Ton'a (頓阿, 1289–1372), also read as Tonna; lay name – Nikaidō Sadamune (二階堂貞宗), was a Japanese Buddhist poet who was a student of Nijō Tameyo. Ton'a took a tonsure at Enryaku-ji Temple, but was later associated with the Ji sect (founded by Ippen). He looked up to Saigyō's poetic genius.
Poetry
editThe following are two of his best-known poems:
naku semi no |
Crying cicadas |
ne ni tatete |
Just what can it be |
Notes
edit- ^ Carter, Steven D. Traditional Japanese Poetry : an Anthology. Stanford, CA, USA: Stanford University Press, 1991. p 255. ISBN 9780804715621
- ^ The shell shed by the cicada was a conventional symbol for ephemerality. Adapted from Carter, Steven D. Just Living : Poems and Prose of the Japanese Monk Tonna. New York, NY, USA: Columbia University Press, 2003. p 133. ISBN 9780231125529