Japanese Hokkus

Whilst the greatest effort has been made to ensure the quality of this text, due to the historical nature of this content, in some rare cases there may be minor issues with legibility. Aims at is, like the haori Of' silk or crepe, a use fulness of uselessness, not what it expresses but how it expresses itself spiritually; its real value is not in its physical directness but in its psycho logical indirectness. TO use a simile, it is like a dew upon lotus leaves Of green, or under maple leaves Of red, which although it is nothing but a trifling drop Of water, shines, glitters and sparkles now pearl-white, then amethyst-blue, again ruby-red according to the time Of day and situation; better still to say, this Hokku is like a spider-thread laden with the white summer dews, swaying among the branches of a tree like an Often invisible ghost in air, on the perfect balance; that sway indeed, not the thread itself, is the beauty of our seventeen syllable poem.

Aims at is, like the haori Of' silk or crepe, a use fulness of uselessness, not what it expresses but how it expresses itself spiritually; its real value is not in its physical directness but in its psycho logical indirectness. TO use a simile, it is like a dew upon lotus leaves Of green, or under maple leaves Of red, which although it is nothing but a trifling drop Of water, shines, glitters and sparkles now pearl-white, then amethyst-blue, again ruby-red according to the time Of day and situation; better still to say, this Hokku is like a spider-thread laden with the white summer dews, swaying among the branches of a tree like an Often invisible ghost in air, on the perfect balance; that sway indeed, not the thread itself, is the beauty of our seventeen syllable poem.