Reading about the Edo period, when various businesses were born: From the Edo-period old senryu of Haifu Yanagidaru
The Edo period is often called a time of merchant culture, as merchants began to gain power. Various types of merchant businesses were born, and each was established as a trade. I will introduce some senryu that capture such scenes.
Senryu from the Edo period are called Kosenryu. There is a seven-seven phrase (called maeku), and ordinary people would create and submit a five-seven-five phrase in response to it. Excellent works would receive prize money.
I will introduce works from Haifu Yanagidaru, which collected these excellent works. I have lined up the original senryu and the maeku alongside a version with easier-to-understand expressions, but the numbers before the original text indicate the volume and work number of Haifu Yanagidaru.
A reader of the Analects is silenced by the rent.
5-204 A reader of the Analects is silenced by the rent. How pretentious, how pretentious.
A reader of the Analects refers to a Confucian scholar, but unless they are a famous scholar, they make a living by doing something like a terakoya, teaching academics to neighborhood children. They are like the tutors of a cram school today. Of course, the income from that alone is not much, so the rent piles up.
This poem is about a teacher who usually uses the words of the Analects to talk people into things, but when it comes to rent collection, he cannot even talk back and is silenced.
The maeku, "How pretentious," refers to showing off or saying things that are only superficial, and it likely also satirizes the Confucian scholar who usually shows off his knowledge as if he were important.
A puppeteer wears the same striped pattern as the doll.
5-74 A puppeteer wears the same striped pattern as the doll. So many, so many.
A puppeteer is a street performer of puppet theater. They move dolls on a box hung from their neck. Even with such arts, they could make a living. Well, even so, like an unsuccessful entertainer today, their income was probably small.
The pattern of the kimono the doll is wearing is the same as the kimono the performer is wearing. They probably made the doll's clothes from the leftover fabric when they made the kimono. They were living that strictly.
The maeku is "So many"; are there many dolls? Or are they making many doll clothes? Were there many puppeteers? Even if the income wasn't high, was it happiness to be able to do what one likes?
One does not just look at the yakaragane and pass by.
4-638 One does not just look at the yakaragane and pass by. They have worked, they have worked.
This is another poem about a person making a living through performance.
Yakaragane is a street performance where one hangs eight gongs and rings them all at once while dancing. Those who watch do not just look; they must leave some money.
The maeku is "They have worked," and the sight of them ringing the eight gongs must look like they are working desperately.
Those who do not work shall not eat; people lived while doing some kind of work, even if they were poor.
Kibyoshi to read and enjoy, ukiyo-e to look at and enjoy, and haiku and senryu to create oneself. The common people of Edo began to enjoy culture. They gained the mental leeway to enjoy street performances like puppet theater and music. People full of vitality who found their own pleasures even within the constraints of a class society. Kosenryu is something that allows us to know a part of such a life.
If we who live in the present age know the senryu of the Edo period, we might be able to know the hearts of the Edo people who were thrilled by the same things as we are now.
A summary of the Haifu Yanagidaru old senryu can be found in the latter part of this page, where everything introduced so far is listed.
The title image is from the kibyoshi Gozonji Shobaimono.