Neal Lawrence, Jr.

Monk, Priest, Diplomat, Teacher, Artist, and Poet

Education and War * Peace and Decision * Tanka Poet

Tanka Poetry

One of Father Neal's commitments is closely related to his English literature background. As a member of the Poetry Society of Japan, Father Neal writes English poems in the 31-syllable Japanese tanka [waka] form, a poetic style which predates even Japan's famed haiku. For him, tanka should be unyielding in its five segments of 5-7-5-7-7. In December 1978, Eichosha Publishing Company of Tokyo collected 170 of his poems into a single volume entitled Soul's Inner Sparkle. The book which has since sold out was well received, and prompted one critic to comment. "He is not only a poet, but a Benedictine true to the tradition: a contemplative who can feel rapture even in what others might consider drab and ordinary."

Father Neal stumbled upon tanka poetry almost forty years ago when a friend asked him to translate several works for a poetry magazine. The tanka were those of Dr. Shigeru Nambara, the first President of Tokyo University after World War II, who became a friend of Father Neal's during the Occupation and this friendship continued when Fr. Neal returned as a Benedictine. After completing the translations, Neal found himself scribbling down more than 700 original tankas in a sudden explosion of creative fire. He is described by some as "a pioneer poet of original English tanka."

Neal has won considerable recognition for his tanka poetry that explores every imaginable subject, from cherry blossoms to politics. The World Academy of Arts and Culture awarded him an Honorary Doctor of Literature during the World Congress of Poets in Cairo, Egypt, in 1990. Other awards and the dates of their presentations:

• The Michael Madhusudan Academy Award for Creative Works (verse),  English Tanka Poetry, Calcutta, 1992
• the Australian International Award "Golden Dove in Peace Medallion,"  Waka/Tanka in English, Excellence in Ancient Poetic Form, Poetry Day, 1995.

Father Neal's tanka have recently been set to music by composer Tohru Warabi and sung at the American Embassy Residence in a program featuring tanka of Hojo Nakajima, vice Grand Master of Ceremonies at the Palace. Father Neal had the unique privilege of being invited on 12 January 1996 to the "New Year's Poetry Party at the Palace" where the waka (tanka) of Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko and members of the Royal Family were chanted. Father Neal belongs to a group of poets, mostly Japanese, who like to write or read English poetry. Empress Michiko joins meetings when her schedule permits. She writes poetry in both Japanese and English.

The Order of the Rising Sun

Father Neal was awarded the prestigious Imperial "Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Rosette" for his teaching in Japanese universities, including the University of Tokyo, Sophia, Keio and Seikei Universities and Shirayuri Women's College, and for his groundbreaking poetry of English tanka and his scholarly efforts to strengthen ties between Japan and other nations. See "Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Rosette."

The award was given in a ceremony in the main hall of the Japan National Theater under the auspices of the Ministry of Education of Japan, Yashiko Akamatsu. This ceremony was followed by an audience with Emperor Akihito at the Imperial Palace where the Emperor thanked the recipients of awards for their meritorious services.

Neal has also published several other books of poetry: Rushing Amid Tears, Tanka Poems in English in 1983; and Shining Moments, Tanka Poems in English (AHA!Books, 1993). He has also published extensively in a number of literary magazines, including "Poetry Nippon" and "The Tanka Journal." Please enjoy Six selected published tanka poems by Rev. Prof. Dr. P. Dom Neal Henry Lawrence OSB.

The Present

His friends and Benedictine community suggest that he might think about slowing down, but Father Neal is reluctant. "If I look at the calendar, or if people remind me of my age, I realize that considerable time has passed, and that most people seem to stop sometime. However, I try to recognize advances in what I call 'maturity' and try to be cooperative." But I don't feel like stopping. Why should I? Most of the things I'm doing are, I think, worth doing, and others can still benefit from my activity."

Of course, Father Neal sometimes wonders how much he is contributing to his goal of world peace. "Many times the world seems to be getting worse, instead of improving; there are, after all, limits to what one person can do. Yet I see each Benedictine mission as a dynamo of prayer," he says. "Each day we pray for the whole world, and we feel that our prayers have a cumulative effect. By doing our best for good and against evil, this is bound to become a better world for all."

Father Neal continues to be busy. Besides the daily monastic schedule of "Ora et Labora" (Prayer and Work), there are classes and individuals to be taught, wedding to be conducted, babies and sometimes adults to be baptized, advising people in trouble on all kinds of problems and writing English tanka when inspired by some idea or experience. "There's joy in doing God's work as a Benedictine Monk and as a missionary," he says. "The only frustrations come because more Japanese do not become convinced they should become Catholics. Of course, I shouldn't complain. After all, it took me forty-three years."

Education and War * Peace and Decision * Tanka Poet

Some of the above information has been taken from the magazine article, "The Winding Path to St. Anselm's" by Thomas Ainlay, written in 1980, for PHP, A Forum for a Better World. Other materal has been obtained from letters, memos, and other published ariticles. Editor: Tom Gillespie.

Neal Lawrence OSB
English Tanka

Fujimi Monastery * Saint John's Abbey