Giving People Poems

In Japan, where even the imperial couple are required to turn out poems as part of their official functions, it is not surprising that there is a long tradition of occasional poetry. Nonetheless, Japan's most popular living poet, Tanikawa Shuntaro, has always been known for upsetting the apple carts of Japan's ordered, formulaic society. Here he does it again, sacralizing poetry in its purely perfunctory forms as a gift appropriate for any occasion.