The only substantial
collection in English
of Basho's renku, tanka,
letters and spoken word
along with his haiku, travel
journals, and essays.
The only poet in old-time
literature who paid attention with praise
to ordinary women, children, and teenagers
in hundreds of poems
Hundreds upon hundreds of Basho works
(mostly renku)about women, children,
teenagers, friendship, compassion, love.
These are resources we can use to better
understand ourselves and humanity.
Interesting and heartfelt
(not scholarly and boring)
for anyone concerned with
humanity.
“An astonishing range of
social subject matter and
compassionate intuition”
"The primordial power
of the feminine emanating
from Basho's poetry"
Hopeful, life-affirming
messages from one of
the greatest minds ever.
Through his letters,
we travel through his mind
and discover Basho's
gentleness and humanity.
I plead for your help in
finding a person or group
to take over my 3000 pages of Basho material,
to edit and improve the material, to receive 100%
of royalties, to spread Basho’s wisdom worldwide
and preserve for future generations.
Quotations from Basho Prose
The days and months are
guests passing through eternity.
The years that go by
also are travelers.
The mountains in silence
nurture the spirit;
the water with movement
calms the emotions.
All the more joyful,
all the more caring
Seek not the traces
of the ancients;
seek rather the
places they sought.
"It would be good for you to see from practice that your following stanza suits the previous one as an expression of the same heart’s connection."
Basho told Doho, with remarkable clarity and succinctness, the nature of his mastery of linking verses.
-------------------------------
To embroider she prefers the threads of a cascade
Otowa Falls in the wind 2: 26 Princess goes to a pine
Superior one, 2: 39
forget not the hard times use them well
Fancy hairstyle tied up with ornamental comb
Getting married – 2: 39 second time, returning ( ) to avoid trouble
From the brothel 2:47 moon among the clouds returns home
The form of a virgin her white satin obi
Lovers speak hesitantly as firefly crawls out robe
Along with the Buddha 2: 58 short night in a dream
Droplets from the spear of Bishamon autumn in our land
The heads of heathen 2: 63 descend with the moon
As naked seeds blossoms now return to their roots
Bath water bottom 2: 71 dragon palace spring
Roadhouse hooker or Sea-God’s daughter, which is she? Age of the Gods unheard love for a hundred coins
Bowing with respect 2: 72 to that precious treasure, the Pillow Book
Her long sleeves’ 2: 75 fine silk, yet beard is being born
The fate of Komachi
to female-impersonate
Storehouses and fences overgrown with water weeds
Seen by morning, 2:84 woman who stayed the night, Goddess of Poverty
To join with a widow, he pounds robe of love
Man who left 2:91 cared only for money, autumn passes
His old haori jacket makes the young look old
Soundly, so soundly 2:101 the babe in remembrance is put to sleep
“Weak as green willow” 2: 139 the wife is despised
‘Path of blood’ her day by day misery in the spring rain
She drops a tea bag 2: 139 in steam from her chest
How many moons 2: 149 shall young pines be hidden in your belly
Asking the servant girl beside the cliff, no reply
Spring water flows 2: 149 on the shore, will you stand against the current?
Since Ki no Tsurayuki the moon at daybreak
Eight hundred years 2: 169 the light of his lantern surviving the dew
Once again he is thrown Maruyama marked black
Half of go board 2: 176 all over eastern Kyoto blossoms scatter
The warriors’ sword exhibition gets violent Woman soon cry out so they are banished
Appearance 2:200 warped by a mirror, her resentment
Miracles from 2: 210 offerings to the Goddess shining on blossoms
Bird of good fortune builds nest with hemp
On the stage forlorn cry from a humble cottage, Without virtue loud squeal of surprise at the scene
A dog being stabbed 2: 214 that voice is so sad
Where is the storm? curtain room shivers
The woman’s shadow 2: 215 seems to have returned – awesome her traces
The Mouse and the Ox entrusted to the Tiger
Chaos rides 2: 217 on Green to play with the Energy
Wretched in the dew 2: 221 my wife’s fallen hair
Speaking of love,
in the mirror her face still I can see
Engulfed by passion to kill younger brother
Sound deepens, 2: 243 the pine wood door he pries open
In a daydream boiling rice until evening comes
No concern for others 2: 253 just waiting to die
Are these pines 2: 259 on Love Cape the daughter’s wedding ornament?
Vows for life remaining snow shines to the divine
In the summer of 1681, Basho wrote a letter to his follower Biji containing five points of advice on how to express in poetry. Here are four of them. Basho repeatedly rejects “oldness” in favor of “newness” (although he does not use that word until 1686)
When a following stanza completely fits the previous one, we can say this is the old style or the somewhat old style
Without a sense for ordinary words as precious, you will get mixed up in an old style.
An elaborately constructed verse is useless.
A verse may have extra sound-units, three, four, or even five or seven; if the rhythm of the phrase coming out your mouth is natural, it is okay – however if even one sound stagnates in your mouth, you must scrutinize the expression.
The aged nun has a story to tell us
Filled with pity, 2:261 her message to rescue abandoned child
A deer pulls the sleeve of someone in the village
… the following stanza suits the previous one as an expression of the same heart’s connection...
I plead for your help in finding a person or group to take over my 3000 pages of Basho material, to edit and improve the presentation, to receive all royalties from sales, to spread Basho’s wisdom worldwide and preserve for future generations.
The only substantial
collection in English
of Basho's renku, tanka,
letters and spoken word
along with his haiku, travel
journals, and essays.
The only poet in old-time
literature who paid attention with praise
to ordinary women, children, and teenagers
in hundreds of poems
Hundreds upon hundreds of Basho works
(mostly renku)about women, children,
teenagers, friendship, compassion, love.
These are resources we can use to better
understand ourselves and humanity.
Interesting and heartfelt
(not scholarly and boring)
for anyone concerned with
humanity.
“An astonishing range of
social subject matter and
compassionate intuition”
"The primordial power
of the feminine emanating
from Basho's poetry"
Hopeful, life-affirming
messages from one of
the greatest minds ever.
Through his letters,
we travel through his mind
and discover Basho's
gentleness and humanity.
I plead for your help in
finding a person or group
to take over my 3000 pages of Basho material,
to edit and improve the material, to receive 100%
of royalties, to spread Basho’s wisdom worldwide
and preserve for future generations.
Quotations from Basho Prose
The days and months are
guests passing through eternity.
The years that go by
also are travelers.
The mountains in silence
nurture the spirit;
the water with movement
calms the emotions.
All the more joyful,
all the more caring
Seek not the traces
of the ancients;
seek rather the
places they sought.
