Cold Enough for Benkei
A winter image from Sōseki
We are now into winter, both by the calendar and by the temperature outside. It’s cold! That brings to mind one of my favorite winter haiku.
弁慶に五条の月の寒さかな 金之助
benkei ni gojō no tsuki no samusa kanaeven for Benkei
on Gojō Bridge under the moon
it is cold
— Sōseki
This haiku won’t make much sense to you without knowing who Benkei was. He is one of the most famous figures in Japanese history, a symbol of loyalty and companionship.
Benkei was a giant man, said to be nearly two meters tall (6’6"). He enters legend with his personal quest to prove his martial arts prowess by defeating one thousand samurai and collecting their swords. It is said he had already collected 999 and was just one away from his goal when he met a small youth with a gilded sword who was playing a flute while crossing Gojō Bridge in Kyoto. The youth was Minamoto no Yoshitsune, whom you may have heard me mention before on this blog in regards to his involvement with the Genpei War.
The men dueled, and the more agile smaller man amazed Benkei by defeating him. The story is very similar to the Western tale of Robin Hood defeating Little John.
(If you look up the full story on the net or elsewhere, you are likely to see the name Ushiwakamaru as Benkei’s opponent. That was the name Yoshitsune was using at the time. I use his more well-known name in this post for the sake of simplicity.)
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Benkei swore an oath of allegiance and from that day forward followed Yoshitsune as his companion and friend, staying with him until both of their deaths at the hands of the traitorous Yasuhira and Yoshitsune’s brother, the shogun Yoshitomo. The adventures of Benkei and Yoshitsune are among the most famous and popular in Japan.
This haiku then is taking us into this story, as Benkei awaits Yoshitsune on Gojō bridge beneath the moon. Sōseki is telling us that even for that tough giant who had already defeated 999 warriors, this night was cold.
Hell of an image, eh? Tonight is not just cold, but so cold that even Benkei would feel it!
Sōseki would go on to become Japan’s most famous novelist, comparable to Charles Dickens: he knew a thing or two about setting up good images and stories.
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Haiku translation by me.
Read the definitive version of this post on LaSpina.org.
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