斎藤茂吉

Brief history and description

Poet and doctor. Born in Yamagata Prefecture. Also known as Doba Sanbo Shujin. Wrote seventeen books on poetry from his work as a psychiatrist, mostly as a writer for the Araragi magazine, as well as many essays on poetry, research papers and other essays. His representative works include the Shakko collection of poetry and five volumes of Kakinomoto no Hitomaro, etc.

Relationship with Yaichi

One of the first poets to appreciate Yaichi’s poetry. An episode of their relationship depicts them drinking together in an air-raid shelter during their first meeting in 1945.

Comment by Yaichi

Nobody would recognize the poems I composed until Saito, who I had never met or even exchanged new year greeting cards with, published a critique in a magazine. (Quoted from Bungakusha no Shugyo.)

Comment by Mokichi

Doujin had a poetic style typical of Man’yoshu that was neither old-fashioned not dry, and it contained a different charm in which the timbre displayed a fluid motion that I felt was like the juice squeezed from fresh fruit. (Quoted from Shusou Doujin no Uta Isshu.)

Representative works

intercommunion_saitou_2Douba Sanbo (Written by Aizu Yaichi, Waseda University Aizu Yaichi Memorial Museum archives)

A poem composed when he visited Sito Mokichi’s home. Mokichi was also known as Douba Sanbo, and only one copy received by a person who was in attendance at their meeting currently exists and is archived at the Waseda University Aizu Yaichi Memorial Museum.

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