some men, whom now I hate."

The second, by Kanemori Taira, was composed in 949 A. D.:

"Alas! the blush upon my cheek, Conceal it as I may, Proclaims to all that I'm in love, Till people smile and say-- Where are thy thoughts to-day?"

The last one was written in the same year by the minister of the Kawara district of Kyoto:

"Ah, why does love distract my thoughts, Disordering my will!

I'm like the pattern on the cloth Of Michinoku hill, All in confusion still."

j.a.pan has not been without her women poets. Lady Horikawa, who wrote this bit of verse, lived in the twelfth century and was in attendance on the Dowager Empress Taiken. The poem is dated 1142, and, like the others, was translated by Mr. Porter.

"My doubt about his constancy Is difficult to bear; Tangled this morning are my thoughts As is my long black hair.

I wonder--does he care?"

The Empress Jito lived in the seventh century. She was the daughter of an Emperor and became Empress on the death of her husband, the Emperor Tennu. During her reign _sake_ was first made. She wrote:

"The spring has gone, the summer's come, And I can just descry The peak of Ama-no-kagu, Where angels of the sky Spread their white robes to dry."

Daini-No-Sammi, who was the daughter of a poet, composed this pretty verse:

"As fickle as the mountain gusts That on the moor I've met, 'Twere best to think no more of thee And let thee go. But yet I never can forget!"

Old age seems a favourite subject. Tsure Yuki Kino was a n.o.bleman at Court and one of the great cla.s.sical poets. He died in the middle of the tenth century.

"The village of my youth is gone, New faces meet my gaze; But still the blossoms at the gate, Whose perfume scents the ways, Recall my childhood's days."

Jealousy is the theme of many of the verses:

"Where many a tree Crowns Takasu Hill, Does my wife see My vanishing sleeve And so take leave?"

Of the many picture poems, this is considered one of the best:

"Out of the East, Over the field, The dawn is breaking breaking-- I turn to the West, And the moon hangs low!"

Another picture poem is by the late Emperor:

"Kie nokoru Matsu no kokage no Shirayuki ni Ariake no tsuki!"