The crane screeches: At its voice The bashōwill surely tear Bashō Translated by R. H. Blyth In my morning reading (Haiku, v. 4, R. H. Blyth), I ran across the above Bashō poem which I didn't remember but which struck me immediately. It put me in mind of the more famous Bashō poem: Quietness-- Sinking into the rocks, A cicada's cry Bashō Translated by Makota Ueda Some translations go so far as to say piercing the rock(s), which heightens the mystery inherent in the poem. What struck me here is the relationship between these two pieces, the first a touch more literal, the second, more famous poem, perhaps closer to the mystery. And what of the mystery? The less said, the more realized? Perhaps the poems are each transcendent moments or, in this case, two moments sharing a certain otherness? Thinking on these things, I took a break for breakfast, and began reading a review of a book on, believe or not, camping. In the book, as noted by the reviewer, the author made a rather a limp joke referencing one of Leonard Cohen's most famous verses: Ring the bells that still can ring Forget your perfect offering There is a crack in everything That's how the light gets in. Bad joke or not, as so often happens in my morning reading, the bell rang ... again and again and again. Leonard Cohen's "Anthem."
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