松尾芭蕉
Matsuo Basho
やがて死ぬ 景色は見えず 蝉の声
yagate shinu / keshiki wa miezu / semi no koe
They will soon die | but they don’t appear so | the hardy trilling of cicadas
季語 kigo seasonal words - Within the poem, at least one word or phrase should symbolize one of the four seasons.
切れ字 kireji cutting words - These are small words that often function as a placeholder so the verse has the right number of moras. They also function to give a certain emotional or sentimental flavor to the poem.
やがて死ぬ 景色は見えず 蝉の声
They will soon die | but they don’t appear so | the hardy trilling of cicadas
COMMENTARY:
もうすぐ死んでしまう蝉なのに、死にそうな様子は見えない。一生懸命に鳴いています。
Cicadas die soon, and yet they don’t look to be dying. They are chirping with great enthusiasm.
VOCABULARY:
- やがて before long; soon; shortly; in due time; in the course of time
- 死ぬ to die; to pass away
- 景色 scenery; sight; view; appearance [In this case, this refers to the appearance of the cicadas. They don’t appear to be dying due to their loud voices, but they will soon all die nonetheless.]
- は (indicates the sentence topic)
- 見えず (they) don’t appear (to be dying) [from 見える (to look; to seem; to appear); ~ず means “without doing ~”; how to form: Verb (ない stem) + ず]
- 蝉の声 chirping of cicadas [蝉 (cicada; locust) + の (of; ‘s; modifier) + 声 (singing (of a bird); chirping (of an insect); voice)]
- 松尾芭蕉 Matsuo Bashou (1644-1694) [was the most famous poet of the Edo period in Japan and is recognized as the greatest master of haiku]
- もうすぐ soon; shortly; before long; nearly; almost
- 死んでしまう蝉なのに cicadas die soon, and yet [死んでしまう (die; ~しまう refers to a regrettable event or negative meaning; how to form: Verb (て form) + しまう) + 蝉 (cicada; locust) + なのに (although; despite; even though; and yet; how to form: Noun + な + のに)]
- 死にそうな様子は見えない (they) don’t look to be dying [死にそうな (dying; at the point of death; about to die; almost dead) + 様子 (appearance; look) + は (indicates the sentence topic) + 見えない (don’t look; plain negative form of 見える (to look; to seem; to appear))]
- 一生懸命に with all one’s strength; with great enthusiasm; heartily; with heart and soul
- 鳴いています is/are chirping [ています-form of 鳴く (to make sound (of an animal); to sing; to chirp) which is used to express an ongoing action]
- No matter how short of a time you have, give everything your best.
Matsuo Basho (1644-1694) is undoubtedly the most famous of the classical haiku poets. His mastery of haiku and his wanderings around Japan are attested by the many monuments with his poems. His most famous collection of poems and writings is called, "Oku no Hosomichi." It was written while on a long journey in Edo Japan in the spring of 1689. Today many people trace his footsteps for themselves.
More Haiku by Matsuo Basho