Renku - Renku

A haiku term. A style of poetry and literature in which long phrases of 17 syllables (5-7-5) and short phrases of 14 syllables (7-7) are strung together according to a set rule. The first phrase (long phrase) is called the hokku or tateku, the second phrase (short phrase) is called the wakiku, and the third phrase (long phrase) is called the san-tsu-mono, and these three phrases are collectively called the mitsu-mono. The second and subsequent phrases are called tsukeku in relation to the hokku, the fourth and subsequent phrases are called hiraku in distinction from the mitsu-mono, and the final phrase (short phrase) is called ageku (ageku). A work that has reached a certain number of lines is called a volume, and the basic form is the 100-line hyakuin, which consists of 100 lines, but there are many other types, such as 1,000 lines, 10,000 lines (10 volumes of 100 lines), ten thousand lines, Yoneji (88 lines), Gojuin (the first half of 100 lines), Yoyoshi (44 lines), Kasen (36 lines), etc. The form of renga was originally based on renga, and the correct name is "haikai no renga," or "haikai" for short, but when the hokku of haikai became independent and was called haiku, it came to be called renga to distinguish it from haiku and also to distinguish it from renga.

Renku does not have a theme that runs through a volume, but its life comes from the fact that it depicts various aspects of life and nature, and changes from one verse to the next. The smallest unit of Renku is three verses: the attached verse, the mae verse, and the uchikoshi (the verse before the mae verse). However, it was not recommended that the content of the attached verse touch on the uchikoshi, and for that reason, the third verse was strongly encouraged to be transformed. In addition, various rules (shikimoku and etiquette) were established for the design and execution of a volume. These included the number of verses in a single verse to avoid duplication of the same vocabulary, the sari-kirai (avoidance of sashiai) to avoid the closeness of the same season, the same character, or the same type or similar words, the number of verses to continue on themes such as the four seasons, love, gods, and Buddhism, and the jōza (regular seat) that specified the location where verses about flowers and the moon should be placed. Renku is written on a folded kaishi. The kasen style that was mainstream in the Sho-style haiku of Basho and others had a ratio of six verses on the front and twelve verses on the back in the first fold, and twelve verses on the front and six verses on the back in the second fold.

The act of adding a verse is called tsukeai, and various techniques were used for this. In Teimon haikai, which developed the verse based on the verse of renga, the mainstream style was simple monozuke, which added a word to a word, and the third verse was often turned into a verse by changing a word in the previous verse to another word with the same sound. When Teimon tsukeai finally fell into a routine, Danrin haikai emerged, and while it used the same verse as Teimon, it became all the rage with its dramatic changes in the meaning of the verse and its rapid verse progression. The ashirai, which draws in while releasing, and the nuke, which removes the word to create a verse that is clearly recognizable, were used heavily. Sho-style haiku, as part of the new trends of the Genroku period (1688-1704), was based on the notion of "transition" (utsuriri), which involves adding a verse that is appropriate to the previous verse, and further deepened this into "nioiozuke" (adding scent) through lingering emotions.

Renku thus achieved poetic success, but as a result of the alienation of words and meaning from the opportunity for connection, it eventually began to disintegrate. Both Buson and Issa were good at renku, but hokku dominated haiku literature. Renku effectively came to an end in the modern Meiji period, when Masaoka Shiki declared, "Hokku is literature, renhai is not literature" (Basho's Chats). Renku is currently attracting the interest of many people once again as one attempt to break out of the stagnation that modern literature fell into due to its fixation on the ego.

[Hiroyuki Inui]

"An Invitation to Renku, by Inui Hiroyuki and Shiraishi Teizou (1980, Yuhikaku Shinsho)" ▽ "An Introduction to Renku: The Structure of Basho-Style Haikai, by Ando Tsuguo (1981, Chikuma Shobo)" ▽ "Renku Reader, by Imoto Noichi and Imaizumi Junichi (1982, Taishukan Shoten) " ▽ "The Complete Translation of Japanese Classics 54, Basho Kushu (Renku)" with annotations by Nakamura Shunsada and Horikiri Minoru (1984, Shogakukan)"

