Report on the Fringe Myrtles Meeting October, 2025

For our final meeting of the year, the Fringe Myrtles were treated to an illuminating presentation on tanka, the classical Japanese poetic form that has endured for over a millennium. Our presenter, Rodney Williams, is the contributing editor at Catchment – Poetry of Place, part of the Baw Baw Arts Alliance in Kurnai country, Gippsland, Victoria.

The presentation opened with a carefully curated selection of classic Japanese tanka along with insightful commentary that illuminated the nuances of form, seasonal imagery, and emotional subtlety characteristic of this poetic tradition. Considering the usual cautions when it comes to translations of Japanese works, Rodney skilfully guided the audience through the historical origins of tanka and some of its key elements.

Using the poem below by Buddhist monk Saigyo (1118-1190), Rodney highlighted the keen sense of place in tanka as well as some of the differences between it and haiku. Whereas haiku is primarily concerned with ‘the moment’, tanka concentrates on ‘the reaction’ or emotional response, which, as Rodney suggests, affords tanka broader links between nature and human nature.

even someone
free of passion as myself
feels sorrow:
snipe rising from a marsh
at evening in autumn

Saigyo

Sharing other examples from poets such as Ono No Komachi and Akiko Yosano, Rodney was able to demonstrate how tanka can capture moments of profound beauty, intimate feeling, and philosophical reflection. His engaging commentaries illuminated the layered meanings, cultural references, and linguistic elegance embedded in these works, offering attendees an opportunity to appreciate the artistry and depth of the form.

Equally compelling were the modern English-language examples, which demonstrated how tanka can evolve while retaining its core essence of brevity, emotional resonance, and lyrical precision. Through these examples, the audience gained a clear sense of the wide range of expressive possibilities within the tanka form, from meditative reflection and personal emotion to inventive imagery and contemporary themes.

The tanka which provoked most discussion on the day was the following by Rodney, himself;

shimmering
on the desert track
a mirage
her smile radiant
for the man behind me

Rodney Williams

Much discussion on this tanka centered on the 3rd line pivot or hinge which creates almost creates 2 poems in one.

Rodney’s presentation not only deepened appreciation for tanka’s historical and cultural significance but also inspired attendees to experiment with its form in their own writing, including this offering from Thomas Landgraf:

the woman folds
a ten dollar bill
crying
fountain
beside the cathedral

Thomas Landgraf

The Fringe Myrtles would like to thank Rodney for his engaging and edifying presentation and acknowledge his hard work in putting it all together.

a bride in white
on that grassy green slope –
this monument
for the drive-by president
casts his younger face as aged

Rodney Williams

– Kennedy Memorial, Treasury Gardens, Melbourne