1666 (Kanbun 6), 23 years old
(14)
separated on Tanabata: love rained off
tanabata no awanu kokoro ya uchuten
七夕のあはぬこころや雨中天
Tanabata is the annual Star Festival held on July 7 when the Cowherd Star (Hikoboshi) and the Weaver Star (Orihime) can meet for just once a year. The hokku again contains a rather forced pun: Basho coins the neologism "uchuten", "in a rainy sky" as an antonym to the expression "uchoten" which is still used in modern Japanese, in the meaning of "rapture, exultation." The rain prevents both stars from meeting, and therefore their exultation is turned into sadness under the rainy sky.The season is autumn (kigo: tanabata).
(15)
shine brightly, and the capital is mine: today's moon reigns
tanda sume sumeba miyako zo kyo no tsuki
たんだすめ住めば都ぞけふの月
A
very complex and artificial hokku on the moon festival. The general
meaning is "when I see the harvest moon clearly, the place where I live
will be like the capital (Kyoto)." This plays with the proverb (still
heard today): "sumeba miyako", "there is no place like home". But
"sumeba" not only is "when I live", it can also mean "when it is clear
(said of the moon or a stream)." And "kyo" is both "Kyoto" and "today."
The season is autumn (kigo: kyo no tsuki).
(16)
does it mirror Princess Shine-Below? the moon's countenance
kage wa ame no shita teru hime ka tsuki no kao
影は天の下てる姫か月のかほ
Princess Shine Below or Shitateru-hime is a figure from Japanese mythology, who in the Kana Preface to the Kokinshu is mentioned as the ancestress of waka poets. "Kage" here is the same as "omokage," image". This is another moon poem, one in which the moon is compared to Shitateru-hime.The season is autumn (kigo: tsuki).
(17)
the reed's voice, akin to autumn wind passing mouth to mouth
ogi no koe koya akikaze no kuchi-utsushi
荻の声こや秋風の口うつし
"Kuchi-utsushi" is "copy" or "mimicry," but written differently can also be "to transfer from one mouth to another," - so this, too, is a pun. It is also the haikai element in this poem.
The season is autumn (kigo: ogi).
(18)
reclining bush-clover: her flowery face, so impolite
netaru hagi ya yogan-burei hana no kao
寝たる萩や容顔無礼花の顔
Bush-clover or Japanese clover (Lespedeza) is a legume that is popular as an ornamental plant. In September it bears small purple or white flowers. In Basho's haiku it is comically personified. Of course there is a pun too: "yogan-burei," "impolite-looking" puns on "yogan-birei," "good-looking."
The season is autumn (kigo: hagi).
(19)
the moon's clear mirror in Indian summer: a feast for the eyes
tsuki no kagami koharu ni miru ya me-shogatsu
月の鏡小春にみるや目正月
The haikai element is in the combination of "Indian summer" (koharu, in October) with The New Year (shogatsu). "Me-shogatsu" is also "to enjoy watching something beautiful." "Kagami" (mirror) and "miru" (to see) are so-called associated words, engo, a device one often finds in waka poetry.
The season is winter (kigo: koharu).
(20)
vexed by winter showers, pines adorned with snow
shigure wo ya modokashite-garite matsu no yuki
時雨をやもどかしがりて松の雪
The general meaning is based on the (mistaken) belief that winter showers (shigure) change the color of green foliage to red or yellow. Therefore, the evergreen pines which are left out feel annoyed with those showers for their partiality. So they wait impatiently until they, too, will receive their decorative costume - consisting of snow. This is a humorous personification of the pine trees.The season is winter (kigo: yuki)
(21)
bamboo under snow, the world turned upside down
shiorefusu ya yo wa sakisama no yuki no take
しほれふすや世はさかさまの雪の竹
This poem carries the headnote "Composed at the place of someone whose child had died." In the No Play "Take no yuki," "Snow on the Bamboos," a mother laments that her son is frozen to death in the snow under a bamboo. A child's death before the parent is not in order, but "the world turned on its head."
"Yo" is "world," as in the common expression "yo wa sakasama" (the world is upside down), but also the node of a bamboo. So both the world and the bamboo nodes are upside down - in the case of the bamboo nodes because the bamboo is drooping down. This is again an intricate word game, but it has also been called a skillful poem of condolence.
The season is winter (kigo: yuki)
(22)
hail mixed with large snowflakes: intricate tapestry!
arare majiru katabira-yuki wa komon kana
霰まじる帷子雪は小紋かな
[Edo-Komon]
[Edo-Komon]