Autumn moonlight

Matsuo Basho 1644 (Near Ueno) – 1694 (Osaka)



Autumn moonlight--
  a worm digs silently
    into the chestnut.

Translated by Robert Hass

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on May 03, 2023

4 sec read
1,549

Quick analysis:

Scheme XXX X
Closest metre Iambic trimeter
Characters 95
Words 15
Stanzas 2
Stanza Lengths 3, 1

Matsuo Basho

Matsuo Bashō was the most famous poet of the Edo period in Japan. more…

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1 Comment
  • George Ochsenfeld
    George Ochsenfeld
    I find this poem haunting. Embedded in the beauty of nature, it hints at loneliness, determination, humility, the paradox of significance in insignificance, aging, and death.
    LikeReply 14 years ago

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"Autumn moonlight" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Mar. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/27151/autumn-moonlight>.

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