Scan barcode
A review by amawomps
Narrow Road to the Interior: And Other Writings by Matsuo Bashō
5.0
I always hated haikus in middle school simply because I was always forced to write them. It wasn't until I was assigned this book for my spiritual autobiography class that I was finally able to appreciate the simplistic beauty of the art form itself. I believe Basho is the only poet that could've made me realize this for myself. His poems are easy to digest with beautiful imagery of early Japan. Some are cruel, and some I had to re-read to make sure they were even there to begin with because they were so uncharacteristic of other Japanese works of the time,
"It is still alive! quivering in a frozen block, little sea-slug!" (Basho, pg. 141)
I couldn't help but laugh when I read this passage. Usually when reading historical documents or writings from the eras before you bring a certain level of seriousness to the table, and I certainly had that at the beginning of this book. However, as I learned more and more about Basho, I felt more and more lighthearted and attached to his character. He simply just observes the smallest intricacies of life and captures them through the language he knows. I find it comforting that people so far back paid attention to these little reoccurrences in nature just as we do. It's an interesting thought imagining that no matter how many generations you skip, as humans, we'll all have the same reaction to a little shivering sea slug.
"It is still alive! quivering in a frozen block, little sea-slug!" (Basho, pg. 141)
I couldn't help but laugh when I read this passage. Usually when reading historical documents or writings from the eras before you bring a certain level of seriousness to the table, and I certainly had that at the beginning of this book. However, as I learned more and more about Basho, I felt more and more lighthearted and attached to his character. He simply just observes the smallest intricacies of life and captures them through the language he knows. I find it comforting that people so far back paid attention to these little reoccurrences in nature just as we do. It's an interesting thought imagining that no matter how many generations you skip, as humans, we'll all have the same reaction to a little shivering sea slug.