Basho, one of the greatest of Japanese poets and the master of haiku, was also a Buddhist monk and a life-long traveller. His poems combine 'karumi', or lightness of touch, with the Zen ideal of oneness with creation. Each poem evokes the natural world - the cherry blossom, the leaping frog, the summer moon or the winter snow - suggesting the smallness of human life in comparison to the vastness and drama of nature. Basho himself enjoyed solitude and a life free from possessions, and his haiku are the work of an observant eye and a meditative mind, uncluttered by materialism and alive to the beauty of the world around him. For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

On Love and Barley: Haiku of Basho (Penguin Classics)

Literature & Fiction

Bashō, Matsuo

Genre Fiction

Penguin Classics

'Nothing more lonely -' A selection of Basho's most magical haiku Introducing Little Black Classics: 80 books for Penguin's 80th birthday. Little Black Classics celebrate the huge range and diversity of Penguin Classics, with books from around the world and across many centuries. They take us from a balloon ride over Victorian London to a garden of blossom in Japan, from Tierra del Fuego to 16th century California and the Russian steppe. Here are stories lyrical and savage; poems epic and intimate; essays satirical and inspirational; and ideas that have shaped the lives of millions Basho (1644-1694). Basho's On Love and Barley and The Narrow Road to the Deep North and Other Travel Sketches are available in Penguin Classics.

Little Black Classics Lips Too Chilled (Penguin Little Black Classics)

History & Criticism

Penguin Classic

By combining the idea of "Karumi" --lightness of touch--and oneness with nature, Basho (1644-1694) rose above the artificiality of previous haiku poets to become the master of the genre in his time. His exquisite compositions reflect the influences of his Zen Buddhism and a life spent traveling, and reveal him to be an inspired perfectionist who sought to express himself in the purest possible form.

Haiku (Penguin Classics 60s S)

Poetry

Penguin??Books

In his perfectly crafted haiku poems, Basho described the natural world with great simplicity and delicacy of feeling. When he composed The Narrow Road to the Deep North he was a serious student of Zen Buddhism setting off on a series of travels designed to strip away the trappings of the material world and bring spiritual enlightenment. He wrote of the seasons changing, of the smell of the rain, the brightness of the moon and the beauty of the waterfall, through which he sensed the mysteries of the universe. These travel writings not only chronicle Basho's perilous journeys through Japan, but they also capture his vision of eternity in the transient world around him

The Narrow Road to the Deep North and Other Travel Sketches (Penguin Pocket Hardbacks)

Essays & Correspondence

Vivid new translations of Basho's popular haiku, in a selected format ideal for newcomers as well as fans long familiar with the Japanese master. Basho, the famously bohemian traveler through seventeenth-century Japan, is a poet attuned to the natural world as well as humble human doings; "Piles of quilts/ snow on distant mountains/ I watch both," he writes. His work captures both the profound loneliness of one observing mind and the broad-ranging joy he finds in our connections to the larger community. David Young, acclaimed translator and Knopf poet, writes in his introduction to this selection, "This poet's consciousness affiliates itself with crickets, islands, monkeys, snowfalls, moonscapes, flowers, trees, and ceremonies...Waking and sleeping, alone and in company, he moves through the world, delighting in its details." Young's translations are bright, alert, musically perfect, and rich in tenderness toward their maker.

Moon Woke Me Up Nine Times: Selected Haiku of Basho

KNOPF

A wonderful new translation of the poetry of Basho―Zen monk, poet of nature, and master of the haiku form.

Bashō's Haiku: Selected Poems of Matsuo Bashō

State University of New York Press

A wonderful new translation of the poetry of Basho―Zen monk, poet of nature, and master of the haiku form. Basho's Haiku offers the most comprehensive translation yet of the poetry of Japanese writer Matsuo Basho (1644–1694), who is credited with perfecting and popularizing the haiku form of poetry. One of the most widely read Japanese writers, both within his own country and worldwide, Basho is especially beloved by those who appreciate nature and those who practice Zen Buddhism. Born into the samurai class, Basho rejected that world after the death of his master and became a wandering poet and teacher. During his travels across Japan, he became a lay Zen monk and studied history and classical poetry. His poems contained a mystical quality and expressed universal themes through simple images from the natural world. David Landis Barnhill's brilliant book strives for literal translations of Basho's work, arranged chronologically in order to show Basho's development as a writer. Avoiding wordy and explanatory translations, Barnhill captures the brevity and vitality of the original Japanese, letting the images suggest the depth of meaning involved. Barnhill also presents an overview of haiku poetry and analyzes the significance of nature in this literary form, while suggesting the importance of Basho to contemporary American literature and environmental thought.

