Sagami

Many times I have started these little essays with the words '... lived almost exactly a thousand years ago ...', and this month will be no different. Although Teika's selection of poets covers a very wide span of years, from the 600's to the 1200's, the cluster of years at the turn of the millenium has far and away the largest representation in the set. Our own current end-of-millenium fever seems like it might be stimulating production in the arts, with special festivals and events planned in many places; perhaps something similar happened a thousand years ago, and a lot of poetry was produced. But then I realized that in Japan back in those times, nobody was counting dates by the Christian calendar; there was no turn of the millenium for them!

But anyway, my books say that Sagami was probably born in the late 990's, 'almost exactly a thousand years ago.' Most of the commentaries I read are quick to point out that the image presented in her poem does not represent her actual situation, but was created in response to a theme presented at a poetry gathering. I suppose the commentators are trying to protect her reputation!

(The implication in the Japanese original is that just as her sleeves have been spoiled by the tears, so has her reputation been spoiled ...)

And now I have a little story to tell you, and I wish to ask your advice on something ... Soon after moving into this apartment nearly eleven years ago, I built myself a workbench to use for printmaking. The carving work I did sitting at a low table, but I didn't think that I could do the heavy printing work that way. I knew that Japanese traditional printers did all their work in the 'agura' position, but I didn't feel that I would be able to work for long hours sitting cross-legged on the floor. The first prints in this series were thus all made standing at that high bench. Sometime in the second year of work on the series though, I was requested to do some printing demonstrations, and for use in these I made myself a printer's bench in the traditional low shape (adjusted a little bit in size for my long legs ...). I managed to do the demonstrations fairly well, even though my legs became cramped and stiff, and from that time on, I used this low bench to do all my printmaking, gradually becoming accustomed to the cramped position. The professional printers I visited were divided about evenly on standing or sitting. When I asked them about it, the ones who worked standing up said things like It's much easier, and the baren can be applied much more powerfully. The ones who worked sitting down said This is the traditional way. The baren can be applied in the proper manner! I suppose that you can guess which answer I paid the most attention to! For seven years now, I have been printing sitting down.

Last month though, as the result of a mix-up by a shipping company after doing a printing demonstration in Fukushima, I found myself without my low printing bench for a couple of weeks, so I was forced to clear off the long-unused high bench and make that print standing up. I was quite shocked at what I found. It was easy! The baren could be applied much more powerfully, and I was able to move my body lightly from side to side during the work, thus becoming much less tired and weary during the long process.

So now I have a problem. Which way should I work - standing or sitting? I have to say that I currently feel quite a sense of pride at being able to sit in the difficult cross-legged position for 8 or 10 hours a day doing the printing work. And if I work standing up, won't people then think 'Well he's a foreigner, so of course he can't work in our traditional ways ...' But on the other hand ... it was so peaceful and relaxed doing the printing last month!

Of course, if I switch to standing up, my legs will adapt, and I will soon lose the ability to do the work sitting down. It seems like I must make a decision one way or the other. What do you think I should do?

April 1997