by Rachel Adams
“If men can touch
Even the untouchable sacred tree,
Why can I not touch you
Simply because you are another’s wife?”
—-Otomo Yasumaro
Ok, calm down there, Otomo-kun. This poem comes from the Man’yoshu, the oldest collection of Japanese poems. Known as the “Collection of Myriad Leaves'' in English, it was compiled around 760 A.D and contains over 4500 poems! The Man’yoshu is notable because it includes not only poetry from the nobility, but also poetry from the average peasant and farmer. In a modern-day Man’yoshu, even poems from us lowly ALTs would be included in the collection.
Unlike Japanese court poetry that would develop later, poems from the Man’yoshu had less structure, rules, and in general could be way more ✨~*extra*~✨. Wanna talk about how you’re starving? Go ahead, we’re not too fancy for that. Having an existential mental breakdown that can only be expressed in a classical 5-7-5-7-7 syllabic pattern? Yup, it’s all fair game. Whether you live in Ikoma, Yoshino, Kashihara, or Uda, you can find stone monuments commemorating Man’yoshu poems written in the area. Try researching what poems were written in your town! If you want to explore past your neighborhood, feel free to visit the Complex of Manyo Culture in Asuka or the Manyo Botanical Garden right outside Kasuga Taisha in Nara City. Just, uh, be sure not to touch any sacred trees.
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