WKD - Matsuo Basho Archives

06/06/2012

sake ricewine and cup

source :　ameblo.jp/bbcgreen35

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朝顔は酒盛知らぬ盛り哉
asagao wa sakamori shiranu sakari kana

a morning glory
knowing nothing of the carousal
in the peak of bloom
Tr. Ueda

Read more of Ueda's comments:
source : books.google.co.jp

morning glories
oblivious to all the drinking
are in full bloom
Tr. Barnhill

On the 11th day of the 8th lunar month, 1688 貞亨5年8月11日
On his way to Sarashina, there was rather noisy a fare-well party for him as he was leaving Gifu to be on his way.
This hokku has the cut marker KANA at the end of line 3.
From the Japanese it is not clear weather this is singular or plural.

MORE - hokku about the Morning Glory
. Matsuo Basho 松尾芭蕉 - Archives of the WKD .

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花にうき世我が酒白く飯黒し
. hana ni ukiyo waga sake shiroku meshi kuroshi .
my sake white, my cooked rice black

寒菊や醴造る窓の前
. kangiku ya amazake tsukuru mado no saki .
sweet white ricewine

草の戸や日暮れてくれし菊の酒
. kusa no to ya higurete kureshi kiku no sake .
chrysanthemum sake

椹や花なき蝶の世捨酒
. kuwa no mi ya hana naki choo no yosute-zake .
hermit wine for the butterflies

呑明て花生となる二升樽
. nomi akete hana-ike ni sen nishoodaru .
the sake bottle becomes a flower vase

御命講や油のやうな酒五升
. Omeikoo ya abura no yoo na sake go masu .
offering for Saint Nichiren

扇にて酒くむ陰や散る桜
. oogi nite sake kumu kage ya chiru sakura .
I pretend to drink sake from my hand fan (ōgi)

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酒のほそみち / 酒のほそ道

This is the title of a long-running weekly manga series by
Razuweru Hosoki ラズウェル細木 Rozwell Hosoki

. Sake no Hosomichi .

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酒飲めばいとど寝られぬ夜の雪
sake nomeba itodo nerarenu yoru no yuki

drinking sake
and now it's harder to sleep:
night of snow
Tr. Barnhill

drinking sake
makes it harder to sleep . . .
snow at night
Tr. Ueda

"Something of the loneliness that is universal to men - or should I say the wavering of a reclusel's mind? - is hidden in this poem. - Mizuho
- Read Ueda's comment -

Written in 貞亨3年冬, Basho age 43.
Basho is alone at home in Fukugawa.

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酒飲みに語らんかかる滝の花　
. sakenomi ni kataran kakaru taki no hana .
drinking at a waterfall,
in memory of the Chinese poet Li Po, Li Bo, Li Bai 李白

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初春まづ酒に梅売る匂ひかな
. shoshun mazu sake ni ume uru nioi kana .
celebrating the New Year with sake and plum blossoms

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蒼海の浪酒臭し今日の月
. sookai no nami sake kusashi kyoo no tsuki .
blue sea and fragrance of sake

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月花もなくて酒のむ独りかな
tsuki hana mo nakute sake nomu hitori kana

no moon, no cherry blossoms
so he drinks sake
all alone . . .
Tr. Gabi Greve

Written in spring of 1689,元禄2年春
This was written as a text for a painting, which most probably did not show moon and cherry blossoms.
Cherry blossoms and the moon are the two most important kigo for spring and autumn.
This hokku has the cut marker KANA at the end of line 3.

no moon, no blossoms,
just drinking sake
all alone
Tr. Barnhill

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source :　itoyo/basho

雪や砂馬より落ちよ酒の酔
yuki ya suna uma yori ochiyo sake no yoi

may it be snow and sand
you fall into from your horse:
drunk on sake
Tr. Barnhill

Written in 貞亨4年, Basho age 44, Oi no Kobumi.

His companion Etsujin 越人 had drunk too much and had fallen asleep on the horse.

. Ochi Etsujin 越智越人 .

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雪を待つ上戸の顔や稲光
yuki o matsu joogo no kao ya inabikari

the faces of us sake drinkers
as we wait for the snow -
flash of lightning
Tr. Gabi Greve

Written in 1691, tenth lunar month 元禄4年10月
(now November)
They were having a party at the home of Koogetsu 耕月 Kogetsu with the discipled from Mikawa.
Suganuma Koogetsu 菅沼耕月, Suganuma Gon-emon 菅沼権右衛門
. - Suganuma Gon-emon 菅沼権右衛門 - Koogetsu 菅沼耕月 Kogetsu - .

I think the inversion of lines 1 and 2 makes for more natural English here.

awaiting the snow,
the faces of the wine lovers -
lightning flash
Tr. Barnhill

the faces of those
who love to drink -
a flash of lightning
Tr. Ueda

There are three types of joogo, jōgo,
according to their reaction to the sake:

source :　parfum-satori.com

naki joogo (泣き上戸) those who start crying
warai joogo (笑い上戸) those who start laughing
okori joogo (怒り上戸) those who get angry

龍門の花や上戸の土産にせん
. ryuumon no hana ya joogo no tsuto ni sen .

