My writing artist choice for today is Japanese poet and painter Matsuo Basho. He was a celebrated poet of the Edo period who was born to a low rank Samurai and considered a haiku master. Basho worked as a teacher under the name Tosei and published his students work as a collection titled The Best Poems of Tosei’s Twenty Disciples. As he chose to relocate and distance himself from the literary scene, his students built him a house and planted a banana tree on the property in his honor. It is then that he took on the name Matsuo Basho which translates into banana tree. His seclusion and immersion in nature became a key theme in his poems which are inscribed on a number of monuments in Japan. Below are three of his haikus.
Shaking the Grave
shaking the grave
my weeping voice
autumn wind
Temple Bells Die Out
Temple bells die out.
The fragrant blossoms remain.
A perfect evening!
The Warbler Sings
the warbler sings
among new shoots of bamboo
of coming old age
- Matsuo Basho