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

俳諧(はいかい)用語。十七音節（五・七・五）の長句と十四音節（七・七）の短句を、一定の規則に従って交互に付け連ねる様式の詩文芸。第一句（長句）を発句(ほっく)または立句(たてく)、第二句（短句）を脇句(わきく)、第三句（長句）を第三の句といい、この三句を一括して三(み)つ物(もの)とよぶ。第二句以下を発句に対して付句(つけく)、第四句以下を三つ物と区別して平句(ひらく)、最終の句（短句）を挙句(あげく)（揚句）という。所定の句数に達したものを一巻とよぶが、一巻が百句からなる百韻(ひゃくいん)が基本形式で、千句、十百韻(とっぴゃくいん)（百韻十巻）、万句、米字(よねじ)（八八句）、五十韻（百韻の前半）、世吉(よよし)（四四句）、歌仙(かせん)（三六句）ほか多くの種類がある。連句の形式はもと連歌に準拠したもので、正しくは「俳諧之連歌」略して「俳諧」というが、俳諧の発句が独立して俳句とよばれるようになると、それと区別し、また連歌と区別するために連句と称されるに至った。

　連句は一巻を貫くテーマをもたず、人生や自然の種々相を描いて句々変化を尽くすところに生命がある。連句の最小単位は付句（付ける句）、前句（付けられる句）、打越(うちこし)（前句の前の句）の三句であるが、付句の内容が打越に触れることを嫌い、三句目の転じが力説されたのはそのためである。また、一巻の模様や付け運びについても、さまざまな規約（式目(しきもく)・作法）が設けられた。同じ語彙(ごい)の重複を避けるための一座何句物、同季・同字または同種・類似の語が近接する指合(さしあい)（差合）を避けるための去嫌(さりきらい)、四季・恋・神祇(じんぎ)・釈教(しゃっきょう)等の題材を何句続けるかという句数(くかず)、とくに花・月の句を布置すべき場所を指示した定座(じょうざ)（常座）などである。連句は半折した懐紙にしたためられる。芭蕉(ばしょう)らの蕉風俳諧で主流をなした歌仙形式は、初折(しょおり)（一の折）の表六句、同裏12句、名残(なごり)（二の折）の表十二句、同裏六句の割合であった。

　付句を付けることを付合(つけあい)というが、付合の手法にもさまざまなくふうが凝らされた。連歌の式目をもとに俳諧の式目を完成させた貞門(ていもん)俳諧では、その啓蒙(けいもう)的な性格と相まって、語に語を付ける単純な「物付(ものづけ)」が主流をなし、三句目の転じは多く前句中の語を同音の他の語に転じて付ける「取成(とりなし)付」によった。貞門の付合がようやくマンネリズムに陥ると、談林(だんりん)俳諧が勃興(ぼっこう)し、貞門と共通の付けことばを用いながら、飛躍的な句意の転化と、すばやい付け運びを特徴として一世を風靡(ふうび)した。放しつつ寄せる「あしらい」、その語を抜いてそれとわかるように句を作る「ぬけ」が重用された。蕉風俳諧は元禄(げんろく)期（1688～1704）の新風の一体として、前句に似つかわしい肌合いの句を付け寄せる「移り」（映り）を主体とし、さらにそれを余情による「匂(にお)い付(づけ)」へと深化させた。

　こうして連句は詩的達成を遂げるが、付合の契機から語や句意を疎外した結果、やがて解体へと向かうことになる。蕪村(ぶそん)も一茶(いっさ)も連句をよくしたが、俳諧文学の主流は発句によって占められた。事実上連句が終末を迎えるのは、正岡子規(しき)によって「発句は文学なり、連俳は文学に非(あら)ず」（芭蕉雑談）と説かれた明治近代においてであった。連句は現在、自我への固執から近代文芸の陥った閉塞(へいそく)状況を打開する試みの一つとして、ふたたび多くの人々の関心を集めつつある。

［乾　裕幸］

『乾裕幸・白石悌三著『連句への招待』（1980・有斐閣新書）』▽『安東次男著『連句入門――蕉風俳諧の構造』（1981・筑摩書房）』▽『井本農一・今泉準一著『連句読本』（1982・大修館書店）』▽『中村俊定校注『日本古典文学大系45　芭蕉句集（連句篇）』（1962・岩波書店）』▽『中村俊定・堀切実注解『完訳日本の古典54　芭蕉句集（連句編）』（1984・小学館）』

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