Basho drinking at the Dragongate Falls, Yoshino

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Buson painted Basho and one of his sake haiku
蕪村さんも尊敬した俳聖　松尾芭蕉さんの酒句

source :　mbp-kobe.com/hanayama

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source :　drnobu1
stone memorial at 法華宗本隆寺 / 法花寺
near
Tsuruga 敦賀市 Iro no hama, Ironohama 色の浜 ("Color Beach")

小萩散れますほの小貝小盃　
ko hagi chire Masuho no ko-gai ko sakazuki

drop your little petals,
bush clover, on the little shells:
our little cup
Tr. Barnhill

Bush clovers, drop
Small petals on the tiny shells
Of Masuho in my small cup !
Tr. Oseko

Little bush clover -
Let your flowers scatter
Little red shells, little sake cups
Tr. Nelson Saito

Written on the 16th day of the 8th lunar month
in 1689 元禄2年8月16日, Tsuruga, Oku no Hosomichi

Masuho no kogai, chidori Masuhogai 千鳥ますほ貝 small shells from Masuho

source :　www.komaki-kamaboko.co.jp

There is also a sweet potatoe schnaps with this name.

Here is the hokku by Basho
波の間や小貝にまじる萩の塵
. nami no ma ya kogai ni majiru hagi no chiri .

This was written in memory of a waka by Saigyo 西行

潮染むるますほの小貝ひろふとて
色の浜とはいふにやあらむ

shio somuru Masuho no kogai hirou tote
Iro no hama towa iu ni ya aramu

The small crimson shells
which dye the sea tides
are gathered here,
perhaps the reason this shore
is called "Color Beach”.
Tr. Barnhill

Is it because
they gather crimson shells
which dye the ocean tides
that they call this
Color Beach?
Tr. Shirane

. Basho and Saigyo 西行 .

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盃に三つの名を飲む今宵かな
. sakazuki ni mitsu no na o nomu koyoi kana .
in memory of the Chinese poet Li Po

source :　www.chinatea.co.jp

A ricewine cup named "Basho"
Ching-te-chen Chinese style
景徳鎮手描き飲杯　芭蕉

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盃の下ゆく菊や朽木盆
. sakazuki no shita yuku kiku ya Kutsuki bon .
(autumn) chrysanthemum. sake cup. tray from Kitsuki

a laquer tray from the Kutsuki region, Saga
and the story of the rejuvenating Yoro Waterfall 養老の滝 Yoro no taki

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盃や山路の菊と是を干す
sakazuki ya yamaji no kiku to kore o hosu

this sake cup -
with chrysanthemums of a mountain road
I am going to drink it all
Tr. Gabi Greve

Written in 延宝7年, Basho age 36
on the ninth day of the ninth lunar month,
the Chrysanthemum Festival

His sake cup had a pattern of chrysanthemums, so the sake looked almost as collected dew from the petals. He who drinks sake from this cup every day will surely live a long live.

To collect the dew on the chrysanthemum petals and drink it would bring you long life (chooju 長寿). The Chrysanthemum Flower Festival on the 9th of September is also one to celebrate one's wish for longevity 不老長寿.

MORE - hokku about the Chrysanthemum Festival by
. Matsuo Basho 松尾芭蕉 - Archives of the WKD .

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あの中に蒔絵書きたし宿の月
. ano naka ni maki-e kakitashi yado no tsuki .
(autumn) moon. at the inn. maki-e laquer. I want to draw

At a lodging in Kiso, where he was offered a rustic sakazuki sake cup with a simple maki-e laquer motive.

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People being drunk
- another aspect of sake drinking
Some brands of sake can cause quite a headache on the next day,
even after a few sips.

二日酔ひものかは花のあるあひだ
futsukayoi mono kawa hana no aru aida
futsuka ei monokawa hana no aru aida

a hangover:
but while the cherries bloom,
what of it?
Tr. Barnhill

a hangover ?
who cares,
while there are blossoms
Tr. Hirschfeld

. WKD : futsukayoi 二日酔い/ 宿酔 hangover .
"still feeling drunk on the second day"

Between 1670 and 79 延宝年間（30歳～37歳)

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蛍見や船頭酔うておぼつかな
. hotarumi ya sendoo yoote obotsukana .
the boatsman is drunk

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酔うて寝ん撫子咲ける石の上
youte nen nadeshiko sakeru ishi no ue
yoote nen / yoote nenmu

drunk I fall asleep
the white pinks are blooming
on the rocks
Tr. Gabi Greve

Written in Summer of 1687 貞亨4年夏

The characters for nadeshiko were "stone bamboo" 石竹 in the Manyoshu poetry collection.

sekichiku 石竹 (せきちく) China pink
lit. "stone bamboo"
kara nadeshiko 唐撫子（からなでしこ）"Chinese nadeshiko"
tokonatsu 常夏 (とこなつ)
Dianthus chinensis

. WKD : Pink, Fringed Pinks, wild carnation .
kigo for mid-summer

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夕顔や酔うて顔出す窓の穴
. yuugao ya yoote kao dasu mado no ana .
I am drunk (Basho about himself)

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Five portraits of haikai poet Matsuo Basho 俳諧の人々
source : hakusyunetto

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. WKD : Ricewine, rice wine (sake, saké, saki) .

. WKD : sakazuki 杯/ さかずき small cup for hot sake .

. Sake 酒 for rituals and festivals .

. Matsunoo Taisha 松尾大社 Matsunoo Grand Shrine
Matsuno'o Taisha - Matsu-no-o with a Sake Deity .

source :　anti aging Labo
At the start of an elaborate meal, you get a sakazuki cup with a hokku by Matsuo Basho.

夕顔や秋はいろいろの瓢哉　
. yuugao ya aki wa iroiro no fukube kana .

