Year-end Presentations of Waka Poems

2007, The Nineteenth Year of Heisei

Year-end Presentation of Five Waka Poems by His Majesty the Emperor

The First Sumo Tournament of the Year
Happy am I to see
In this sumo tournament,
The first one of the year,
Wrestlers compete with each other,
Those from other countries, too.
Visiting Uppsala on the 300th Anniversary of the Birth of Linné
Remembering Linné
And the binomial nomenclature
He established,
To this city I have come
With the King of Sweden.
The Occupation Museum of Latvia
Is this how they spent
Their days of imprisonment
In Siberia,
Freezing and bitterly cold,
Our soldiers of the last war.
Niigata-ken Chuetsu-oki Earthquake
How are they faring
The people of Niigata,
Victims of the quake,
In the relentless heat
Of these scorching summer days.
On a Visit to Genkai-jima Island about Two and a Half Years after the Earthquake off the Western Coast of Fukuoka
Victims they are all
Of the quake that hit this isle.
The children greet us,
Waiting with the island drums,
The drumsticks raised high in their hands.
(Notes to His Majesty's Waka) :

Note to poem 1 :
In January 2007, His Majesty went to the Kokugikan Sumo Arena together with Her Majesty to see the sumo bouts on the thirteenth day of the first tournament of the year. This poem describes his feelings on that occasion.

Note to poem 2 :
In May 2007, Their Majesties were invited by the Kingdom of Sweden to visit Uppsala to attend the celebration commemorating the 300th anniversary of the birth of Linné, who is respected as the father of taxonomy for establishing the binomial nomenclature, to be held at the University of Uppsala, where Linné was a professor. This poem describes this visit to Uppsala with the King and Queen of Sweden.

Note to poem 3 :
After visiting Sweden and Estonia, Their Majesties made their first visit to Latvia, getting a glimpse into that country's turbulent history. They visited the Occupation Museum of Latvia, focusing on the sufferings of the Latvian people who were detained in Siberia. This poem describes how, on that visit, His Majesty's thoughts went back to the Japanese soldiers who were also detained there after World War II.

Note to poem 4 :
The Niigata-ken Chuetsu-oki Earthquake of July 2007 left great damage, and many people had to live through the hot summer days in temporary shelters. Deeply concerned about the status of damage, Their Majesties visited the region hit by the earthquake and gave encouragement to the people. In this poem, His Majesty expresses his feelings of concern for the people in the stricken region.

Note to poem 5 :
In October 2007, Their Majesties visited the region hit by the earthquake off the Western Coast of Fukuoka in March 2005. On Genkai-jima Island, where the entire population of the island had to be evacuated at the time, Their Majesties encouraged each and every one of the residents who had been able to return to the island. This poem describes how the island children were about to welcome Their Majesties, arriving at the island by boat, with a performance of island drums.

Year-end Presentation of Three Waka Poems by Her Majesty the Empress

The 300th Anniversary of the Birth of Linné
Himself a scholar
His Majesty has come
Here to Uppsala
To celebrate Linné
On his tricentennial.
Genkai-jima Island
O tiny land
In the midst of the ocean,
As we leave this isle,
My thoughts are with the people,
Some four hundred who live here now.
The National Convention for the Development of an Abundantly Reproductive Sea Shiga Prefecture
From my hand to hers
The bundle of baby reeds
Is handed over.
It now crosses the lake,
Cradled in her young arms.
(Notes to Her Majesty's Waka) :

Note to poem 1 :
On the 300th anniversary of the birth of Linné, upon the invitation of the Kingdom of Sweden and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Their Majesties visited in May 2007 first Uppsala, where Linné did his research, and attended the ceremonies at the cathedral and the university. His Majesty then gave a keynote speech at the Linnean Society of London, which holds most of Linné's specimens. This poem describes this visit to Uppsala by the Emperor, who is Himself a scholar of taxonomy.

Note to poem 2 :
In October 2007, Their Majesties visited Genkai-jima Island, where the entire population was compelled to evacuate after the earthquake off the Western Coast of Fukuoka two years ago. In this poem, Her Majesty expresses her sense of relief that more than four hundred of those who had left the island to be evacuated to shelters in the city of Fukuoka were able to return and resume their lives on the island. At the same time, the poem expresses her feelings as she left the island, her wish for the future well-being of the residents.

Note to poem 3 :
In November 2007, Their Majesties visited Shiga Prefecture and attended the National Convention on the Development of an Abundantly Reproductive Sea, the first time it was held in an inland waters region. This poem describes how the young reeds to be planted to improve the water quality of Lake Biwa were handed from Her Majesty to the young woman who is carrying on a family tradition by continuing to engage in fishery, and how they were carried in her arms and transported to the shores of the lake where they were to be planted.

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