Bokusui Wakayama

Bokusui Wakayama (若山 牧水, Wakayama Bokusui, August 24, 1885–September 17, 1928) was the pen-name for a Japanese author noted for his poetry in pre-World War II Japan.

Bokusui Wakayama
Wakayama Bokusui
Native name	若山 牧水
Born	Wakayama Shigeru (1885-08-24)August 24, 1885 Togo, Miyazaki, Japan
Died	September 17, 1928(1928-09-17) (aged 43) Numazu, Shizuoka, Japan
Occupation	Poet
Nationality	Japanese

Wakayama was born in Togo, Miyazaki, (now part of the city of Hyūga as the eldest son of a doctor. He became interested in poetry from middle school, taking the name of "Bokusui" from the age of 18. He entered Waseda University in 1904, where one of his classmates was Hakushu Kitahara. After graduation, he was hired by the Chuo Shimbun newspaper in 1909, but quit after only five months. He decided to devote himself to poetry, and became a disciple of Saishū Onoe. He traveled all over Japan and Korea, composing many tanka about the places he visited. He settled in Numazu, Shizuoka in 1920. He also loved sake, and heavy drinking eventually resulted in cirrhosis of the liver. He died in 1928.

Before he died he wrote a death haiku that reads: