Hengneng
Hengnengs are a classicaly Shilo style of poems. They originated during the Second Age, though very few poems from that era remain.
They have traditionally been associated with upper-class poets, particularly noble women. During the time of the Hyego Kingdom, one of the most glamorous feminine ideals was to remain indoors and write sweet, beautiful poetry. However, in the early Fifth Age, a rural woman named Yen Paean Kiyo became famous for her poems. Over the next few centuries, her widespread fame caused hengnengs to be associated with simple, lower-class, rural life. Today, many nobles snub hengnengs as "peasant songs".
Hengnengs can be 4, 8, or 10 lines long. They are written in stanzas of 4 lines, with a syllable pattern of 6-8-6-8. 10-line hengnengs have two stanzas of four, followed by a couplet with 5 syllables in each line. The ending couplet is generally marked by an interjection, and creates a final exultation. Hengnengs can be recited, but they are usually put to music and sung.
They are usually written about nature, or classical subjects like love or grief.
They have traditionally been associated with upper-class poets, particularly noble women. During the time of the Hyego Kingdom, one of the most glamorous feminine ideals was to remain indoors and write sweet, beautiful poetry. However, in the early Fifth Age, a rural woman named Yen Paean Kiyo became famous for her poems. Over the next few centuries, her widespread fame caused hengnengs to be associated with simple, lower-class, rural life. Today, many nobles snub hengnengs as "peasant songs".
Hengnengs can be 4, 8, or 10 lines long. They are written in stanzas of 4 lines, with a syllable pattern of 6-8-6-8. 10-line hengnengs have two stanzas of four, followed by a couplet with 5 syllables in each line. The ending couplet is generally marked by an interjection, and creates a final exultation. Hengnengs can be recited, but they are usually put to music and sung.
They are usually written about nature, or classical subjects like love or grief.
White blooms from black trees
The last works from the hag of snow
Warmth comes on every breeze
Undoes her work by lamps aglow
Green returns to life once more
Colour now bleeds to white flower
Sent away past the shore
The Wright comes to end her power
Yes, colour returns!
Sun on green grass burns