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花に酔へり羽織着て刀さす女
飲みあけて花生にせん二升樽
をだまきのへそくりかねて酒かはん
川舟やよい茶よい酒よい月夜
かぜ吹かぬ秋の日瓶に酒なき日
月の宿亭主盃持ちいでよ
盃のまはる間おそき月いでて
たのむぞよ寝酒なき夜の紙衾

TBA

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千代をふる天のてんつるあられ酒
chiyo o furu ten no ten tsuru ararezake

robiraki ya sekichuuan no ararezake - Yosa Buson
. WKD : ararezake あられ酒 "Hail Wine" from Nara .

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seyo - let us

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- seyo せよ　let us -
giving a direct order ! Aufforderung, Befehl

xyz seyo is a kind of ordering people,
let us do this!

And other verb-forms ordering people or animals to do something.

. WKD : Verbs used in Haiku .

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碪打ちて我に聞かせよ坊が妻　
. kinuta uchite ware ni kikase yo ya boo ga tsuma .
let me hear it!

この心推せよ花に五器一具
. kono kokoro suiseyo hana ni goki ichigu .
this my heart you will know !

. 里の子よ梅折り残せ牛の鞭 .
hey, village children ! leave some plum branches

蕎麦も見てけなりがらせよ野良の萩
soba mo mite / kenarigara seyo / nora no hagi

月見せよ玉江の芦を刈らぬ先
. tsukimi seyo Tamae no ashi o karanu saki .
Let's go moon viewing !

憂きわれを寂しがらせよ秋の寺
. uki ware o sabishigarase yo aki no tera .
- - - and - - うき我をさびしがらせよ閑古鳥 - uki ware o sabishi garaseyo kankodori

植うる事子のごとくせよ児桜
. uuru koto ko no gotoku seyo chigo-zakura .
let us plant (trees) like handling small children

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こちら向け我もさびしき秋の暮
. kochira muke ware mo sabishiki aki no kure .
turn this way!
for his friend, priest Kitamuki Unchiku 北向雲竹

わが衣に伏見の桃の雫せよ
. waga kinu ni Fushimi no momo no shizuku seyo .
let the dew drops from peach blossoms fall on my robe

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Basho telling folks to listen up!
. mukashi kike Chichibu dono sae sumootori .
mukashi kike - listen to the old stories!

旅人の心にも似よ椎の花
. tabibito no kokoro ni mo niyo shii no hana . 　　

. nagamuru ya Edo ni wa mare na yama no tsuki .
(autumn) moon. let us write poetry!

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這出よかひやが下のひきの声
. hai-ide yo kaiya ga shita no hiki no koe .
crawl out! Basho talks to a big toad under a silkworm shed.

早く咲け九日も近し菊の花　
. hayaku sake kunichi mo chikashi kiku no hana .
hurry up to bloom! - Basho talks to the chrysanthemums

起きよ起きよ我が友にせん寝る胡蝶
. okiyo okiyo waga tomo ni sen neru kochoo .
get up! get up! - Basho talks to a butterfly.

憂き人の旅にも習へ木曽の蝿
. ukihito no tabi ni mo narae Kiso no hae .
learn from a weary traveler - Basho talks to the flies of Kiso

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獺の祭見て来よ瀬田の奥
. kawauso no matsuri mite koyo Seta no oku .
Let's go see the otter festival at Seta
- - - With a man heading to Zeze - 膳所へ行く人

君火を焚けよきもの見せん雪まるげ
きみ火をたけよき物見せん雪丸げ
. kimi hi o take yoki mono misen yuki maruge .
(winter) snowman. you make a fire. I show you something nice
for Sora, Kawai Sora 河合曾良 .

草枕まことの華見しても来よ
. kusamakura makoto no hanami shite mo koyo .
go and experience some real cherry blossom viewing

for his disciple, the monk Yasomura Rotsuu 八十村路通 Rotsu

Basho wrote this in response to a poem by Tani Bokuin 谷木因
宮人よ我が名を散らせ落葉川
. miyamori yo waga na o chirase ochibagawa .
. . . . . scatter my name into the river

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. - iza いざ / 感　Let's Go! Farewell, Good-bye! - .
iza kodomo hashiri arikan tamaarare (tama-arare)
iza kodomo hirugao sakinu uri mukan
iza saraba yukimi ni korobu tokoro made
iza tomo ni homugi kurawan kusa makura

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. WKD : Verbs used in Haiku .

. Cultural Keywords used by Basho .

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Suganuma Gon-emon

source :　itoyo/basho

During the haikai at the temple 鳳来寺 Horai-Ji, he also wrote

. yuki o matsu joogo no kao ya inabikari .
...the faces of us sake drinkers...

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. Cultural Keywords used by Basho .

. - KIGO used by Matsuo Basho 松尾芭蕉 - .

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kitte stamps

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- stamps with Basho -

. WKD : Stamps and Haiku 切手　kitte .

under construction

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Oku no Hosomichi　奥の細道
. Matsuo Basho 松尾芭蕉 - Archives of the WKD .

The famous Hamaguri Haiku

Stamp at Tokyo Station

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あかあかと日は難面くも秋の風
aka aka to hi wa tsurenaku mo aki no kaze / akaaka

In Kanazawa 金沢　7月15日～23日

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Haiseiden 俳聖殿 Hall of the Haikai Saint
Basho and Iga Castle 松尾芭蕉と伊賀上野城　

. Iga Ueno 伊賀上野 .
Iga shoomon 蕉門 Basho discipled from Iga

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. . . CLICK here for more Photos !

