POETRY

 ichi (いち)

Cherry blossoms—
Moonlight so pure
The dew is unseen.

ni (に)

Summer breeze—
The music of wind chimes;
Black kitten cocks her head.


san (さん)

Clouds gather in the southern sky.
Reeds motionless in the humid air.
White birds circle waves of enfolding hands. 
An old man in a straw hat mends a net 
On the white sand, loin clothed boatmen
Converse while rigging fishing boats
To float lightly as feathers on the sea’s current.

shi (し)

Full moon—
In summer grasses,
Shadows embrace.

go (ご)

A leaf falls
Over water
Onto moonbeams.

roku (ろく)

Careworn
Brown spotted finger 
Wrapped in a newborn's hand.

shichi (しち)

Winter morning—
Hot tea
In a perfect bowl.

Poem: Museum Exhibit: Seven Japanese Paintings ©2025 Charles van Heck

Images:

1Title: Small Bird (Swallow ?) on Cherry Branch. Creator: Utagawa Hiroshige (Japanese, 1797–1858) [歌川 広重] (artist). Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund.

2  Title: Picture of the Tenryu River near Mitsuke (Station 29), from the series Fifty-Three Stations of the Tokaido. Creator: Utagawa Hiroshige (Japanese, 1797–1858) [歌川 広重] (artist). Bequest of James Parmelee

3Title: Clear Weather after Snow at Matsuchiyama, from the series Famous Places in the Eastern Capital. Creator: Utagawa Hiroshige (Japanese, 1797–1858) [歌川 広重] (artist). Provenance: description: William S. And John T. Spaulding (sale: American Art Association, November 16, 1921,

Sources:

Image and original data from The Cleveland Museum of Art

https://www.jstor.org/stable/community.24570982

Artstor