by James Woodham flat out on the grasscoming down as deep as dreams –the seeds of freedom the lake concealinga million lives, another worldso the mind dreams afternoon so slowit feels like the sun has stoppedclouds just hanging orb of the moon hungin a sky of palest bluepink tinge on the hills ducks glide sereneon …Read More
Category: Kyoto Poetry (Page 1 of 2)
Poetry that is about the ancient capital or was set in Kyoto
By Kit Nagamura deep winterin the comb tinesa single white hair whitewaterinstead of the bridgechoosing the long way around the moment you knowthe moment mutablewild cherry blossoms
by Lea Millay Lea writes: ‘I offer a few winter tanka inspired by my time in Kyoto last December. May they give a brief respite from the summer heat.’ climbing the steep hilla pillow of stone offersdeep and dreamless sleepas wind rustles winter pines a clear moon graces the sky When I was walking alone on …Read More
Poems and photos from Lake Biwa by James Woodham spider walks the airunspooling from his beinglifelines of silver where the wind takes ithow light a life that’s floatingshadow on the sand Santoka* walking –nothing between him and deathhaiku and sake gift of his whole lifeSantoka into the wind ragged spirit free reeds flailed by the wind …Read More
Sea of Clouds (the art of change) The November sun Dazzles our faces with eyes closed The bright glow of coloured leaves Is not of this world Here, today It is another universe That looks like the world As it is Of islands, rivers, mountains, oceans A monochrome universe Emerges from the stone Expanding my …Read More
by Ted Taylor A few years back, renowned guitarist Joshua Breakstone came up with the idea of doing some jazz and poetry nights, where local poets could join his band on stage. We’d start in Kyoto, and if it went well, we’d try to expand it to other cities in Japan, and liaise with local …Read More
Wintermoon, by Robert Maclean. Isobar Press, Tokyo, 2022. A review by Mark Richardson. I’m most at home with verse conventional to English from the 16th through the 20th centuries. I enjoy poems that argue or imply arguments. I want rhyme, well-framed stanzas, conceits. Give me Hardy, Herbert, Larkin, Frost or Bishop⎯or Seidel and Ogden Nash. …Read More
by James Woodham comb your hair with windlet the hills flow through your eyessun adorn your skin wind on the waterwind in my hair and the crow’s hollow notes dropping sun warm on the skinears full of the mountain streambreathing the blue sky to be free of nowas a bird takes to the airthe future floating …Read More
Pomez by one-time WiK member, AJ Dickinson The collection comprises three books of poetry, originally published in 2012 in Kyoto, Japan, with the assistance of John Wells, who did the book design and cover photos. The printed books, which came out with Blurb, have now been made available to be read online, thanks to John …Read More
By Edward Levinson (aka Edo 恵道) hot water bottlememories of motherwarm me 湯たんぽや母の思い出暖めるyutanpo ya, haha no omoide, atatameru My earliest months living in Japan were in Kyoto. It was late fall and getting colder every day. Slowly I got used to the chilly (soon to be frigid) old wooden Japanese houses. One winter morning I …Read More
Kyoto Writing Competition
WiK Anthologies
The Nature of Kyoto (2023)
Eds. Lisa Twaronite Sone & Robert Weis
Foreword by Pico Iyer
Structures of Kyoto (2021)
Eds: Rebecca Otowa & Karen Lee Tawarayama
Foreword by Judith Clancy
Encounters with Kyoto (2019)
Eds: Jann Williams & Ian Josh Yates
Foreword by Juliet Winters Carpenter
Echoes (2017)
Eds: John Dougill, Amy Chavez, & Mark Richardson
Preface by Alex Kerr
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