すつかり剥げて布袋は笑ひつゞけてゐる
sukkari hagete Hotei wa waraitsuzukete iru
completely
worn away
Hotei still laughing
—Santōka
(trans. David LaSpina[1])
I posted a bit about Hotei the other day, better known in the West by his Chinese name Budai or simply as "The Laughing Buddha". You can read that post here.
I took this photo in Atami, a really nice resort city somewhat near Tokyo. Rubbing his belly is said to be good luck, so people commonly rub the belly of any Hotei statues they see. The Hotei statue that old Santōka happened upon in this haiku has been worn away either by rubbing or weather, or both.
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 | David LaSpina is an American photographer and translator lost in Japan, trying to capture the beauty of this country one photo at a time and searching for the perfect haiku. |
That is, me! If you like this translation, feel free to use it. Just credit me. Also link here if you can. ↩