Variations on a fart by a smart feller. things not said in polite company.
Somebody farted,
Was it wind or a whisper?
Friends soon departed
.
Somebody farted
Hearing a sigh feeling a breeze ,
The room held its breath
.
Somebody farted
A cloud of mystery lingered
As I departed
.
Matsuo Basho ate radishes both because they were plentiful and because he had stomach problems for most of his life. No doubt he passed gas in polite company, but it was never mentioned.
It is said to have been written in the first year of the Jokyo Era (貞享), 1684. A compilation of poems including Basho’s had been published called Shriveled Chestnuts. And Basho was on the road on the Five Highways on the first of his four major wanderings.
Snow upon snow Tonight, the last month is December Is there a full moon or not?
雪と雪 . 今宵師走の . 名月か Yuki to yuki . Koyoi shiwasu no . Meigetsu ya — Matsuo Basho
Version Two, when there is a glimmer of hope.
Snow upon snow Tonight, the last month Is there a sliver of a moon or not?
The Moon月
It has been said that this haiku was written to settle a disagreement between two individuals (snow upon snow), each part frozen and unwilling to compromise. The moon was supposed to mediate the differences, but the cloudy weather and the snow got in the way. Tsuki is any moon. Meigtsu, refers to a full moon. A sliver of a moon (mikazuki) seems appropriate if we are trying to patch up differences.
雪と雪 . 今宵師走の . 名月か Yuki to yuki . Koyoi shiwasu no . Meigetsu ya image, Wikipedia
Sunset Cove on Seven Mile Beach, just north of George Town in the Grand Caymans, is beyond description. Sunrises and sunsets glow across gentle waves and warm breezes; white clouds wander slow beneath blue skies; tall palms lean over sandy beaches. Sea shells on the shore for children to gather.
Just another day in paradise.
Matsushima ya
Aa — Matsushima ya
Matsushima ya
松島や
ああ松島や
松島や
Matsushima!
Ah, Matsushima!
Matsushima!
Some modern blogs still present this as Bashō’s, but it isn’t.
Along Seven Mile Beach, north of George Town in the Grand Caymans, the Bouganvilliea bloom in December in all sorts of colors — orange, red, pink, magenta, purple, or gold.
Let us join Matsuo Basho in Edo. The year is 1683. Perhaps we are at Basho’s humble thatched cottage. More likely we are at the home of a friend as Basho’s haiku suggest he was not much of a cook. Perhaps it is late in the year, a holiday, a sumptuous feast, then desert.
After a meal watch TV, then nap — Thanksgiving
A meal is not complete until desert is served. A sweet rice cake called kusa mochi qwrapped in mugwort leaves.
Pale green, hey — an ear protruding from the kusa mochi cake.
青ざしや草餅の穂に出でつらん aozashi ya kusa mochi no ho ni ide tsuran — Matsuo Basho, 1683, age 40
青ざし (aozashi), pale green, the color of young plants or new leaves.
や (ya), used to convey emphasis.
草餅 (kusa mochi), a sweet Japanese rice cake made with mugwort (yomogi) leaves, a tall green herb. The mugwort is a digestive aide. Basho suffered stomach problems for much of his life.
に (ni), meaning “on”; 穂 (ho), literally “ear” as in the protruding spikes of the mugwort stalk.
出でつらん (ide tsuran), something that has “emerged” or “come forth.”
青ざしや草餅の穂に出でつらん aozashi ya kusa mochi no ho ni ide tsuran
matsuo-basho-haiku 