One of Nagano Prefecture's proud
distinctions is Issa Kobayashi, the
famous master of haiku. Although
Issa was born and lived in
Nagano about two centuries ago,
he is still world-renowned for his haiku, poems of three
verses with five, seven, and then five syllables. As a
rule, haiku is characterized by the theme of harmony
with nature, similiar to one of the main goals for the
Nagano games. Nowadays, people around the world
still compose haiku, which are used sometimes as
greetings on special occasions. In honor of the Nagano
Games, residents of Nagano Prefecture have written
haiku to greet Olympic visitors through a program
called "One Haiku for the Olympics," sponsored by the
Nagano Prefecture International Relations Department,
the Haiku Poets' Association of Nagano Prefecture, and
ANPIE (Association of Nagano Prefecture for
International Exchange). Since May 5, 1997, over
1,600 haiku have been submitted for this purpose, out
of which one hundred were selected and translated into
French and English. The one hundred haiku were then
printed on 7,500 small flags to decorate local shops,
information centers, and other business's during the
Olympic and Paralympic Games. The flags are intended
to give a hearty welcome to visitors from around the
world. NAOC, who is also eager to greet the world in
traditional Nagano style, has selected some of these
haiku and is proud to introduce them on the official
Nagano Olympic Web Site.
(Program coordinator and translator,
Laurent Mabesoone, poses with a
sketch of Issa Kobayashi)
Selected 100 entries
The snow is waiting,
I am waiting for new friends,
Dreaming of the Games!
Yoshiko Yamaura -
Komoro City
Le bouddha en pierre
Avec son chapeau de neige,
Que veut-il me dire ?
Mitsu Kanazawa - Ueda
A peaceful river,
Whispering, shows me the way
To the Olympics.
Michiko Maruya -
Omachi City
The sky of Nagano
Is everything I possess,
Jumping on my skis!
Tokusuke Fujii - Nagano
City
Being together,
The coldness of the snow
Changes into warmth.
Miyo Hasegawa -
Toyoshina City
Le champion échange
Un sourire furtif avec
Le bonhomme de neige !
Kikuko Kaneko -
Nagano
Crossing the ski course
In the twinkling of an eye:
The morning squirrel!
Kazuko Ohyama -
Shinano Town
Myriad of flags waving,
Giving colour to the breeze:
The spring is coming!
Shuichi Shiojima -
Matsumoto City
Plateau de Shiga :
Comme un éclair sort des nuages,
Un skieur fend l'air !
Kazuo Nagasawa -
Nagano
Standing here by you,
Gazing at the Milky Way:
So far and so near!
Seiho Ogihara - Chino
City
Cimes enneigées
Protégeant avec amour
Le temple Zenkoji !
Seisho Sugai -
Préfecture de Miyagi
Rice of the New Year,
With the official chopsticks
Of the Olympics!
Osamu Okuhara - Kiso
Village
A flower of snow
On your shoulder seems to say:
Welcome to Nagano!
Keiko Yoshida -
Nagano City
Winter Olympics:
The bell of the temple rings
And the world is one.
Michio Uchibori -
Nagano City
Two arms in the snow
Can be stronger than two legs:
Chair-skiing in Nagano!
Yoshiko Nakamura -
Nagano City
The Olympic Torch
Is blowing in Nagano,
The snow seems to blush!
Tadao Nakazawa -
Koshoku City
Un verre de saké
Entre amis du monde entier :
Source thermale enneigée .
Tadanori Yanagisawa -
Shimosuwa
Des lunettes noires aux yeux,
Et sur le coeur
Une médaille d'or en laque !
Tadao Sakurai -
Komoro
In the blue heavens
A skier is taking off
Faster than his shadow!
Misao Tokutake -
Nagano City
It's warm in my heart
When I see the white forest:
The snow is not cold!
Yuka Kobayashi -
Yamanouchi Town
Au fond des montagnes,
Un drapeau s'agite au loin :
La queue d'un renard !
Kitoko Sanoyama -
Ueda
In the blue heavens
Skiers jumping over our heads
Showing us Peace Signs
Tadashi Nakayama -
Suwa City
Le biathlonien
Voit sa chasse récompensée
D'un thé vert japonais !
Chikayo Miyasaka -
Suwa
Dazzled by the snow,
We are competing together
On the slope of peace!
Yohko Kiyota - Iida
City
The snow-covered land
Is like a sleeping beauty,
So pure and so bright!
Tomoaki Miyashita -
Matsukawa Town
On a sunny day
A gold is shining
More than the white snow!