. WKD : Stamps and Haiku 切手　kitte .

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Seta at Lake Biwako

Seta no Oohashi 瀬田の大橋 The Big Bridge of Seta at the Lake Biwa　琵琶湖.
One of the eight sights of Omi. Seta is the only river that flows out of the lake Biwa.

. WKD : Seta shijimi 瀬田蜆 corbicula from Seta .

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五月雨に隠れぬものや瀬田の橋
samidare ni kakurenu mono ya Seta no hashi

in the summer rains
one thing unhidden —
the bridge of Seta
Tr. Barnhill

in the endless rain of June
this one is not hidden -
the great bridge of Seta
Tr. Gabi Greve

samidare ... rain during the rainy season, now in June.

There is a stone with this haiku in Otsu. 大津市瀬田唐橋公園

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Hiroshige - Evening Glow In Seta

橋桁の忍は月の名残り哉　
hashigeta no shinobu wa tsuki no nagori kana

along the bridge beam
endures the fern of recollection:
farewell moon
Tr. Barnhill

along the bridge beam
the fern of longing survives
as the moon departs
Tr. Chilcott

Written on the 13th day of the 9th lunar month 1691. 元禄4年9月13日
Basho was at temple Ishiyamadera 石山寺 with 車要 Shayo and Shido 之道 and left for Edo about 10 days later. So this was a good-bye party of sorts for them.
Maybe he was thinking about the Seta no Karahashi 瀬田の唐橋 Great Bridge of Seta.

The cut marker KANA is at the end of line 3.

tsuki no nagori - the moon's farewell
. WKD : nagorizuki 名残月 .
kigo for autumn

. WKD : shinobugusa 忍草 weeping fern, hare's foot fern .
Lepisorus thunbergianus. - kigo for all autumn

. Basho visiting temple Ishiyamadera 石山寺 .

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- - - - - Fireflies from Seta

目に残る吉野を瀬田の蛍哉
me ni nokoru yoshino o seta no hotaru kana

held in my eye:
with Yoshino's blooms
Seta's fireflies

Basho recalls spring blossoms at Yoshino as he sees summer's fireflies at Seta.
Tr. and comment : Barnhill

"my eyes recall Yoshino's sakura in Seta's fireflies"

held in my eye:
with Yoshino's blooms
Seta's fireflies
Tr. Dennis Kawaharada

still before my eyes
cherry blossoms of Yoshino
fireflies of Seta
Tr. Reichhold

It seems that Basho must have seen a LOT of fireflies at Seta to make such a comparison: a 'cloud' of fireflies as it were, to match the 'clouds' of cherry blossoms.

- - - - - Further discussion of this poem and

蛍見や船頭酔うておぼつかな
hotarumi ya sendoo yoote obotsukana

. WKD : Fireflies from Seta .

この螢田毎の月にくらべみん
kono hotaru tagoto no tsuki ni kurabemin

these fireflies,
like the moon
in all the rice paddies
Tr. Barnhill

Written in 1688 at temple Ishiyamadera 元禄元年大津石山寺, looking at the fireflies of Seta.
They are a large variety of the Genjibotaru 源氏蛍.

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source :　blog.goo.ne.jp/uo4/e

- With a man heading to Zeze - 膳所へ行く人

獺の祭見て来よ瀬田の奥
kawauso no matsuri mite koyo Seta no oku

let's go see
the Festival of the Otter:
deep in the hills of Seta
Tr.Barnhill

Written in the first lunar month of 1690 元禄3年1月.

dassai だっさい / 獺祭 "otter festival" - osomatsuri 獺祭り

The otter has the habit of catching fish and lining it up on the riverbank or his nest for a while to look at it. This is called "Dassai". It also means a person who likes to get a lot of books in front of him/her and enjoys the sight before beginning to study in depth.
Masaoka Shiki used to call himself "Dassai".

Here Basho reminds his companion that on his way to Zeze he might as well enjoy a trip along the upper region (oku) of the river Setagawa 瀬田川 and see some of the many otters living there.

. WKD : kawauso uo o matsuru 獺魚を祭る otter festival .
kigo for early spring - kawa-uso
One of the 72 seasonal points of the lunar calendar.

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名月はふたつ過ぎても瀬田の月
meigetsu wa futatsu sugite mo Seta no tsuki

this harvest moon
now even for the second time -
the moon of Seta
Tr. Gabi Greve

Written on the 18th day of the 8th lunar month, 1691 元禄4年閏8月18日.
In this year the full moon was seen twice because of an intercalary month. So Basho could enjoy the full moon of autumn twice.

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. WKD : Seta shijimi 瀬田蜆 corbicula and more about Seta .

. Cultural Keywords used by Basho .

. - KIGO used by Matsuo Basho 松尾芭蕉 - .

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shirazu, shiranu - I do not know

source : diana/sekido

ほととぎすなくや皐月のあやめ草　
あやめも知らぬ恋もするかな

hototogisu naku ya satsuki no ayamegusa
ayame mo shiranu koi mo suru kana

In the month of June
When the little cuckoo cries,
Sweet flag everywhere:
Oh, sweet tangle of my love
That knows no weave or pattern!
Edwin A. Cranston

Kokinshu poetry collection, author unknown
yomibito shirazu 古今集　よみびとしらず

. Kai-awase 貝合わせ clam-shell game .

