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.
Everyone of you / in nadeshiko time / Starting to weep / earthenware trembles / in your weakness
君はみなみな / なでしこの時 / 泣き出して / 土器ふるふ / 身のよわり
Complete Basho Renku Interpetations: vol. 8: p. 115
芭蕉連句全註解 8 巻: 115
Kimi wa mina mina / nadeshiko no toki Bashō
8 君はみなみな / なでしこの時 芭蕉
きみ（女性の）みなさん、一緒に出かけて、 花のように若くて新鮮生きていきましょう。
All of you together, be like flowers, young, fresh, and alive.
Nakidashite/ kawarake furuu / mi no yowari Kotsumine
9 泣き出して / 土器ふるふ / 身のよわり 兀峰
若さは永遠に続くわけではなく、いつの日かあなたの仲間なしで 一人で、
弱さの中で重い土器はあなたの手の中で震えます。
Youth does not last forever, so one day without your companions,
in your weakness heavy earthenware will tremble in your hand.
Because the word kimi can mean a royal male child, Japanese scholars see this tsukeku as referring to a young prince, however kimi can also be an informal word for “you,” and a few Basho renku refer to a woman or girl as kimi.
The flower nadeshiko, a type of carnation, since ancient times, has been associated with Japanese femininity and youthfulness. Because of what men want, the word came to imply submission to patriarchy – but now with Nadeshiko being the name of the Japan Woman’s Soccer team, Basho’s stanza becomes a prophesy: that someday nadeshiko in cooperation (“everyone of you”) will be heroes inspiring all of Japan and women everywhere. Basho’s prophesy of 1692 was fulfilled 319 years later (“in nadeshiko time”) when Nadeshiko Japan, led by the magnificent Homare Sawa won the 2011 World Cup. This moment of Japanese women’s power and joy shines. This Basho verse can inspire young women three centuries later; even if he did not intend the verse that way, and even if all the scholars in the world do not see it that way, still we can.
Tokumine counters with what happens to power and precision after 50 years: no longer together with her peers, she grows old alone; her hands, even of an Olympic hero, can no longer hold the weight of heavy earthenware steady.
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.
