(#24 the old mice)



at Nishidera



the old mice do



the young mice

do chew



on the

robes



they chew



on (his) garments

chew too



chew on (his)

garments



they do




and should we tell 

the priest



tell the priest



and should we tell 

the priest



tell the priest

Saibara translation by Tomer Inbar

Saibara (literally, “urge/horse/song”) are a strange animal. Part bawdy peasant folk song, part aristocratic court poem, Saibara appear to be the lyrics of early folk songs adapted to the music and aesthetics of Chinese T’ang musical style as interpreted by the Heian Court. Ichijo Kanera's Ryojinguansho (completed in about 1477), which contains the first critical look at Saibara, posits that they were sung by subjects bringing tribute to the capital from the various regions of the country and thus represent what they brought with them from the outer regions to the capital. Later commentators dispute this and posit that they are simply Waka poems put to T’ang music. 



Saibara first make their appearance in Court literature in the mid-ninth century and become standardized some time during the Engi era (901–923). The songs rely heavily on repetition and are punctuated throughout with various sound and rhythm markers (which are presented in italics). In all, there are 61 songs, divided into two sections reflecting the musical scale in which they were performed: ritsu and ryo. These two scales are said to represent the principles of Yin and Yang respectively. —TI