大瀑布秋の声を添ふ
daibakufu hitosuji aki no koe o sou
big waterfall
joining its constant roar
is autumn's voice
—Shinoda Teijiro
(trans. David LaSpina[1])
"Senju Waterfall at Akame" by Kawase Hasui
Even with the roar of the waterfall, Shinoda could feel and hear the autumn surrounding him. A wonderful image that I think we have all experienced at least once.
The leaves haven't started changing yet in most of Japan, but I thought this beautiful print from Hasui matched the feeling of the haiku very well, so I went with it. (You can see a colored leaf forecast in Japan for 2022 here)
The season word here is Autumn voices (aki no koe, 秋の声), which is for all of autumn. When a season word is for all of a season instead of only part of it, it is considered more general and is used more for the stereotypical image of that season. It is not referring to any one thing—the sound of the wind, the rustle of the leaves in the trees, autumn insects singing their songs, the sound of people as they look at the autumn landscape—but all of them together. It is especially common for a night scene, but can refer to any time of day in autumn.
Another note on that woodblock print. I'm not an expert, but that must have been incredibly difficult to do the color gradients like that! With a woodblock print, a separate carving has to be made for every single color. That is one reason woodblock prints usually have a very limited color pallet. I'm not sure if the gradients here would have been accomplished with multiple carvings or with multiple passes on one carving and slightly changing the color each time. I don't see a lot of gradients in woodblock prints, so it can't be easy!
If you know, please share how in the comments.
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| David LaSpina is an American photographer and translator lost in Japan, trying to capture the beauty of this country one photo at a time and searching for the perfect haiku. |
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That is, me! If you like this translation, feel free to use it. Just credit me. Also link here if you can. ↩