Takeko Nakano · Aizu
Original
もののふの 猛き心に くらぶれば 数にも入らぬ 我が身ながらも
Takeko Nakano's death poem, "もののふの猛き心にくらぶれば数にも入". Read the original Japanese, translation, meaning, and historical background. The poem accepts the speaker's position as a woman while throwing herself into the resolve of warriors.
Person
A woman of Aizu who led the Joshitai and died in battle with a naginata in hand. Her figure concentrates the tragedy of Aizu into one body: grace, discipline, gender, and the decision to fight when defeat was near.
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Translation
Beside the fierce hearts of warriors, my body may count for little, yet I too am ready to fight.
Poetic Shape A Japanese death poem is less a final explanation than a last shape given to feeling. Its brevity matters: a life is not narrated, but compressed into a few lines that leave room for silence.
Reading
The poem accepts the speaker's position as a woman while throwing herself into the resolve of warriors. It strongly brings out the tragedy and beauty of the Aizu War.
Background
Passed down as the death poem of Nakano Takeko, who led the Joshitai in the Aizu War. It is often told as a poem tied to her naginata. A woman of Aizu who led the Joshitai and died in battle with a naginata in hand.
Source / Transmission Wording and readings may differ by transmission; this page treats the text as one circulated form.
Further Reading
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