aienkien
(A form of Japanese Proverb)
合縁奇縁
[あいえんきえん, aien kien]
shared bond, mysterious bond
(lit.: shared/mutual fate/destiny/bond, strange/mysterious fate/destiny/bond. This phrase is a classical yojijukugo
(a four-character idiom in the style of classical Chinese)
used to refer to the mysteries of attraction and relationships
between men and women; perhaps also between men and men,
or women and women, though no such usage has been seen classically).
shared bonds mysterious
played out in fates mutual,
proclaimed by destiny
destiny conquered, that is!
400 years and dead silence
under the sun, inside
the ruin and run
of life lived praying
to a “no comment” God.my faith persists 合縁奇縁!
my faith like white blood cells
spawning from my bones
and then devouring anything
they deem dangerous to destiny…
and then dying in the James Dean Code
of live fast and die young.
In the 400 years.
Of Silence.
Under the sun.I felt it like bones, the silence!
I felt it like bones, my faith!
And I knew it like I know my bones
aienkien…合縁奇縁
And from here and now,
after the Word spoken
400 years seems like seconds.
But what about the people
who lived then, under that sun
and were 合縁奇縁
by history
by destiny
by bond?Whole lives lived and
not a word!
not a finger!
lifted to lay them down gentle
in the bluebells of a warm midnight!
God sat in Heaven like Summer
and said nothing like Winter.
Silence…400 years…and people
living whole lives from gun to tape
and not one word in
aienkien 合縁奇縁 .So when was it enough? The silence?
How much is enough!
Did God finally see people yearning
like kindling yearns to be tossed
into the fire and be consumed
and become flame,
become heat,
become smoke
rising and fragrant and free?
I’ll never know here.
Now.
But I sense somehow that
Silence has its languages
that speaking knows not of,
verbs that act in stillness not moving
and speak to a people
(aienkien 合縁奇縁)
thru epiphanies.
aienkien
合縁奇縁
“I’ll never know here.
Now.
But I sense somehow that
Silence has its languages
that speaking knows not of,
verbs that act in stillness not moving
and speak to a people”
And…
cue chills.
Lovely.
Lovely.
Lovely.
so…my Sis who loves Japan…can you shed light on this mystery word “aienkien” that I stumbled across and got caught in my heart’s throat? Google was sparse…other sources took it toward erotica which is the physical debasement of the core of the word I sense there!
and thanks for that comment, cus I abso loved when that last stanza declared itself so primly, so powerfully, so poised and purposed.
No light to shed…though I do have sparse contact with a Japanese professor at Oxford. Perhaps she could do the honors??
Yes…that sounds great! ❤