この道や 行く人なしに 秋のくれ

on this road
goes no one
autumn evening
—Basho

Kono michi ya / yuku hito nashini / aki no kure

(Print by Hasui Kawase)

Basho titled this haiku Expressing How I Feel and composed it on 13 Nov 1694, shortly before his death.

The road is literally a road, but it is also a allegory for life and Zen practice. These three things are the same for Basho. In the autumn of his life, Basho is pondering how not only is he alone, but that the self itself has no ultimate meaning. No one goes along the road.

Don't miss the other great haiku in the Haiku of Japan series!

#1 - Traveling to the inn
#2 - Childless Woman
#3 - Old Dancing Butterfly
#4 - Seeing the Moon
#5 - Checking the Scarecrow
#6 - Skill of Insects
#7 - The Spider Lilies
#8 - A Thousand Green Mountains
#9 - Falling Lead Enlightenment
#10 - Lonely Night
#11 - Her Day Off
#12 - Autumn Crow
#13 - Faint Footprints

David LaSpina is an American photographer and translator lost in Japan, trying to capture the beauty of this country one photo at a time and searching for the perfect haiku. He blogs here and at laspina.org.