Miyoko Miyajima -
Matsukawa Town
A never-ending sound
Echoes in the moountains:
The woodpecker's welcome!
Kazuhiko Yokomae -
Matsukawa Town
Fresh air and pure water
Is everything one could need,
We have it in Nagano!
Saeko Suzuki -
Matsukawa Town
Winter Olympics:
Waving the flag of a country
That used to be a stranger!
Yoshiko Imai - Nagano
City
Traversant les mers,
Jusqu'aux neiges éternelles :
Le feu de l'Olympe !
Getsuyu Shionoiri -
Sakaki
On the jumping hill
Traces of battle remain,
Under the full moon.
Noboru Kihara -
Nagano City
Waiting for the Games,
I am knitting hats for all
Of my family!
Mitsu Nishijo - Koshoku
City
To welcome the spring
To Nagano you will come
From a thousand miles away!
Fumiyoshi Nishikawa -
Tobu Town
Comme un arc de neige
Décochant des flèches d'argent :
La piste de luge !
Miho Oshida - Nagano
In a cloud of snow
A skier is drawing an arc,
Jumping to the skies!
Keiko Shimizu - Ueda
City
«La neige est ma demeure»,
Disait le poète Issa
Deux cents ans avant les Jeux !
Akiyoshi Kobayashi -
Nagano
Les pigeons implorent
Pour quelques graines
Et sous la neige le temple dort .
Tetsu Shimizu - Shinano
Town
Swallowed by the storm
And propelled straight forward,
The jumper like a rocket!
Norihide Nakamura -
Hakuba Village
Rinsing canola flowers,
The mountains pure and white
Reflecting in the river.
Yukiko Suzuki -
Shimosuwa Town
Un ciel bleu d'hiver
De tout handicap libère,
Champions des Paralympiques !
Masako Ikeda -
Koshoku
On the hero's heart,
A disc of Kiso laquer glitters:
The Olympic Medal!
Miyuki Nakayama -
Nagano City
An ice pillar marks
The starting point of the track
As the luger shivers.
Fuyuko Matsuzawa -
Nagano City
Waiting for the Games,
Even the apples in the trees
Appear to blush!
Ryuho Tokutake -
Yamanouchi Town
Saut à ski :
L'air dans lequel je pénètre,
C'est mon avenir !
Toshio Wada - Togura
Gate after gate,
Your face widens into a grin
As your chair-ski wins!
Kanzan Shiratori -
Nagano City
Hakuba village
Echoes with thousands of cheers
In a hundred languages!
Totoshi Mesuda -
Matsumoto City
Nagano Olympics
Resound all over the world,
The murmur of the snow!
Miho Isshiki - Mure
Village
Even though it's cold,
It feels warm when you support
A team with your heart!
Asuka Kayanuma - Mure
Village
Nagano Olympics:
The snowflakes multiply
Like my dreams!
Yumi Nakamura -
Samizu Village
Kiso lacquer and gold
Brought together in
harmony:
The Olympic Medal!
Matsuko Maejima -
Nagano City
Up hill and down dale,
The fresh snow reflects the flame
Of Nagano's Games!
Takeshi Yamada -
Shinano Town
La Voie lactée cet hiver
Semble infinie et si proche,
Au tournant du millènaire
Misako Tominaga -
Kamiyama
In the depth of winter,
The temple town opens up
Like the Olympic flower!
Kesayuki Takizawa -
Kamiyama Town
Aux Jeux Olympiques
Leur seule arme, c'est la danse
Sur un miroir de glace .
Hideo Tanaka - Nagano
The sky is so deep,
After the critical point
Jumping has no limit!
Hisao Kobayashi -
Nagano Town
Face au monde entier
Un village entre l'azur
Et la neige immaculée .
Tadashi Masuda -
Matsumoto City
Rinsing in the river
Radish flowers mixed with herbs,
So cool is the white water!
Suzue Yamaoka - Okaya
City
Little by little
A girl becomes a flower
Spinning on the ice!
Nobuko Agata - Nagano
City
As I ski,
The slope of my dreams changes to
Millions of shooting stars!
Yukihiro Kurata -
Hiraya Village
Dans le ciel d'hiver
Je vois des lutins blancs qui tombent :
C'est la neige !
Shiori Maruyama -
Hiraya
Watching the curling,
For a moment we stop breathing,
Hoping the stone will stop!
Hiroyuki Mizuide -
Ueda City
Dans un paradis blanc
La neige de Hakuba
Chante sous mes pas !
Masaki Suenaga -
Sakaki
Along the jump hill
The Olympic Flags are chanting
In the winter wind!
