Hyakunin Isshu "Karuta Party" Theory (1)

When the New Year comes, people sometimes play Hyakunin Isshu karuta. In elementary and junior high schools, many teachers hold "karuta parties." It is common to hold these parties not just in Japanese language class, but also within a class, a grade level, or the entire school. Outside of school, various karuta parties are held at children's associations and many other venues. Here, I would like to present my theory on "karuta parties."

The purpose of a karuta party is generally these two points:

・Getting familiar with classical literature
・Building friendships

That is about it.

Nowadays, more children are interested in competitive karuta, but that is a "sport." In Japanese class, I want to prioritize "classical literature" over competitiveness, so I hold it using the "chirashi" (scattered) method. Also, I have the reader recite it in a monotone without adding any melody.

In "Chihayafuru" (by Yuki Suetsugu), there is a scene where Kanade Oe whispers to her friends, who are obsessed with grabbing the cards quickly, "I don't want to forget that karuta is 'poetry.'"

For children, a "karuta party" is not a sport, but classical literature. I believe the "chirashi" method is better than the "Genpei" method for teaching "poetry."
There are times when it is enjoyed as a sport. The method will differ depending on where you place the objective.

The merit of playing Hyakunin Isshu is that it makes students familiar with the poems, and by memorizing them, classical styles and grammar, such as "kakari-musubi" (linking particles), become familiar. That is the goal.

Compared to the feelings I had after we met, I did not know what longing was in the past.

I do not know about people's hearts; in my old home, the flowers still bloom with the scent of the past.

Students naturally acquire the distinction between "~keri" and "~keru." "Keri" is the terminal form, and "keru" is the attributive form due to kakari-musubi."zo" -> "keru". Because the emphatic "keru" was used so often, it eventually became the terminal form. Even without knowing such things, they naturally learn "zo ~ keru" through classical study, which is memorizing karuta. They learn it without even being conscious of "studying."

The goal for the competition is once per hour. I include small talk in between to make it last for an hour.

Since the autumn plants wither as the wind blows, it is no wonder they call the mountain wind a storm (arashi).

If you put mountain and wind together, you get a storm, right?"Mountain" + "Wind" -> "Storm". It's a pun. People in the past were the same. They coolly called puns "kakekotoba (pivot words)." They hang words together.
I talk about things like that.

Must I sleep alone through this long, long night, like the trailing tail of a mountain pheasant in the mountain forest?

"Ashibiki no" is a "makurakotoba (pillow word)" that introduces "mountain.""Ashibiki no" -> "mountain". Pillow words are decorative words. They have no meaning. (Strictly speaking, the meaning has been forgotten.)
"Ashibiki no yamadori no o no shidario no" is a "jokotoba (preface word)" used to introduce the word "long." Pillow words are five syllables long and fixed, but preface words are not fixed; they are introductory words used to lead into another word.
What the poet wants to say using pillow words and preface words is "It's a long night (naganagashi yo)." The mountain pheasant becomes irrelevant. It means "It's a long night, like the long tail of a mountain pheasant." Since "long night" alone doesn't convey enough, they decorate it in various ways.

Because the rapids are fast, the waterfall river is blocked by rocks; even if we are separated, I think that we will meet again in the end.

Look, there are rocks, right? The water that flowed together from over there splits here. But I want to meet again somewhere. A loooong time ago, there was a drama where this waka poem was played every time. ...I make small talk like that (I wonder what era that was from).This is the only one-character card that starts with "se (rapids)."

I also want them to memorize literary history, so I say things like, "Next is a poem by Sei Shonagon," "A poem by the author of The Pillow Book ( Even if I try to deceive the night by imitating a rooster's crow, the barrier of Osaka will not let you pass. )," or "Next is Murasaki Shikibu ( In the brief moment I saw you after we met again, you were like the midnight moon hidden by clouds. ). Oh, this is a one-character card." "Me! ...Meguri aite ~" and so on.
Sei Shonagon and Murasaki Shikibu are familiar figures, famous Japanese people that students learn about not only in Japanese class but also in social studies.

In the brief moment I saw you after we met again, you were like the midnight moon hidden by clouds.

This time, I could not even prepare a gift, so I offer the brocade of autumn leaves on Mount Tamuke to the gods.

In a slightly more advanced form, I say, "...momiji no nishiki kami no mani mani" and they shout "Yes!". Since many children memorize it by the "mani mani" part, after they take the card, I explain, "The author of this poem is Sugawara no Michizane. After his death, he became the god Tenjin."
In the case of Kobe, since Sugawara no Michizane stopped there on his way to being exiled to Dazaifu, there are places like "Umegae-cho" named after the flying plum tree, and "Tobimatsu-cho" named after the flying pine tree. There is also "Itayado-cho," which got its name because they built a lodging enclosed with boards for Michizane. You can also talk about the origins of place names. In the class following such an explanation, I might say before reading, "Next is a poem by the god of exams (Tenjin = Sugawara no Michizane)" or "This is a poem by the person who is the origin of the name Itayado." If a child can take the card saying "Yes!" at that point, then I've got them. I praise them by saying, "Nice!" It shows they are listening to my instruction.

I will describe the teaching methods for children using Fujiwara no Teika's "Ogura Hyakunin Isshu" for karuta, in four parts.