1812
.亡母や海見る度に見る度に
naki haha ya umi miru tabi ni miru tabi ni
my dead mother--
every time I see the ocean
every time...
Issa's mother died when he was a small child. In his diary, this haiku is followed immediately by another ocean poem:
murasaki no kumo ni itsu noru nishi no umi
on purple clouds
when will I set sail?
western sea
In mythic terms, the western sea separates this world from the Pure Land. The ocean, then, is a barrier between this world and the next, keeping Issa separate from his beloved mother.
This haiku is one of the "essential" 188 picked by the translator. back next