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- - - - - shirazu 知らず I do not know - - - - -

あこくその心も知らず梅の花
. Akokuso no kokoro mo shirazu ume no hana .
阿古久曾 - Ki no Tsurayuki 紀貫之 . I do not know his heart (mind).

何の木の花とはしらず匂かな
何の木の花とは知らず匂ひ哉
. nani no ki no hana to wa shirazu nioi kana .
I do not know which tree

うち山や外様しらずの花盛り
宇知山や外様しらずの花盛り
. Uchiyama ya tozama shirazu no hana zakari .
(spring) cherries in full bloom. temple Uchiyama. no outsiders are known
Uchiyama refers to the temple Eikyuuji 永久寺 Eikyuji in Yamato

魚鳥の心は知らず年忘れ
. uo tori no kokoro wa shirazu toshi wasure .
(winter) "forget the year". the heart of fish and birds. I do not understand.
remembering Kamo no Choomei 鴨長明 Kamo no Chomei

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- - - - - shiranu 知らぬ I do not know - - - - -

朝顔は酒盛知らぬ盛り哉
. asagao wa sakamori shiranu sakari kana .
(autumn) morning glories. we drink sake and make merry

冬知らぬ宿や籾摺る音霰
. fuyu shiranu yado ya momi suru oto arare .
(autumn) hulling rice. winter is not known. sound like hail
- Momi suru Oto 籾する音 The Sound of Hulling Rice -

この宿は水鶏も知らぬ扉かな
. kono yado wa kuina mo shiranu toboso kana .
not even the water rail comes to knock at this door . . .
for Kosen 湖仙亭 in Otsu in 1694.

松茸や知らぬ木の葉のへばり付く
. matsutake ya shiranu ko-no-ha no nebaritsuku .
(autumn), Matsutake mushroom. unknown leaf. sticking to it
(matsudake)

幼名や知らぬ翁の丸頭巾
. osana na ya shiranu okina no maruzukin .
(winter) hood. name for a boy. round hood of an old man I never met
for Matsunaga Teitoku 松永貞徳
and Soogi 宗祇 Sogi （1421―1502)

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. - - - Basho about Basho - - - .

. Cultural Keywords used by Basho .

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soo Monk, Priest

under construction
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朝茶飲む僧静かなり菊の花
. asacha nomu soo shizuka nari kiku no hana .
(autumn) chrysanthemum. morning tea. quietude

初雪や聖小僧の笈の色　
. hatsuyuki ya hijiri kozoo no oi no iro .
(winter) first snow. mendicant monk. color of his backpack

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いづく時雨傘を手に提げて帰る僧
izuku shigure kasa o te ni sagete kaeru soo

where has been this winter drizzle?
with an umbrella in hand
the monk returns

Written in 延宝8年, Basho age 37.

The cold winter drizzle, shigure, as a sign of coming winter, combined with the image of a poor priest, umbrella in hand, evokes a feeling of absolute destitude and sabi.

. - shigure 時雨 winter drizzle, sleet - .

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水取りや氷の僧の沓の音　
水とりや氷の僧の沓の音
. Mizutori ya koori no soo no kutsu no oto .
O-Mizutori, Omizutori, お水取り, Drawing Sacred Well Water,

僧朝顔幾死に返る法の松　
. soo asagao ikushi ni kaeru nori no matsu .
(autumn) morning glories. monks. to die. Dharma pine
at temple Taimadera 当麻寺

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. Priest, Monk (oshoo 和尚) .

. Cultural Keywords used by Basho .

. - KIGO used by Matsuo Basho 松尾芭蕉 - .

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Shiba no To

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- Shiba no To 柴の戸 Brushwood Gate -

Essay "Shiba no To" 柴の戸 Brushwood Gate
真蹟懐紙

Buson on the anniversary of Basho's death

西吹けば東にたまる落ば哉
nishi fukeba higashi ni tamaru ochiba kana

blowing from the west
fallen leaves gather
in the east

Further Reference

Remark by Larry Bole:

Since the above was written on the anniversary of Basho's death,
I suspect that it may have been inspired by Basho's:

柴の戸に茶の木の葉掻く嵐かな
shiba no to ni cha o konoha kaku asashi kana

against the brushwood gate
it sweeps the tea leaves:
windstorm
Tr. Barnhill

Against the brushwood gate
Dead tea leaves swirl
In the stormy wind.
source :　www.meister-z.com

Toward my brushwood door
sending tree leaves for my tea -
the stormy wind

The lines Basho cites in the passage are from Bo Juyi's (772 - 846) poem.
"Farwell to Hermit Zhang on His Return to Songyang".
Basho compares Chang'an, the ancient capital of Tang China, to the city in which he had lived and links his renunciation of profit and fame to the Chinese poem.

Peipei Qiu
source : http://books.google.co.jp

toward the brushwood gate
it sweeps the tea leaves -
stormy wind
Tr. Ueda

At my brushwood gate
drinking tea, leaves are swept up
by a stormy wind

In one of his earliest haibun, written in the late autumn of 1680 Basho writes, “Having lived an austere life for nine springs and autumns, I decided to move to the banks of the Fukagawa River. Having the same feelings as that poet of old, who once said,
‘Since Chang-an has long been a place for those who seek fame and fortune, a place tough on those who are empty-handed and penniless.’ Maybe that’s why I can appreciate his sensibility?”
Tr. and Comment : Bill Wyatt

Written in winter 延宝8年冬　Basho age 37
Basho had lived here and there in Edo and finally come to live in a small hut in Fukagawa.
He is reminded of a Chinese poem about the Chinese capital Chang An and his own poor lifestyle.

