Word and Image

[karadin.livejournal.com]

manip by Karadin

 

When I see the frost
lying white on a staircase
that might have been formed
by the outstretched wings of magpies,
I know the night has grown deep.

Otomo no Yakamochi

*The allusion is to a Chinese legend in which a bridge across the Milky Way is formed each year by magpies to allow the Herder to meet the Weaver (stars Altair and Vega) The reference is to a staircase in the royal palace, no less "lofty" than the Milky Way by virtue of its association with the imperial court