Ten windows into Japanese aesthetics. An exercise in karumi — lightness as method.
i. mujō
The river doesn't mourn
its past shape.
ii. mono no aware
A week of blossoms.
Not despite the brevity —
because of it.
iii. wabi
The tea bowl has a crack.
The tea tastes the same.
The crack stays.
iv. sabi
Moss on a stone gate.
Nobody asked it to grow there.
Nobody would ask it to leave.
v. yūgen
Behind the mountain,
something. Not mist,
not light. Something.
vi. ma
The rest between notes —
you could call it silence.
The musician calls it music.
vii. kire
A frog.
A pond.
Between them, a poem.
viii. iki
Wool coat, silk lining.
He doesn't mention the silk.
Neither do his friends.
ix. kintsugi
The bowl broke Tuesday.
By Thursday it was gold-veined,
more loved than before.
x. karumi
Spring rain.
A leaky roof.
That's all.
Ten windows. One house. The house is made of passing.