Offers the most comprehensive collection of Basho's prose available, beautifully translated into English. In Basho's Journey, David Landis Barnhill provides the definitive translation of Matsuo Basho's literary prose, as well as a companion piece to his previous translation, Basho's Haiku. One of the world's greatest nature writers, Basho (16441694) is well known for his subtle sensitivity to the natural world, and his writings have influenced contemporary American environmental writers such as Gretel Ehrlich, John Elder, and Gary Snyder. This volume concentrates on Basho's travel journal, literary diary (Saga Diary), and haibun. The premiere form of literary prose in medieval Japan, the travel journal described the uncertainty and occasional humor of traveling, appreciations of nature, and encounters with areas rich in cultural history. Haiku poetry often accompanied the prose. The literary diary also had a long history, with a format similar to the travel journal but with a focus on the place where the poet was living. Basho was the first master of haibun, short poetic prose sketches that usually included haiku. As he did in Basho's Haiku, Barnhill arranges the work chronologically in order to show Basho's development as a writer. These accessible translations capture the spirit of the original Japanese prose, permitting the nature images to hint at the deeper meaning in the work. Barnhill's introduction presents an overview of Basho's prose and discusses the significance of nature in this literary form, while also noting Basho's significance to contemporary American literature and environmental thought. Excellent notes clearly annotate the translations. “Barnhill’s approach to translation is straightforward and unfussy, aiming to be as accurate as possible, making his two volumes a highly serviceable compilation. They will be of great value to readers.” — The Japan Times "Read cover to cover, the volume presents the breadth of Basho’s prose. If you open it randomly, on almost every page you encounter haunting images of the landscape, village life, and literary culture of Japan. This book inspires us to stop and pay attention to the poetry of the world around us." Buddhadharma “…Barnhill reveals the importance of narrative and social contexts in reading Basho. Barnhill’s careful translations and notes reveal a poet both independent and pious … Above all, Basho’s experience of ‘cultured nature’ emerges unforgettably.” — The Providence Sunday Journal on Basho’s Journey and Basho’s Haiku "Barnhill's translations maintain the Japanese originals' direct sparseness, and retain their dramatic sequence, which all too many translations unfortunately and unnecessarily sacrifice." Taigen Dan Leighton, cotranslator of Dogen's Pure Standards for the Zen Community: A Translation of Eihei Shingi

Bashō's Journey: The Literary Prose of Matsuo Bashō

Biographies & Memoirs

Leaders & Notable People

This book has a dual purpose. The first is to present in a new English translation 255 representative hokku (or haiku) poems of Matsuo Basho (1644-94), the Japanese poet who is generally considered the most influential figure in the history of the genre. The second is to make available in English a wide spectrum of Japanese critical commentary on the poems over the last three hundred years.

Basho and His Interpreters: Selected Hokku with Commentary

Stanford University Press

Book by Basho, Matsuo, Thoreau, Henry David

Morning Mist: Through the Seasons With Matsuo Basho and Henry David Thoreau

Thoreau, Henry David`

United States

Weatherhill

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Bashō, Matsuo. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Bashō, Matsuo

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Bashō, Matsuo. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

On Love and Barley: Haiku of Basho (Penguin Classics)

Little Black Classics Lips Too Chilled (Penguin Little Black Classics)

Haiku (Penguin Classics 60s S)

The Narrow Road to the Deep North and Other Travel Sketches (Penguin Pocket Hardbacks)

Moon Woke Me Up Nine Times: Selected Haiku of Basho

Bashō's Haiku: Selected Poems of Matsuo Bashō

Bashō's Haiku: Selected Poems of Matsuo Bashō

Bashō's Journey: The Literary Prose of Matsuo Bashō

Basho and His Interpreters: Selected Hokku with Commentary

Morning Mist: Through the Seasons With Matsuo Basho and Henry David Thoreau