Album of waka 1600 - 1617

This album of waka poems was created by Emperor Go-Yōzei in Japan, sometime before his death in 1617. The gold leaf background evokes a sense of timelessness, upon which calligraphy brushes dance, carrying the weight of centuries. The symbols, though abstract to our eyes, were laden with meaning for the Emperor's court. Note the recurring motif of water, a universal symbol of life, purity, and the subconscious. One might see echoes of the Greek god Oceanus, the personification of the great river encircling the world, whose image also evolved through time. Here, it reflects the ever-changing nature of existence. The act of writing, of preserving thought through symbols, acts as a talisman against the inevitable decay. Like water, these symbols bridge the conscious and unconscious, evoking a deep emotional response, a yearning for permanence in our transient world. The poems, thus, become a conduit, a channel, to transcend time.