A new century begins ... and those of us living in this time of transition can say to ourselves "I'm now in my second century!" But I know some people who would smile kindly if they heard me say that - for some of them are in their tenth century, or more! I think you know them too ... Ono no Komachi ... Semi Maru ... Tenchi Tenno ...

Yes, the poets of the famous Hyakunin Isshu. They have seen many new centuries come and go over the years, and yet they still live on in our hearts. This very week, as people around the country celebrate the New Year, many of them will do so by playing karuta, and as they do they will help to maintain one of Japan's most loved traditions.

More than fifty generations have passed since the time of Emperor Tenchi, yet his poetry is still remembered by millions of Japanese. And remembered not by scholars of ancient literature studying in dusty libraries, but by normal people. In Western culture, some literature has survived from very old times - Greek plays, for example - but if you stop your man-on-the-street and ask for a few quotations, you will probably not get an answer. Such things no longer seem to have much relevance in our contemporary society. Here in Japan though, it is different - most people have knowledge of the Hyakunin Isshu, and thus carry in their minds a kind of measuring stick which can help them to understand the long history of this country.

As we listen to the poems created by these people of ages past, the strongest impression on us is not how 'old' and 'strange' those old poets are, but how much their feelings are similar to ours. They speak of love ... love lost and love found ... and as the centuries roll by, that theme still speaks to all of us.

In recent years, in a development that would surely astonish the old emperor and his 99 companions, Hyakunin Isshu has gone international. The first translation into English was published more than a hundred years ago, and many others have appeared since then, in many other languages. Japanese poetry can be said to be enjoying a kind of 'boom' around the world. Hyakunin Isshu may have been born in Japan, and is certainly Japanese culture, but it is no longer only Japanese - it is now on its way to becoming part of the general culture of mankind.

I don't know if I myself will be able to make it to my third century, but that the Hyakunin Isshu will still be here, and will still be popular a hundred years from now, I have no doubt at all!