Poetry
The Narrow Road to the Deep North
奥の細道
Matsuo Bashō · 1702
Synopsis
In the spring of 1689, the poet sells his hut in Edo and sets out for the north of Honshū with his disciple Kawai Sora: about one hundred and fifty-six days and nearly two thousand four hundred kilometres, mostly on foot. The route passes through Nikkō, the Shirakawa barrier, Matsushima and Hiraizumi, then turns west and follows the Sea of Japan, according to Nippon.com, through Sakata and Kisakata, towards Ōgaki. At each stage, the prose alternates with short poems, in the form known as haibun.
Context
He reworked the prose and poems for five years after the journey, and gave the text its definitive form between 1692 and 1694, according to Nippon.com. The diary kept by Sora shows that he often departs from the facts: the episode of the courtesans at the inn, inspired by an account by the poet Saigyō, does not appear in it. The text, which existed only in copies, was printed in Kyoto in 1702. René Sieffert translated it in 1976 in the author's travel diaries, and Nicolas Bouvier produced another version in 2006.
Who it is for
A short narrative, mixing prose and haiku. Notes on the places cited and on ancient poetry are a great help.
Prizes and reception
Translated into English by Nobuyuki Yuasa and then by Donald Keene, it also gave its title to an English-language novel awarded a prize in 2014.