長安は古来名利の地、
空手にして金なきものは行路難し

柴の庵と聞けば賤しき名なれども
世に好もしきものにぞありける

source : itoyo/basho

"Shiba no To" 柴の戸 Brushwood Gate

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quote

shiba no io to kikeba iyashiki nanaredomo
yo ni konomoshiki mono ni zo arikeru

Brushwood hut:
the words sound so despicalbe and yet
in this world it is
a thing of true delight

This poem, included in the Sankashu, was written by the priest Saigyō when he visited a monk named Amidabō living in the Higashiyama district of Kyoto. I delighted in wondering what kind of person that monk was.
Here I offer a poem to a monk who now spends his life in a grass hut.

柴の戸の月やそのまま阿弥陀坊　
shiba no to no tsuki ya sono mama Amida boo

this brushwood hut's
moon; just as it was
for Amidabō

Tr. Barnhill
source : books.google.co.jp

Written about 貞亨元年, Basho age 41 or older

source :　yamatono_dorei_m
clay bell with this hokku 芭蕉土鈴

西行堂・西行庵・芭蕉堂
Saigyo Do Hall, Basho Do Hall in Higashiyama, Kyoto
. - Bashoo doo 芭蕉堂 Basho Do Hall - .

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. Cultural Keywords used by Basho .

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Susan Shand

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- Susan Shand about Basho -

source : www.geantreepress.com

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ditties, doggerel and jingles

What counts as "good" haiku? One commentator in one of the newer bazaars today posted this...

"The use of the word 'hokku'
is ideological here in that its use is to distinguish serious short form poems as adapted by the poetic sensibilities of certain Japanese poets from the wide range of short ditties, doggerel and jingles spewed out in a constant stream from all manner of originators. [...] The public perception of haiku is that anyone can write one so that the art becomes a mere plaything that would never be taken as a serious form of poetry. The penetration of the word haiku, as I have just identified it, has become over time the default meaning of the word by the general populace. Using the word 'hokku' is a statement to the general populace that the poem being identified as such was written as a serious piece of creative writing bearing a discernible relationship with the poetic tradition exemplified in the best works of Basho, Chiyo-ni, Buson and Issa."
- Hansha Teki

This is rather like someone complaining that because the postings on Poetry.com are so appallingly bad we are, in future, going to distance ourselves from that by calling *our "good" poetry* by the new title "Sonnet".

Not only is this an "us and them" elitist group identification, (can I join your posh group please? I don't want to be thought to be a pleb or nuthin, innit?) but it is a completely unnecessary re-defining of words which are already in use under clear definitions.

"HAIKU
Definition: A haiku is a short poem that uses imagistic language to convey the essence of an experience of nature or the season intuitively linked to the human condition." -- HSA[1]

"HOKKU
Definition: A hokku is the first stanza of a linked-verse poem." -- HSA [1]

Anyone who has a problem with those definitions needs to address the defining authority or come up with a better definition which can be supported by consensus.

If there is a problem in the standard of work being posted in internet groups or published in journals then the solution to that problem is NOT to redefine the categories so as to make yourself look like a *real poet* and thus to make all the others look like idiots. We are ALL students! No one that I know of is an accredited Master in western haiku. Creating false categories will not improve your work or anyone elses. Anyone who writes haiku is free to post their work anywhere they like and free to submit to journals as they please. Anyone who wants to sit in judgement over the standard of work displayed would be wise to remember that we are all just where we are (and maybe one day their early work could come back to bite them on the derriere too) and we all have to learn somehow.

The solution of the problem of poor quality, is to teach. To help out the novice by seeking to improve their craft in appropriate ways. That is not to say that simply re-writing a poor example is going to help anyone. That too just makes you look like an 'expert' patronising a learner. Writing any genre of poetry, or indeed any art-form, requires the learning of the CRAFT of that form. Despite some of the exhibits in the Tate Modern which tend to suggest otherwise, enduring art is usually backed by skill as well as inspiration. The development of skill takes time and practice.

Personally, I welcome "all manner of originators" the more the merrier! - but I don't think I am better than anyone else just because I've been learning this skill for decades and they have been at it for ten minutes. I think that anyone CAN write one - then they learn how to write better ones. Art IS a plaything - and the more playful we can be the better the quality is likely to be. That haiku as a genre IS a serious form of poetry - but need not necessarily be approached with a serious demeanor. That the word "penetration" is a peculiarly Freudian slip which might benefit from a re-think.

Susan

(stardate 20130106)

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The Big Banana

Who is Basho, what is he, that all the swains commend him?

You CAN write haiku without ever reading another haiku poet, just as you could write a sonnet without ever reading Shakespeare. However, no serious student of English Literature will NOT have read at least some of the English classics. Reading the work of classical haiku poets will immeasurably improve your own work, both in the breadth and scope, and in the craft. In addition, reading good modern poets, both Japanese and western, should give you a good balance of perspective.

We would be diminished as modern poets if we only ever read Shakespeare, and poetry.com is teeming with people who have never read any poets at all. The idea is not to glorify these writers, but to recognise their part in the canon of literature upon which we hope to build.

A note of caution, The translation of Japanese haiku into English is difficult, it often says more about the translator than it does about the original work. Check out a few different versions of anything that interests you.

