dream

Dream Sequence:”Narihira and Nijo no Tsubone at the Fuji River” by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi


The Dream Sequence

I
A few moments after the dawn
Had lit azure with dim old light
Of fresh dim lamp and darkness gone
That hid the sky all since the night.
And moments prior the sun had shone
Ablaze the earth all with its light:
The road had glistened, in grey glown
The sky was painted in blue, bright
I walked a lonely lane, forlorn.
This gloom and happiness and light
And night and darkness all festoon
The thousand glints that make the night
Of lonesomeness seem all delight,
Illusions? Truth? Not bane, nor boon!

II
Thus walking lost in this wet dream
This flow in flowing sensual stream
Erotic loneliness of sight
As if to moth a burning light
But then materialization
Of your all smiling reflection
Accompany that smiling face
Alas my weakness such disgrace!
Then with communion looks begin
The oft repeated sacred sin
Let this friendship be heard and drown
In amplified groaning din
Or let us sow this in the brown
And lay by it and play within

III
As friendship grows to beauty, charm
And springs through it a lust-less bliss
Also brings in some pain and harm
Our modest boon had all of this
And often silent while we walk
Apast this peaceful lane our way
Oft breaking silence you would talk
When silence led our hearts astray
And once in endless lane we start
Walking, talking, loud and silent
Then neither would we wish to part
Nor carry on thus reticent
But meeting has in parting end
And both are but eternal friends

IV
And once on our way had we start
On each earliest part of days
We tried to walk all trodden ways
Before the dusk had us apart.
And long of walking when we tier
Of hand in hand, of you and me
Then blessed was lonely shady tree
Under whose shade did we retire
A noon when in the shade we lay
You gave me a berry or grape
Which me, deliberately ape
For glance of lust in lust-less way
For such is in a friendship bliss
Rejoice in small a thing like this!

V
The grief, alas, the lasting show
The joy and pain but was a dream
Never! The dreams could never flow
Ever in time’s free flowing stream.
This show, alas, a lasting grief
The lonely lane had ceased to be
This cruel sun is senseless thief
He can’t be jailed in shady tree.
But foolish heart does still surmise
A chanceful day it would sure find
A likeness of your face! Realize
That light on earth have never shined!
And thus is pain of broken dreams
When break let space for newer streams!

P.S. This is a dream sequence(a sonnet sequence prelude) to the upcoming set of poems entitled “Sleep & Insomnia”