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    Night on the Galactic Railroad and Other Stories from Ihatov
    Night on the Galactic Railroad and Other Stories from Ihatov
    Night on the Galactic Railroad and Other Stories from Ihatov
    Ebook86 pages1 hour

    Night on the Galactic Railroad and Other Stories from Ihatov

    By Kenji Miyazawa

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    About this ebook

    Kenji Miyazawa (1896-1933) is one of Japan's most beloved writers and poets, known particularly for his sensitive and symbolist children's fiction. This volume collects stories that focus on Miyazawa's love of space and his use of the galaxy as a metaphor for the concepts of purity, self-sacrifice, and faith, which were near and dear to his heart. "The Nighthawk Star" follows a lowly bird as he struggles to transform himself into something greater, a constellation in the night sky; "Signal & Signal-less" depicts a pair of star-crossed train signals who dream of eloping to the moon; and "Night on the Galactic Railroad," Miyazawa's most famous work, tells the story of two boys as they journey upon a train that traverses the Milky Way, learning the true meaning of friendship, happiness, and life itself along the way.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherOne Peace Books
    Release dateJan 16, 2020
    ISBN9781935548997
    Night on the Galactic Railroad and Other Stories from Ihatov

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    • 2/5
      ...And here we have something which is probably very beautiful and lyrical in its original language, only to suffer from (what I assume to be) a basic and literal translation. These simply don't read easily, and while I can appreciate the imagery Miyazawa has provided, a somewhat more sympathetic translation is probably necessary to convey the full symbolism and artistry that Japanese readers have enjoyed for a century. Most of my previous knowledge of Miyazawa comes from the disconcerting anime adaptation of the title story, Night on the Galactic Railroad, and the adoption of the "Afterlife Express" trope throughout Japanese - and later Western - culture surely points to his influence. Were I ignorant of these facts, however, the writing in this slim volume could only come over as stilted and awkward. I suspect there are better translations available.

      1 person found this helpful

    Book preview

    Night on the Galactic Railroad and Other Stories from Ihatov - Kenji Miyazawa

    Kenji Miyazawa

    NIGHT

    ON THE

    GALACTIC

    RAILROAD

    & Other Stories from Ihatov

    Translated by Julianne Neville

    ONE PEACE

    BOOKS

    Copyright © 2014 by Julianne Neville

    First edition published by One Peace Books, Inc., 2014

    ISBN: 978-1-935548-99-7

    Printed in Canada

    Translation and cover design by Julianne Neville

    Photo (jacket) copyright © 2007 iStockphoto LP/AAR Studio

    Illustration (jacket) from Pixta (www.pixta.jp)

    Distribution by SCB Distributors

    www.scbdistributors.com

    For more information, contact:

    One Peace Books

    43-32 22nd Street, #204

    Long Island City, NY 11101

    www.onepeacebooks.com

    Kenji Miyazawa, born in the northern prefecture of Iwate in 1896, is one of Japan's most influential and well-loved authors. Despite not being well known in his lifetime, his pure-hearted and deeply romantic works continue to touch the hearts of readers eighty years after his death.

    Born the eldest son of a wealthy pawnbroker, Miyazawa, from an early age, was disconcerted by what he saw as his family taking advantage of the poor farmers who made up much of the population of Iwate. His strong convictions led him to eventually forgo his inheritance and leave the family business to his younger brother in order to pursue his own path in life. Penning children's stories and prose on the side, Miyazawa worked first as a teacher and then as the head of an association geared toward educating the same farmers he held in such high regard. Operating out of a detached house in the countryside that belonged to his family, Miyazawa lived a simple life that was rich in terms of his pursuit of beauty and knowledge, as well as the connection it afforded him to the people and the land to which he was devoted. In fact, his birthplace of Iwate was so dear to him that it appears in his writing as the fictitious land of Ihatov.

    Miyazawa had a great respect for religion, especially for the Buddhism he actively practiced and Catholicism with its emphasis on the virtues of charity and devotion. He also possessed an avid interest in science and mathematics, which perfectly complemented his spirituality. His work as a geologist spoke of his respect for nature, but he was just as intrigued with astronomy and space, which is depicted in his work not as a cold vacuum but as an emotional landscape. Perhaps Miyazawa's most defining trait, however, was his deep sense of openness and goodwill toward his fellow man. Miyazawa believed happiness could be achieved in service toward others, and it is this that led him to study the universal language of Esperanto, into which he strived to translate much of his writing.

    Of the many themes Miyazawa touched upon in his work, one that stands out is that of death. He effectively illustrated the spiritual impact of loss, undoubtedly influenced by losing his beloved younger sister to illness. Miyazawa himself would suffer health problems throughout his life, eventually succumbing to pneumonia in 1933, at the young age of thirtyseven. Night on the Galactic Railroad, perhaps his most famous work, would be published posthumously the following year.

    CONTENTS

    The Star-circling Song

    The Nighthawk Star

    Signal and Signal-less

    Night on the Galactic Railroad

    THE STAR-CIRCLING SONG

    Scorpio's red gaze stares

    As the eagle Aquila's wings do spread

    And the puppy Canis Minor's eyes shine blue

    While Serpens the snake tightens its coils made of light

    Orion sings proudly from up on high

    Showering down frost and dew

    As the clouds of Andromeda

    Gather in the shape of a fish's mouth

    Stretched northward at five times its reach

    Is the paw of the great bear Ursa Major

    And above the lesser bear Ursa Minor’s forehead

    Lies Polaris, our guidepost, as we circle through the stars

    THE NIGHTHAWK STAR

    The Nighthawk was truly an ugly bird.

    His face looked as if it had been spattered with brown miso paste, his broad beak extended nearly ear to ear, and his short, wobbly legs inhibited him from walking more than a few feet. And so it was because of these physical peculiarities that the other birds hated looking at him.

    Take the Lark: While by no means an especially attractive bird, he even regarded himself high above the Nighthawk. Should their paths have happened to cross at twilight, the Lark would, with an offputting expression, pretend he hadn’t seen the other bird, shutting his eyes tightly and turning his head firmly in the other direction until the Nighthawk had passed. And smaller birds were always badmouthing the Nighthawk behind his back, saying:

    Humph! He’s come out again. Just look at that sorry face! It pains me to count him among us birds.

    Tell me about it! With a mouth that big, you’d think he was one of the frogs! As well as other nasty things.

    Oh, if only he were the real Hawk! Then the mere mention of his name would send those shallow, little birds shrinking into the leaves to hide. But in spite of his name, the Nighthawk bore no relation to the Hawk. He was, in fact, the elder brother of both the beautiful Kingfisher and the Hummingbird, who was considered the jewel in the bird family’s crown. For dinner the Kingfisher fished and the Hummingbird feasted on honey, but the Nighthawk caught and ate little bugs. Since he had neither strong claws nor a sharp beak, even the weakest of birds had little to fear from him.

    How strange it was, then, to have hawk in his name. They only resembled one another in two ways: The first being that the Nighthawk’s wings were quite strong. When he flew, they looked like blades slicing through the wind, and were easy to mistake for the Hawk’s. The second was that his cry was very piercing and too much like the Hawk’s. Naturally, this did not sit well with the real Hawk, who angrily demanded the Nighthawk do something about his name every time he saw him.

    So it happened one evening, after a long series of threats, that the Hawk paid a formal visit to the Nighthawk’s nest.

    Hey! You home? the Hawk called out. "I see you’ve yet to change your name. You’re unexpectedly brazen for such a lesser bird! But I’ll have you listen here, now. You and I couldn’t be more different. I can soar anywhere I please within the great blue sky, while you can only come

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