Ogiwara Seisensui
Encyclopedia
was the pen-name of Ogiwara Tōkichi, a Japanese
haiku
poet
active during the Taishō
and Showa period
s of Japan
.
, as the only son of a general goods retailer. Although he attended Seisoku Junior High School, he was expelled after publishing a student newspaper criticizing the school's educational methods and administration. After entering Azabu Junior High School, he quit drinking and smoking, seriously engaged in studying, and gained admission to Tokyo Imperial University. While a student, he became interested in writing haiku
.
literary magazine Sōun ("Layered Clouds") in 1911, together with fellow haiku poet Kawahigashi Hekigoto. Ogiwawa was a strong proponent of abandoning haiku traditions, especially the "season words" so favored by Takahama Kyoshi, and even the 5-7-5 syllable norms. In his Haiku teisho (1917), he broke with Hekigoto and shocked the haiku world by advocating further that haiku be transformed into free verse
. His students included Ozaki Hōsai
and Taneda Santōka
.
Seisensui left more than 200 works, including collections of haiku, essays, and travelogues. His principal anthologies are Wakiizuru mono (1920) and Choryu (1964). He also wrote a number of commentaries on the works of Matsuo Bashō
.
In 1965, he became a member of the Japan Art Academy
.
briefly, and remarried in 1929. Returning to the Kantō
area, he lived in Kamakura
, Kanagawa prefecture
from 1928, but moved to Azabu
in Tokyo until his house was destroyed during World War II
. He then moved back to Kamakura in 1944, where he lived until his death.
Japanese people
The are an ethnic group originating in the Japanese archipelago and are the predominant ethnic group of Japan. Worldwide, approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent; of these, approximately 127 million are residents of Japan. People of Japanese ancestry who live in other countries...
haiku
Haiku
' , plural haiku, is a very short form of Japanese poetry typically characterised by three qualities:* The essence of haiku is "cutting"...
poet
Japanese poetry
Japanese poets first encountered Chinese poetry during the Tang Dynasty. It took them several hundred years to digest the foreign impact, make it a part of their culture and merge it with their literary tradition in their mother tongue, and begin to develop the diversity of their native poetry. For...
active during the Taishō
Taisho period
The , or Taishō era, is a period in the history of Japan dating from July 30, 1912 to December 25, 1926, coinciding with the reign of the Taishō Emperor. The health of the new emperor was weak, which prompted the shift in political power from the old oligarchic group of elder statesmen to the Diet...
and Showa period
Showa period
The , or Shōwa era, is the period of Japanese history corresponding to the reign of the Shōwa Emperor, Hirohito, from December 25, 1926 through January 7, 1989.The Shōwa period was longer than the reign of any previous Japanese emperor...
s of Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
.
Early life
Seisensui was born in what is now Minato, TokyoMinato, Tokyo
is one of the 23 special wards of Tokyo, Japan. As of 1 March 2008, it had an official population of 217,335 and a population density of 10,865 persons per km². The total area is 20.34 km².Minato hosts 49 embassies...
, as the only son of a general goods retailer. Although he attended Seisoku Junior High School, he was expelled after publishing a student newspaper criticizing the school's educational methods and administration. After entering Azabu Junior High School, he quit drinking and smoking, seriously engaged in studying, and gained admission to Tokyo Imperial University. While a student, he became interested in writing haiku
Haiku
' , plural haiku, is a very short form of Japanese poetry typically characterised by three qualities:* The essence of haiku is "cutting"...
.
Literary career
Seisensui co-founded the avant-gardeAvant-garde
Avant-garde means "advance guard" or "vanguard". The adjective form is used in English to refer to people or works that are experimental or innovative, particularly with respect to art, culture, and politics....
literary magazine Sōun ("Layered Clouds") in 1911, together with fellow haiku poet Kawahigashi Hekigoto. Ogiwawa was a strong proponent of abandoning haiku traditions, especially the "season words" so favored by Takahama Kyoshi, and even the 5-7-5 syllable norms. In his Haiku teisho (1917), he broke with Hekigoto and shocked the haiku world by advocating further that haiku be transformed into free verse
Free verse
Free verse is a form of poetry that refrains from consistent meter patterns, rhyme, or any other musical pattern.Poets have explained that free verse, despite its freedom, is not free. Free Verse displays some elements of form...
. His students included Ozaki Hōsai
Ozaki Hosai
was the haigo of Ozaki Hideo, a Japanese poet of the late Meiji and Taishō periods of Japan. An alcoholic, Ozaki witnessed the birth of the modern free verse haiku movement...
and Taneda Santōka
Taneda Santoka
was the pen-name of a Japanese author and haiku poet. He is known for his free verse haiku.- Life :Santōka was born in a village on the southwestern tip of Honshū, Japan’s main island, to a wealthy land-owning family. At the age of eleven his mother committed suicide by throwing herself into the...
.
Seisensui left more than 200 works, including collections of haiku, essays, and travelogues. His principal anthologies are Wakiizuru mono (1920) and Choryu (1964). He also wrote a number of commentaries on the works of Matsuo Bashō
Matsuo Basho
, born , then , was the most famous poet of the Edo period in Japan. During his lifetime, Bashō was recognized for his works in the collaborative haikai no renga form; today, after centuries of commentary, he is recognized as a master of brief and clear haiku...
.
In 1965, he became a member of the Japan Art Academy
Japan Art Academy
is the highest ranking artistic organization in Japan. The Academy discusses art-related issues, advises the Minister of Education on art-related issues, and promotes art is the highest ranking artistic organization in Japan. The Academy discusses art-related issues, advises the Minister of...
.
Private life
Seisensui's wife and daughter perished in the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923, and his mother died the same year. He moved to KyotoKyoto
is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...
briefly, and remarried in 1929. Returning to the Kantō
Kanto region
The is a geographical area of Honshu, the largest island of Japan. The region includes the Greater Tokyo Area and encompasses seven prefectures: Gunma, Tochigi, Ibaraki, Saitama, Tokyo, Chiba, and Kanagawa. Within its boundaries, slightly more than 40 percent of the land area is the Kantō Plain....
area, he lived in Kamakura
Kamakura, Kanagawa
is a city located in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, about south-south-west of Tokyo. It used to be also called .Although Kamakura proper is today rather small, it is often described in history books as a former de facto capital of Japan as the seat of the Shogunate and of the Regency during the...
, Kanagawa prefecture
Kanagawa Prefecture
is a prefecture located in the southern Kantō region of Japan. The capital is Yokohama. Kanagawa is part of the Greater Tokyo Area.-History:The prefecture has some archaeological sites going back to the Jōmon period...
from 1928, but moved to Azabu
Azabu
is an area within Minato in Tokyo, Japan, built on a marshy area of foothills south of central Tokyo. Its coverage roughly corresponds to that of the former Azabu Ward, presently consisting of nine official districts: Azabu-Jūban, Azabudai, Azabu-Nagasakachō, Azabu-Mamianachō, Nishi-Azabu,...
in Tokyo until his house was destroyed during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. He then moved back to Kamakura in 1944, where he lived until his death.
See also
- Japanese literatureJapanese literatureEarly works of Japanese literature were heavily influenced by cultural contact with China and Chinese literature, often written in Classical Chinese. Indian literature also had an influence through the diffusion of Buddhism in Japan...
- List of Japanese authors