Compiled around 1235, the Ogura Hyakunin Isshu, or Ogura’s 100 Poems by 100 Poets, is one of the most important collections of poetry in Japan.
A Gap in the Clouds (terrific title) brims with beauty — Michael Longley
Though the poets include emperors and empresses, courtiers and high priests, ladies-in- waiting and soldier-calligraphers, the collection is far more than a fascinating historical document.
This new translation, entitled A Gap in the Clouds, is the first to be published in Ireland. As the translators note in their Introduction, “these beautiful poems have endured because their themes are universal and readily understood by contemporary readers”.
Published on 11 February, 2021, to mark Japan’s National Foundation Day
FOR ADDITIONAL NOTES on the background and translation to the text, download A Gap in the Clouds, Notes HERE.
