Matsuo Bashō
Rise to fame

In the fashionable literary circles of Nihonbashi, Bashō's poetry was quickly recognized for its simple and natural style. In 1674 he was inducted into the inner circle of the haikai profession, receiving secret teachings from Kitamura Kigin (1624–1705). He wrote this hokku in mock tribute to the shōgun:

甲比丹もつくばはせけり君が春 kapitan mo / tsukubawasekeri / kimi ga haru the Dutchmen, too, / kneel before His Lordship— / spring under His reign.

When Nishiyama Sōin, founder and leader of the Danrin school of haikai, came to Edo from Osaka in 1675, Bashō was among the poets invited to compose with him. It was on this occasion that he gave himself the haigō of Tōsei, and by 1680 he had a full-time job teaching twenty disciples, who published The Best Poems of Tōsei's Twenty Disciples (桃青門弟独吟二十歌仙, Tōsei-montei Dokugin-Nijukasen), advertising their connection to Tōsei's talent. That winter, he took the surprising step of moving across the river to Fukagawa, out of the public eye and towards a more reclusive life. His disciples built him a rustic hut and planted a Japanese banana tree (芭蕉, bashō) in the yard, giving Bashō a new haigō and his first permanent home. He appreciated the plant very much, but was not happy to see Fukagawa's native miscanthus grass growing alongside it:

ばしょう植ゑてまづ憎む荻の二葉哉 bashō uete / mazu nikumu ogi no / futaba kana by my new banana plant / the first sign of something I loathe— / a miscanthus bud!

Despite his success, Bashō grew dissatisfied and lonely. He began to practice Zen meditation, but it seems not to have calmed his mind. In the winter of 1682 his hut burned down, and shortly afterwards, in early 1683, his mother died. He then traveled to Yamura, to stay with a friend. In the winter of 1683 his disciples gave him a second hut in Edo, but his spirits did not improve. In 1684 his disciple Takarai Kikaku published a compilation of him and other poets, Shriveled Chestnuts (虚栗, Minashiguri). Later that year he left Edo on the first of four major wanderings.

Bashō traveled alone, off the beaten path, that is, on the Edo Five Routes, which in medieval Japan were regarded as immensely dangerous; and, at first Bashō expected to simply die in the middle of nowhere or be killed by bandits. However, as his trip progressed, his mood improved, and he became comfortable on the road. Bashō met many friends and grew to enjoy the changing scenery and the seasons. His poems took on a less introspective and more striking tone as he observed the world around him:

馬をさへながむる雪の朝哉 uma wo sae / nagamuru yuki no / ashita kana even a horse / arrests my eyes—on this / snowy morrow

The trip took him from Edo to Mount Fuji, Ueno, and Kyoto. He met several poets who called themselves his disciples and wanted his advice; he told them to disregard the contemporary Edo style and even his own Shriveled Chestnuts, saying it contained "many verses that are not worth discussing". Bashō returned to Edo in the summer of 1685, taking time along the way to write more hokku and comment on his own life:

年暮ぬ笠きて草鞋はきながら toshi kurenu / kasa kite waraji / hakinagara another year is gone / a traveler's shade on my head, / straw sandals at my feet

When Bashō returned to Edo he happily resumed his job as a teacher of poetry at his bashō hut, although privately he was already making plans for another journey. The poems from his journey were published as Nozarashi Kikō (野ざらし紀行).

In early 1686, Bashō composed one of his best-remembered haiku:

古池や蛙飛びこむ水の音 furu ike ya / kawazu tobikomu / mizu no oto an ancient pond / a frog jumps in / the splash of water

This poem became instantly famous. In April, the poets of Edo gathered at the bashō hut for a haikai no renga contest on the subject of frogs that seems to have been a tribute to Bashō's hokku, which was placed at the top of the compilation. For the rest of the year, Bashō stayed in Edo, continuing to teach and hold contests.

In the autumn of 1687 he journeyed to the countryside for moon watching, and made a longer trip in 1688 when he returned to Ueno to celebrate the Lunar New Year. Back home in Edo, Bashō sometimes became reclusive: alternating between rejecting visitors to his hut and appreciating their company. At the same time, he retained a subtle sense of humor, as reflected in his hokku:

いざさらば雪見にころぶ所迄 iza saraba / yukimi ni korobu / tokoromade now then, let's go out / to enjoy the snow... until / I slip and fall!
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