A Selection of Basho's Haiku

A. A bee
A bee
staggers out
of the peony.

B. A caterpillar
A caterpillar,
this deep in fall --
still not a butterfly.

C. A field of cotton
A field of cotton --
as if the moon
had flowered.

D. How admirable
How admirable!
to see lightning and not think
life is fleeting.

E. The dragonfly
The dragonfly
can't quite land
on that blade of grass.

F. The oak tree
The oak tree:
not interested
in cherry blossoms.

G. When the winter chrysanthemums go
When the winter chrysanthemums go,
there's nothing to write about
but radishes.

[NOTE: This was originally posted on Dec 14, 2007.]