Tis the first snow
by Matsuo Basho
Translated by William George Aston and published in A History of Japanese Literature, Chapter IV (1899). Tis the first snow was written by Matsuo Basho in 1686. Basho was considered the master of the haiku poetry form.
'Tis the first snow— Just enough to bend The gladiolus leaves
Japanese: （はつゆきやすいせんのはのたわむまで） hatsu yuki ya / suisen no ha no / tawamu made
Bashō wrote 水仙 (すいせん) = suisen — "narcissus" instead of "gladiolus"
Bashō wrote 水仙 (すいせん) = suisen — "narcissus" instead of "gladiolus"
8.5
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