Sunday, November 08, 2009

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)





Saturday, November 07, 2009

Truth




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






~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)





Wednesday, November 04, 2009

The Big Break


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

~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans Son Rivers)





Tuesday, October 27, 2009

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)

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

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)





Saturday, October 10, 2009

Light Poem




Busy

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






~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)





Friday, October 09, 2009

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)





Thursday, October 08, 2009

Identification Poem




Chirps

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






~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)





Wednesday, October 07, 2009

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)





Tuesday, October 06, 2009

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)





Monday, October 05, 2009

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)





Sunday, October 04, 2009

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)





Saturday, October 03, 2009

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)





Friday, October 02, 2009

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)