初春【はつはる】 hatsuharu early spring [but refers to the New Year period when used in a haikai verse; do not confuse with 立春【りっしゅん】 risshun, first day of spring; note that outside of an actual verse, 初春 may be pronounced either【しょしゅん】shoshun or【はつはる】hatsuharu, and refers to the first third of spring--see note on calendar]
- 明の春【あけのはる】 ake no haru dawn of spring [see above]
- 今朝の春【けさのはる】 kesa no haru this morning's spring [see above]
去年今年【こぞことし】 kozokotoshi last year and this year
- 去年【こぞ】 kozo last year
- 去年【きょねん】 kyonen last year
元日【がんじつ】 ganjitsu （ぐわんじつ）, New Year's Day
This is the first day of the year, January 1st. Lately, special festive events have become rare.
The traditional mood has become a thing of the past and many people tend to simply stay home quietly.
Nonetheless it is still considered a day when people welcome the new year with a refreshed mind. The
various terms which designate New Year's Day (元朝 [がんちょう]
ganchō; 元旦
[がんたん]
gantan; 大旦[おおあした]
ōashita) particularly refer to the
morning of the day, when the members of the family gather to celebrate by drinking spiced
sake
(屠蘇 [とそ],
toso). Another related term that means New Year (歳旦 [さいたん],
saitan)
extends its meaning to the first three days of the New Year.
ganjitsu ya sareba nogawa no mizu no oto
New Year's Day--
once gone
the sound of water, rivers in fields
Raizan
ganjitsu ya harete suzume no monogatari
New Year's Day--
the sun shines,
the sparrows' story
Ransetsu
ganjitsu ya te o arai oru yūgokoro
New Year's Day--
washing hands,
the emotions of an evening
Akutagawa Ryūnosuke
ganjitsu no tagoto no aze no sizuka kana
on New Year's Day,
each rice field and ridge--
how calm it all is
Awano Seiho
The poet must be looking at a rice field, sectioned off into different parts. As the field workers take
a break in winter, small weeds grow between the ridges in the field, creating little lines that go up
and down, as well as across. One imagines people going along these quiet paths to attend their first
services at the temples.
