No Thoughts

On the shore, I think,
boats are like thoughts on the river.
November is a time
for such clear meditation.
Only the river!






~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Truth

On the dark blue
waters of ten thousand waves,
one white swan.






~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

The Big Break

when a single silent wave
crashes
a crescendo of ten thousand worlds appear

~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans Son Rivers)

Mythic Shadow

Winter approaches
like the long shadow
of a breathtakingly great prehistoric bird
flying overhead. It flaps its wings
and leaves scatter.


~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

eternally falling poem

eternally falling

witnessed the eternal falling leaf today:
an orange leaf floating stationary in mid-air for minutes on end—
on closer analysis, it was attached to the end of a spider's thread.





~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Light Poem

Busy

beneath the sky of
ten-thousand stars,
busy replacing the outdoor light






~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Autumn Color Poem

Veils

the silver veils of rain
that mute the autumn color
are these words describing rain





~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Identification Poem

Chirps

you are the silence
and those thoughts are tiny cricket chirps
decreasing as identification lowers






~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Pissing Poem

Void

does that black dog know
beyond the rock he's pissing on,
an oceanic void is
crashing on its other side?






~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Tidal Poem

Going Out

the tidal chart can tell me
that the tide is going out
but Who knows where
in the world it's going






~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Microwave Poem

Beyond

beyond a gray utility pole
and it's microwave transmitter,
this slate pale-hued Atlantic glows






~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Surfboard Poem

Upright

a man is putting on his wetsuit;
his surfboard rests upright
by his car in a puddle
from the heavy rain last night






~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

No Seals Poem

Empty

no seals are resting
on the empty rocks
just off this silent
Pulpit Point;
no winter has arrived as yet





~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Autumn-colored Poem

Forms

in the autumn-colored marsh
a snowy egret
forms a question mark
despite the exclamation
of the northwest wind





~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)