So here are a few of my favourites...

Basho

Basho is the Big Banana of haiku, the cultural equivalent of Shakespeare. His work is varied and easily available in translation. It spans everything from the immediacy of a sudden exclamation; to the complicated interweaving of inference, literary references, dual readings, and puns.

"... he wrote about any subject that came along his daily experience, from the pissing horse (when sleeping at a pass called "pissing") to .. you name it, daily life in Edo Japan comes to live.
It is not all about the bees and the butterflies, far from it.
For Basho, all expressions of the human experience seemed to be fodder for his poetry."
-- Gabi Greve

There is a fairly comprehensive and informative history here http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Basho.aspx

and some comparative transations here
http://www.haikupoetshut.com/basho1.html

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MORE by Susan
source : www.geantreepress.com

. Cultural Keywords used by Basho .

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sode and kosode - sleeve

source :　ameblo.jp/ee-kimono

under construction
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借りて寝ん案山子の袖や夜半の霜
karite nen kakashi no sode ya yowa no shimo
- - - - - 借りて寝む karite nemu

to sleep I want
to borrow the sleeve of a scarecrow -
frost at midnight

Written between 1688 貞亨元年 and his death, probably as a text on a painting.
Sleeping on the road, Basho was depending on the offers of his host family or lodging.

sode 袖 can also mean the whole robe of the scarecrow.

This is an allusion to a waka of the 古今集 Kokinshu collection .

きりぎりす鳴くや霜夜の狭筵に衣片敷き独りかも寝む
kirigirisu naku ya shimo-yo no samushiro ni
koromo kata-shiki hitori kamo nemu

When the crickets
cry in the frosty night,
on the cold reed-mat,
spreading out my robe just for one
must I sleep alone?
Tr. Joshua S. Mostow

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無き人の小袖も今や土用干
. naki hito no kosode mo ima ya doyoo boshi .
at the death of Mukai Chine 向井千子

猿引は猿の小袖を砧哉
. saruhiki wa saru no kosode o kinuta kana .
little coat for a trained monkey

袖よごすらん田螺の海士の隙を無み
. sode yogosuran tanishi no ama no hima o nami .
dirty sleeves of fishermen

語られぬ湯殿にぬらす袂かな
. katararenu Yudono ni nurasu tamoto kana .
my wet sleeve

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in memoriam of the father of Senka 仙化が父追善

袖の色よごれて寒し濃鼠　
sode no iro yogorete samushi koi nezumi

the color of his sleeve
dirty and so cold
in dark gray

Written between 1688 貞亨元年 and his death.

Senka was his disciple in Edo and author of the collection Kawazu Awase 蛙合 (1686).

koinezu color code #4f455c, actually a shade of dark purple
koinezu color code #4f455c, actually a shade of dark purple
koinezu color code #4f455c, actually a shade of dark purple
- source : www.colordic.org

. WKD : nezu-iro 鼠色 the color gray / grey and haiku .

Kawazu Awase 蛙合 (1686)

- - - Senka 仙化

Not much is known about this poet. Some of his hokku:

一葉散音かしましきばかり也　（『あら野』Arano ）

起起の心うごかすかきつばた　（『猿蓑』Sarumino ）

おぼろ月まだはなされぬ頭巾かな　（『炭俵』Sumidawara ）
氣相よき青葉の麥の嵐かな　
みをのやは首の骨こそ甲なれ　
螢みし雨の夕や水葵　
一枝はすげなき竹のわかば哉　

三尺の鯉はねる見ゆ春の池　（『續猿蓑』Zoku Sarumino ）

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. Yosa Buson 与謝蕪村 in Edo .

紙子の袖 - kamiko no sode
. hanken no shayoo kamiko no sode no nishiki kana .

たもとして払ふ夏書の机哉
. tamoto shite harau ge-gaki no tsukue kana .

ゆきたけを聞で流人の袷哉 / 裄丈
. yukitake o kikade runin no awase kana .

夕雲雀鎧の袖をかざしかな
. yuuhibari yoroi no sode o kazashi kana .

秋の夕べ袂して鏡拭く女
aki no yuube tamoto shite kagami fuku onna

autumn evening -
with the sleeve a woman
wipes her mirror

雛の燈にいぬきが袂かかるなり
雛の燈にいぬきが袂かかるなり
hina no hi ni inuki ga tamoto kakaru nari

Lamps of ‘hina’ dolls,
Inuki's sleeves
Screen.

"Inuki" is a young girl, called Inukimi(犬君), who serves Murasaki, one of the female leading characters in The Tale of Genji (in the Heian Period) (794-1192). In the Tale the girl is so full of curiosity that she sets free a caged bird and makes Murasaki feel so sad.
- source : Shoji Kumano

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. kigo with kimono Japanese robes .

. Cultural Keywords used by Basho .

. - KIGO used by Matsuo Basho 松尾芭蕉 - .

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Basho Inari Jinja

source :　www.tesshow.jp/koto/shrine_tokiwa
With more photos !

The deity in residence is
宇迦魂命 Kamimusubi no Mikoto

On the red flag it reads

芭蕉稲荷大明神　　Basho Inari Daimyojin

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source :　www.bashouan.com
With more photos !

