The man under the tree
No longer lives on the moon!
(Rain blocks our view)
Original Japanese
桂男すまずなりけり雨の月
Pronunciation
Katsura-otoko
Suma-zu nari-keri
Ame no tsuki
Literal
[Katsura tree] man
Live not become has
Rain ’s/of moon
Katsura trees are native to China and Japan and are also a mythical tree on the moon where a Daoist immortal is said to sit under and also has the connotation of a “handsome man.” The last kanji of the first line and the second line comes from Tale of Ise, “otoko suma-zu nari-ni-keri,” meaning “the man turned out to not live (with her).” “Ame no tsuki” is the harvest moon blocked by rain.
Year:
2011
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