Wednesday, May 4, 2022
Previous senryu
- 鬼は外」 鬼が豆まき オレは外
「おにはそと」・おにがまめまき・オレはそと
“Oni ha soto”: / oni are throwing the beans / I’m outside
Notes:
- Congrats to @alo
for “closest to the mark” - “Oni ha soto” is a set phrase during setsubun (a seasonal festival before the first day of spring). Typically, one or two adults or older kids wear paper masks to dress up as “oni” (demons/devils/ogres) and smaller kids and their parents throw dried beans inside and outside the house to drive away the demons while saying this phrase. (Yes, it’s one of those weird Japanese things.)
- We aren’t 100% certain in our translation, so I’ve gone with the most literal translation and not translated the stock phrase.
- My interpretation is that it’s a salaryman being driven outside by his “demon” kids throwing beans (the tradition is residents driving away the oni, this has it reversed).
- Consider this translation tentative until confirmed by a native.
- Note that this senryu does include some punctuation (quotation marks)! Rex is wrong yet again: apparently this is allowed.
Current senryu challenge
Volume: Heartfelt (しみじみ編)
- 棒グラフ伸ばしてくれた子の寝顔
Hints:
- Apparently, the Japanese word for a “bar graph” is a “pole graph” (棒グラフ) — I learn something every day.
- I’m struggling a little to translate this one. Need to ponder.
Remember to please use the spoiler tag with your translation attempts! Also, please include the reading in kana with your submission.
Everyone is encouraged to participate, no matter your level!
Online tools like dictionaries, sentence databases, and even AI translation engines are fair game and can be extremely helpful. Yomichan is particularly handy if you use the Chrome or Firefox browser.
Here’s the link to the spreadsheet with all the upcoming senryu as well as the translations to date.