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5Points's avatar

Ahh......Spring for me is still far away, my home is in northern New Hampshire, the leaves of flowers start to awake in late April, and often we have snow in early May ...

I am looking forward to your posts about the Tale of Genji.

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Leanne Ogasawara's avatar

Thank you so much!!! Something I have learned to love about the ancient calendar is that it was "off" for Japan as well... it was based on a particular eco-climate in part of China --which is why they had "the big snow" in places like Vietnam... it doesn't work for most populations who made use of it. In Southern California, it is already spring-ish, even this year which is chilly. But somehow, I love the "haps" since it helps me notice things more...

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Sally's avatar

Oh, while you're here, Leanne: Is there any way I can read a translation of Hagoromo? I've got a case of Hagoromo goosebumps again; going through youtube rendition and your posting here with Rick Emmert.

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Leanne Ogasawara's avatar

Yes, let me dig it out! I should have done that already...

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Sally's avatar

Omg! thank you! (Amazon listings were useless.)

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Maya Rushing Walker's avatar

Please keep us posted on where you are in Genji! I will read with you! (I love the Waley one, warts and all, it gives me those childhood goosebumps, that's why I went to grad school to study that stuff!)

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Leanne Ogasawara's avatar

I feel the same about the Waley translation! Goosebumps! I am so happy you will read too--yeah, yeah!!

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Sally's avatar

. . . And I love your bird and blooms in sashiko! Do you have a favorite translation of Genji? Well, probably different favorites for different reasons (now that I think about it). As you say, Spring is here!

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Leanne Ogasawara's avatar

Thank you for noticing the bird!! I am still working on this one.... I am reading the Tyler translation for the first time and already prefer it to Seidensticker but even though it is "out there" I always liked the Waley as well... very poetic. Seidensticker also wrote a novel himself that was inspired by Genji called, "Very Few People Come This Way." I thought it was clever but I remember the New York Times review said something like "there is a reason very few people come this way." I am going to read Tale of Genji really slowly this year and poke around in all three translations. I have never seen the one by Washburn but have not heard great things about it. Have you read the Tale of Genji yet? I would recommend the Tyler because the footnotes are great.

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Sally's avatar

Of course I noticed the bird!!! I got most of the way through Seidensticker's translation. I'd love to give Genji another go. Maybe I should read Tyler; great footnotes is a good reason. Thanks for replying! (Deadly NYT review! Yikes!)

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Leanne Ogasawara's avatar

It would be fun to read together. I am going to go very, very slowly ad try to notice things I didn't before and compare translations sometimes.

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Sally's avatar

Ok!

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