SEptember
A Month Of Long Nights
01
02
03
04
05
06
The autumn season is the best time to develop sensitivity to the world around you, because the time of the year itself pushes you to think about the meaning of life.
September is the month of long nights in Japan. Let's go on a poetical journey through autumn on the Ship of the Moon, drop the sun into the well, get lost in a school of fish-shaped clouds from Hokusai's painting and build a heart with the first winds of autumn.
September is the month of long nights in Japan. Let's go on a poetical journey through autumn on the Ship of the Moon, drop the sun into the well, get lost in a school of fish-shaped clouds from Hokusai's painting and build a heart with the first winds of autumn.
(01)
nagatsuki
In the lunar calendar, September is called Nagatsuki: 長 (long) and 月 (month), meaning "A MONTH OF LONG NIGHTS"
The September flower is the chrysanthemum (kiku). The chrysanthemum flower with 16 petals is the symbol of the Emperor of Japan.
Chrysanthemum also symbolizes long life and unfading. According to legend, there is a place in Japan called Chrysanthemum Mountain, and by drinking water from a spring in which chrysanthemum petals float, you can gain longevity.
*September 9th is called the Choyo Festival(Chrysanthemum Festival) and it is a day to pray for long life to the flower that would let people.
Matsuo Basho
早く咲け 九日も近し 菊の花
Hayaku sake/ Kunichi mo chikashi/ Kiku no hana
Hayaku sake/ Kunichi mo chikashi/ Kiku no hana
長
Long
月
Month
Bloom QUICKLY.
THE NINTH DAY IS VERY SOON.
THE Chrysanthemum.
THE NINTH DAY IS VERY SOON.
THE Chrysanthemum.
RELEXING ON HORSEBACK,
THE HORSE GRAZES Softly,
ADMIRING THE MOON.
Indeed, in September it is already very clearly felt that the nights have become longer. It is the September full moon that is considered the most beautiful in Japan. This month, you need to admire the moon more than ever. There is also a special term for this - "tsukimi". Japanese artists like to depict the full autumn moon against the background of miscanthus panicles.
For inspiration, here’s a verse from one of Basho’s students, the brilliant poet Mukai Kyorai:
The main character, without getting off his horse, go of the reins and lets his horse eat grass while he admires the full moon . For Us, this haiku is a wonderful example of the fusion of space, nature and man, as well as spiritual and carnal sensations.
Hazy Moon and Autumn Leaves
Nagasawa Rosetsu
Mukai Kyorai
のりながら 馬草はませて 月見哉
Norinagara magusa hama sete tsukimi Kana
tsukimi
月見
(02)
a beautiful seasonal (in this case autumn) phrase “tsuki no fune”, that is, “ship of the Moon”
The idea of the moon being likened to a boat left a very fresh and dynamic impression
This phrase appears in the poem by Kakinomoto no Hitomaro in the seventh volume of the Manyoshu.
Kakinomoto no Hitomaro /Manyoshu.
天の海に雲の波立ち月の船星の林に漕ぎ隠る見ゆ
Tsuki No Fune
月の舟
(03)
IN THE SEA OF SKY
THE WAVES OF CLOUD RISE UP,
AND THE Moon-Boat
IS SEEN ROWING OUT OF SIGHT
INTO THE Forest Of The Stars.
THE WAVES OF CLOUD RISE UP,
AND THE Moon-Boat
IS SEEN ROWING OUT OF SIGHT
INTO THE Forest Of The Stars.
Yoshimune Utagawa 2
Sailboat by midnight
(04)
Tsurube-otoshi
In Japan, HOW FAST THE SUN FALLS depends on the season. It goes especially quickly beyond the horizon in the fall.
To describe this beautiful natural phenomenon, the word-sensitive Japanese came up with a poetic expression - “tsurube otoshi”.
"Tsurube" is a well bucket or tub, and "otoshi" means a rapid fall. Just like a bucket into a well, the setting sun falls below the horizon.
To describe this beautiful natural phenomenon, the word-sensitive Japanese came up with a poetic expression - “tsurube otoshi”.
"Tsurube" is a well bucket or tub, and "otoshi" means a rapid fall. Just like a bucket into a well, the setting sun falls below the horizon.
Kawase Hasui (Japan, 1883-1957)
Late Autumn Rain at the Temple Nanzenji, Kyoto
However, “tsurube otoshi” has another meaning - a demon that hides in the treetops and unexpectedly attacks unwary people. He is often depicted as a creepy head without a body. This demon wields a bucket, trying to “pick up” his chosen victim.
It's amazing how the most beautiful autumn image turns into an unexpected side from Japanese kaidan.
“ AUTUMNSun SETS AS QUICKLY AS A BUCKET DROPPING INTO A Well”
秋の日は釣瓶落とし
Aki no hi wa tsurube-otoshi
Japanese proverb
Iwashi Kumo
Iwashi Kumo
But does it
To Talk About
It
to others
Make Sense
(05)
It refers to autumn clouds that look like schools of Iwashi fish.
The official name of Iwashi-gumo is cirrocumulus, and there is a high chance of rain in about 12 hours after such a cloud occurs. For a poetically minded person, the sky turns into a sea along which large and dense schools of these fish swim. A picture worthy of contemplation. And today’s poet, of course, also enjoys the picture of the autumn sky, however, it seems that not everything is so simple in his soul.
The official name of Iwashi-gumo is cirrocumulus, and there is a high chance of rain in about 12 hours after such a cloud occurs. For a poetically minded person, the sky turns into a sea along which large and dense schools of these fish swim. A picture worthy of contemplation. And today’s poet, of course, also enjoys the picture of the autumn sky, however, it seems that not everything is so simple in his soul.
This haiku empasizes that when you enjoy the beauty of the sky, you cannot share this feeling with others, because personal feelings are indescribable.
鰯雲
Fine Wind, Clear Morning
Katsushika Hokusai
It seems that in this famous engraving the clouds are just like "Iwashi kumo"
Shuson Kato
literally “to create a soul” or “to build a heart,” and by this it is meant that people begin to deeply feel and penetrate into the essence of things, to understand “mono no aware” - their sad charm.
EVENE IN A PERSON
MOST TIMES Indifferent
TO THINGS AROUND HIM
THEY WAKEN Feelings --
THE FIRST Winds OF AUTUMN.
MOST TIMES Indifferent
TO THINGS AROUND HIM
THEY WAKEN Feelings --
THE FIRST Winds OF AUTUMN.
Kokoro o tsukuru
心 をつくる
Saigyo
Suzuki Harunobu
Two Women in the Autumn Wind, c. 1767
(06)
