A thicket of summer grass / Is all that remains / Of the dreams of ancient warriors.
MATSUO BASHOA thicket of summer grass / Is all that remains / Of the dreams of ancient warriors.
MATSUO BASHOWhen composing a verse let there not be a hair’s breath separating your mind from what you write; composition of a poem must be done in an instant, like a woodcutter felling a huge tree or a swordsman leaping at a dangerous enemy.
MATSUO BASHODo not resemble me-Never be like a musk melon Cut in two identical halves.
MATSUO BASHOCome, see the true flowers of this pained world.
MATSUO BASHOCalm and serene The sound of a cicada Penetrates the rock.
MATSUO BASHOFor this lovely bowl let us arrange these flowers since there is no rice.
MATSUO BASHOHow much I desire! Inside my little satchel, the moon, and flowers.
MATSUO BASHOAt the ancient pond the frog plunges into the sound of water.
MATSUO BASHOThis autumn- why am I growing old? bird disappearing among clouds.
MATSUO BASHOSpring rain leaking through the roof dripping from the wasps’ nest.
MATSUO BASHOThe oak tree: not interested in cherry blossoms.
MATSUO BASHOReal poetry, is to lead a beautiful life. To live poetry is better than to write it.
MATSUO BASHOThere is nothing you can see that is not a flower; there is nothing you can think that is not the moon.
MATSUO BASHOSadly, I part from you; Like a clam torn from its shell, I go, and autumn too.
MATSUO BASHOFrom all these trees, in the salads, the soup, everywhere, cherry blossoms fall.
MATSUO BASHOEvery moment of life is the last, every poem is a death poem.
MATSUO BASHO