Sijo

Sijo (Korean: 시조; Hanja: 時調) is a Korean traditional poetic form that emerged during the Goryeo dynasty, flourished during the Joseon dynasty, and is still written today. Bucolic, metaphysical, and cosmological themes are often explored. The three lines average 14–16 syllables, for a total of 42–48: theme (3, 4,4,4); elaboration (3,4,4,4); counter-theme (3,5) and completion (4,3). Sijo may be narrative or thematic and introduces a situation in line 1, development in line 2, and twist and conclusion in line 3. The first half of the final line employs a "twist": a surprise of meaning, sound, or other device. Sijo is often more lyrical and personal than other East Asian poetic forms, and the final line can take a profound turn. Yet, "The conclusion of sijo is seldom epigrammatic or witty; a witty close to a sentence would have been foreign to the genius of stylized Korean diction in the great sijo periods."My close friends I count would be water and stone, pine tree, bamboo. Moon rising on eastern peaks, there is one more so good to see! Keeping them, beyond these five friends, what more do I need to add? 윤선도 Yun Sŏndo (1587-1671) 내 벗이 몇 인고 하니 수(水) 석(石)과 송(松) 죽(竹)이라 동산(東山)에 달 오르니 그 더욱 반갑구나 두어라 이 다섯밖에 또 더해 무엇하리 --- From A Lone Flute Resounds, 2015, translations recomposed in English from Korean by Kim Goeng Pil