(1644–94). One of the most respected figures of Japanese literature is the poet Basho. He is remembered as the master of the haiku, a short poem of 17 syllables arranged in three lines of 5, 7, and 5 syllables.

Early life

Originally called Matsuo Manefusa, Basho was born in 1644 near Kyoto on Honshu, the main island of Japan. His father was a minor member of the samurai class so Basho, too, was a samurai. The samurai were warriors who worked for individual noblemen. Basho worked for a nobleman who was interested in poetry and who wrote poetry with him. In 1666 the nobleman died. After that, Basho devoted himself completely to poetry.

Career

Basho published his first poems in 1671. One year later he moved to the capital city of Edo (now Tokyo). He continued to publish poetry and began to attract students and admirers. In 1680 his students built him a house. They planted a basho, or banana plant, in the yard. That plant was the source of the pen name Basho used for the rest of his life.

Basho changed the course of Japanese poetry. For many years the writing of renga, or linked verse, had been a kind of popular game in which two or more people took turns writing sections of a poem. Those who were not serious scholars usually wrote what was called haiku no renga (playful linked verse). By Basho's day, poets were beginning to recast the first three lines of renga into freestanding three-line poems known as haiku (light verse). Haiku were playful and silly at first. In the hands of Basho, however, they became simple but profound statements and observations of nature. Soon other poets began imitating his style. An example of Basho's haiku is:

The old pond
A frog jumps in
The sound of water

Later life

Basho began the first of four long journeys through Japan in 1684. He traveled simply, on foot, carrying only writing materials and a few belongings. Eventually, he published poetic diaries of his journeys. The diaries include descriptions of where Basho went and what he saw, as well as thoughts and many short poems. Basho's journals are not strictly factual; he invented and altered scenes and events to suit his writing purposes.

The most famous of Basho's poetic diaries is Oku no hosomichi (1694; The Narrow Road to the Deep North). It describes a two-year journey he began with his student Sora in 1689. Basho wrote and revised that work over a period of four years. He died of an illness during his final journey to the south of Japan in 1694.