Basho's Narrow Road: Spring and Autumn Passages (Rock Spring Collection of Japanese Literature) (Paperback)

~ Matsuo Basho (Author), Hiroaki Sato (Translator) "CARRYING A PACK WITH HIS WRITING MATERIALS, A FEW pieces of clothing, and several gifts from friends who saw him off, the poet Basho set..." (more)
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"A remarkable translation.... the most accessible version in English." -Cor Van Den Heuvel -- -Cor Van Den Heuvel

"A remarkable translation.... the most accessible version in English." -Cor Van Den Heuvel -- Review

Product Description

In 1689, the poet Matsuo Basho set off on a five-month journey into the mountains north of the capital, Edo. Along the way he paused to compose poems that are today revered for their clarity of observation. Ostensibly a travel diary, Narrow Road to the Interior is artful and carefully sculpted, filled with rich allusions to literature and Zen. This volume includes the complete text in English with annotations, as well as an additional translation of a sequence of renga "linked verse" featuring Basho and his traveling companion, Sora.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Stone Bridge Press; illustrated edition edition (September 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1880656205
• ISBN-13: 978-1880656204
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 5.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #124,914 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Japanese journey during the 17th century, September 27, 2006

By	Reader Views "www.readerviews.com" (Austin, Texas) - See all my reviews

Reviewed by Paige Lovitt for Reader Views (9/06)

Matsuo Basho (1644-94) was a famous Japanese haiku poet. In 1689, he took a 1,233 mile journey across Japan. His travels lasted five months. He was joined by his friend Kawai Sora. Basho wrote about this trip. He titled it, "Oku No Hosomichi," which translates to "Narrow Road to the Interior." This story is considered to be a masterpiece of Japanese literature. He took four years to write it and revise it.

Basho started this trip when his house burned down. He had two goals. One goal was spiritual; it involved "poetic truth." The other goal was a practical one in which he would use his travels to become well known as a poet. Sora developed stomach problems and had to end his travels with Basho. Basho wrote a short piece for him. In the second part of this book, there is a translation of "A Farewell Gift to Sora."

Basho funded his travels with donations from wealthy friends and students. He felt that there were three types of poets. The first type is confused noisemakers. The second type is wealthy people who desire to write instead of gossip. The third type is poets who work hard at writing true poetry. These poets write to "soothe their heart." Basho was the third type of poet.

Hiroaki Sato includes annotations to go along with the writings. This adds richness to the story and helps explain more about the culture and what was happening at the time. I read the story first with the annotations to gain understanding of what I was reading; then I went back and reread the story by itself so that I could feel how it flowed. Without the annotations, I would have enjoyed Basho's story, but I would not have understood much of what was written. Sato also includes pages of notes and commentaries. This is a well researched piece. "Basho's Narrow Road" is a beautiful story about Basho's travels. In it he reflects on the beauty of the countryside and the spirit of the people that he encounters.

I recommend "Basho's Narrow Road" to people that enjoy Japanese poetry, especially Haiku. It would also be a great book to use for a college literature class. I really enjoyed Basho's journey.

12 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Nice, November 23, 2002

By	Daitokuji31 (Black Glass) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

This was the first time that I have read Basho's Narrow Road to Oku, snd I enjoyed it a great deal. Actually I read it twice this week. The first time I read through it I tried to read it without using the notes. I was lazy, so it came out that I really didn't enjoy what I was reading because I really didn't know what was going on throughout most of the book, so I read it again using the notes, and I got much more out of it. The annotations are on the left page while the actual text is on the right page, so there is no flipping to the back of the book every time that you need to look up something. There are endnotes that give more information about the haiku Basho writes. This is a very cool book, that gives the reader a glimpse at the literary world of japan back during the 17th century.

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful translation of a beautiful work, June 23, 2009

By	Giant Panda (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

Basho is an 18th century Japanese poet who was a leader in the art of Haibun - or Haiku prose. In this book he describes a pilgrimage he made across Japan, visiting sites associated with earlier poets along the way. The translation is clear and beautiful. I found the introduction and notes to be extremely helpful in understanding and appreciating the work, even though I had almost no background in Japanese poetry prior to this. Definitely recommended.