Yukei Matsumura - Iida
City
La neige immaculée
A transformé notre vallée,
Fait reculer nos horizons !
Makiko Chigono -
Hiyoshi Village
The snow of spring falls
On us, as we shake hands,
Promising to meet again.
Shin'ichi Yamaguchi -
Nagano City
Vainqueurs et perdants
Respirant de la même haleine
Dans un halo blanc !
Teiji Miyata -
Matsumoto City
The voices of children
Are ringing through the mountains:
One school, one country!
Morio Takaike - Nagano
City
She is still a girl
Smiling under the make-up,
Spinning in the air!
Hiroko Sueki - Hiyoshi
Village
On the sparkling ice,
Like each other's shadow:
A man and a woman!
Masashi Naganuma -
Takamori Town
Welcoming the world
With a heart purer than snow,
Warmer than the hearth!
Tomoko Shigemori -
Iina City
Montagnes de Nagano,
La Voie lactée pour les Jeux
Forme des anneaux !
Seiho Ariga - Hotaka
Town
The thrill of hockey:
Everybody can take part,
But playing is hard!
Yasushi Shimoda -
Nagano City
A chaque kilomètre,
Les radis japonais aux fenêtres
Montrent le chemin des Jeux
Junko Fujikura - Ueda
City
This year's Offering
To our mountain Goddess:
Fire arriving from Greece!
Hiroko Yoda - Koshoku
City
Atop every mountain
Rests a crown of glittering snow:
A reward for the Games!
Haruko Yoshida - Kiso
Village
Even the plains and mountains
Are Competing for the Games:
Each has a white dress!
Mue Ohta - Toyoshina
Town
Blotti sous la neige, sage,
Dans la clarté de la lune :
Voici mon village !
Kyoko Yonezawa -
Koshoku
Vent clair de l'été
Sombre et noble,
Le château de Matsumoto
Shozo Yamazaki -
Matsumoto City
Waiting for the snow,
Children wave flags of countries
That they hadn't known!
Hideo Kobayashi -
Yamanouchi Town
Three young men in file,
With exactly the same smile:
Bronze, silver and gold!
Takeno Yoshihara -
Hiyoshi Village
Like the ranks of a choir,
The Olympic Flags flutter
In the cloudless sky of winter!
Miyoko Yamagishi -
Sanada Town
Like the melting snow
People coming together
Peace in Nagano!
Seifu Shibazaki -
Sanada Town
Au ciel étoilé
Une nouvelle étoile est née :
La Flamme Olympique !
Ichiro Kurumisawa -
Saku
Listening to his guide,
The paralympic skier
Can see with his mind!
Yasuo Emoto - Saku
City
With the sparkling flakes
The snowman powders his face,
Waiting for the Games!
Masuko Tanaka -
Shiojiri City
Des Alpes Japonaises
Elle fait rougir la neige :
La Flamme Olympique !
Tadao Miyazaki -
Sanada Town
The ume trees blossom
Once in a life, you and me,
We meet for the Games!
Kaoru Ohkusa - Shinano
Town
The snow is shining;
Thousands of cheers for the Games
Reach up to the skies!
Michiko Yashima -
Obuse Town
The winter forest
Changes into a mosaic,
Shivering in the wind!
Sakee Usuda - Nagano
City
The white carpet of mountains
Echoes with cheers welcoming
This winter's champions
Sadaaki Ohta -
Matsumoto City
Même le chamois
Tend le cou, rempli d'émoi :
Un skieur s'envole !
Mikio Ikeda - Koshoku
Jumping on my skis,
It feels there are no frontiers
Till the end of the Earth!
Megumi Kagehara -
Yasuoka Village
The snowy mountains
Echoing with cheers:
The games are here!
Yoji Ito - Nagano City
As the flame is flickering,
Every flag seems to compete
With every peak!
Hisae Kobayashi -
Shinano Town
A buddha in stone
Is smiling near the ski slope,
Having his place in the sun!
Shigeo Yanagihara -
Omi Village
La neige en fondant
Dessine des chevaux blancs :
Hakuba au printemps !
Fumi Iijima - Koshoku
Before the event,
We speak different languages,
But share the same flame!
Tadashi Takagi - Okaya
City
Sharing the same breath,
One, two, three, four young men
Together in a bobsleigh
Yohko Fujimoto - Saku
City
Tant de drapeaux différents
Le soleil donne des couleurs
Aussi aux joues des enfants !
Susumu Okabe - Saku
Jumping in the air,
The skier looks like a bridge
Between sky and earth!
Sachiko Kusama -
Obuse Town