Shadow Diary

solstice is over
morning shadows only creep
as ageing sun fades

Kim M. Russell, 2017

 My response to Carpe Diem Time Travel #4 Basho’s shadow diary

In  a new episode of Carpe Diem’s Time Travel, Ancient Japanese Poetry To Inspire You, our challenge comes from one of the most famous haibun to be written:  Basho’s ‘Oku no Hosomichi – The Narrow Road Into The Deep North’. Chèvrefeuille recently discovered that Basho wrote a lot of haiku on his journey but he only selected 50 to include in “Oku no Hosomichi”.  However, his travelling companion, Sora, took notes and wrote down the haiku that Basho decided not to use in “Oku no Hosomichi”.  Chèvrefeuille tells that it took Basho five years to create and re-create his famous haibun. He also shares few haiku which were not included in “Oku No Hosomichi” and were noted by Sora.