Stone memorial of the Basho-An 芭蕉庵跡碑

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quote
Basho Inari Jinja Shrine
It is said that after Basho wrote his famous frog haiku, he was given a stone frog by one of his disciples. Basho treasures it so much that he placed it near his hermitage. With time, it was lost, but re-appeared after a typhoon in 1917. The local citizens, in honor of Basho, built a shrine at the location and dedicated it to Basho's spirit and to the god Inari. Unfortunately the shrine was burnt down during the WWII air raids, and was rebuilt in its present form in 1975. Replicas of the frog have also been placed around the shrine. Basho Inari Jinja Shrine has been designated historic site by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government.

Matsuo Basho Memorial Park
Just a few meters from the shrine is Matsuo Basho Memorial Park. This small park is an elevated one and is reached after climbing a short flight of rugged stone stairs. On reaching this terrace garden, one cannot but hold one's breath at the beautiful scene it offers of the river below with Kiyosu Bridge spanning it. In the center of the park is a bronze statue of Basho placed on top of a pedestal. All around are bamboo and banana trees and a large variety of other plants. Several Basho-themed sketches have also been placed around the park.

Matsuo Basho Museum
Matsuo Basho (1644-1694), born Matsuo Kinsaku, and also known by his samurai name of Matsuo Munefusa, was a travel writer and a poet of the early Edo period. He is best known as the poet who brought haiku to the level of an art. Basho originally lived in the nearby area of Fukagawa, but moved to Morishita in 1680 as he wanted a quieter place to write in. He made his hermitage, named Basho Iori Hermitage, in a place along Sumida River between Shin-Ohashi and Kiyosu Bridges. It is in this same hermitage that Matsuo Basho Museum is located.
The small Matsuo Basho Museum exhibits all materials and artifacts related to Basho and his writings. Of particular mention are the detailed maps that Basho used for his travels on foot in the then under-developed region of Honshu. The museum also serves as a literary center for research and regularly holds meetings on the art of haiku.
source : tokyo-tokyo.com/Morishita

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Walking the path of a legendary poet

The accompanying 1830s woodcut print is the image of the great haiku poet Matsuo Basho (1644-1694), rendered by Hasegawa Settan 長谷川雪旦 (1778-1843).

Depicting a legendary scene in which the poet was inspired to pen one of his masterpieces, Basho is seated at his writing desk in a humble cottage thatched with straw. A brushwood fence in the foreground on the right-hand side, moss-covered stepping stones in the garden, a pond overgrown with reeds, and stark surroundings suggested by thick horizontal lines in the background, all combine to conjure up the image of a hermit in seclusion from worldly concerns. Pausing in his work, the poet casts a glance at the pond and sees a frog leap into the water, creating ripples. This was the birth of his famous haiku:

“Listen! a frog,
Jumping into the stillness,
Of an ancient pond!”
(Translation by Dorothy Britton).
The print is completed with the poem written at the top.

In 1680, Basho moved to Fukagawa on the east bank of the Sumida River to escape the din and bustle of Nihonbashi, near the center of the city, where he had lived for nine years. In those days, Fukagawa was a sparsely populated piece of reclaimed land beyond the boundary of Edo City.

With no bridge yet built on the Sumida, boats plied busy waterways during the day, but early in the morning and evening silence prevailed in the area and Basho could hear the gongs of temple bells ringing in Ueno and Asakusa, 4 km away. Nearby was a Zen temple, Rinsen-ji, where he was admitted to practice meditation. The whole set-up was to his taste and met his needs so Basho made Fukagawa his base in Edo until his death in 1694. It was from here that he struck out on his many travels. (See this column, June 3, 2005).

He was especially pleased by a banana tree planted in the garden and used the plant name, basho, to call his cottage Basho-an. He also changed his pen name from Tosei to Basho. The plant, which had been introduced from China for medicinal purposes and to get fiber for weaving, was probably loved for the sound it made when raindrops pattered.

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For now, however, let us hurry to cross the bridge and look for Basho Inari-jinja shrine on a lane to the left. Though dedicated to Inari, the god of rice harvest and business prosperity, the shrine is a Tokyo Metropolitan Government-designated historic site that commemorates Basho’s abode.

As Basho moved twice within Fukagawa, and the whole area underwent drastic changes in land ownership in modern times, the exact locations of all the Basho-related sites were forgotten and became difficult to determine. However, when a large tsunami hit the area in 1917, a stone frog was discovered at this spot, suggesting the possibility that his last cottage stood here, especially as the poet had a fondness for the amphibian. Local citizens under the lead of Iida Gentaro 飯田源太郎 then decided to dedicate a shrine to his spirit as well as to the Inari god whose shrine was marked here on the old area map. As the original wooden building was burnt down by the 1945 air raids, they built a new one in concrete.

The poet is honored by another, more modern memorial nearby. At the end of the lane, a pocket-size park is tucked away behind a wooden gate and short flights of rugged stone steps. Ascending to an airy terrace on the very edge of the Sumida, visitors would hold their breath at the sight of Kiyosubashi Bridge straddling the broad expanse of the river water as boats passed by underneath it, with their white wakes. A bronze statue of Basho on a pedestal is installed at the center of the platform, surrounded by bamboo, banana trees and other plants that sway in the wind, as well as reproductions of Basho-themed old sketches.

- - - nearby is Fukagawa Edo Museum
source : Japan Times 2005 - Sumiko Enbutsu

More photos
source :　tetsuyosie

- - - reference : Basho Inari Shrine - - -

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. - Bashō-An 芭蕉庵 Basho-An in Fukagawa　深川　- .

. Cultural Keywords used by Basho .

. - KIGO used by Matsuo Basho 松尾芭蕉 - .

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