Matsuo Bashō (1644–1694) was born in Ueno, Japan, to a family of samurai descent. He is recognized as the most famous poet of the Edo period in Japan, and the greatest master of haiku.
やがてしぬけしきはみえずせみのこゑ
The cry of the cicada
Gives us no sign
That presently it will die.
—Translated by William George Aston
Soon they have to die,
but there is no sign of it
in cicadas’ cries.
—Translated by Dmitri N. Smirnov
but there is no sign of it
in cicadas’ cries.
—Translated by Dmitri N. Smirnov
Η κραυγή του τζιτζικιού
δεν μας δείχνει
πως σύντομα θα πεθάνει.
Σύντομα πρέπει να πεθάνουν,
μα αυτό δεν φαίνεται
στις κραυγές των τζιτζικιών.
