Kobayashi Issa - Where there are humans
Ivan M. Granger August 25th, 2008
Where there are humans
by Kobayashi Issa
English version by Lucien Stryk and Takashi Ikemoto
Where there are humans
You’ll find flies,
And Buddhas.
— from A Box of Zen: Haiku the Poetry of Zen, Koans the Lessons of Zen, Sayings the Wisdom of Zen, Edited by Manuela Dunn Mascetti / Edited by Timothy Hugh Barrett
/ Photo by tanakawho /
This haiku has me chuckling.
That’s what is so infuriating and wondrous about this creature we call the human being. While a deer is utterly and profoundly a deer, and a lion a lion, every human carries the whole menagerie of earth and host of heaven in tow.
I’d just add that, to the Buddhas, the flies too are Buddhas. And so are the humans… So where exactly does that leave us?
|
Kobayashi Issa
Japan (1763 - 1828) Timeline |
Kobayashi Issa, or simply Issa, is one of the best known and appreciated haiku poets.
Issa was born in Kashiwabara, in what is now part of the Nagano Prefecture in Japan. His father was a farmer. Issa’s mother died when the boy was very young and his father soon remarried. Issa’s stepmother mistreated him and, when he was fourteen, Issa was sent to Edo (Tokyo) where he studied haiku.
Although he gained some notoriety for his poetry early on, he struggled to get by financially and had to travel and work hard until his fifties. When his father died, Issa had further troubles with his stepmother who prevented him from inheriting his father’s property for some time. He eventually was able to claim his inheritance, however.
Though Issa’s life was filled with struggles — the death of his mother at an early age, the conflicts with his stepmother, his poverty, and the death of his own children — his haiku tend to celebrate the serene joys and simple spiritual moments of life.
Subscribe (
Wonderful, Ivan.
Issa had me chuckling too.
Then a glorious image of my favorite insect…
Golden dragonfly
a Buddha darning needle
sewing a sunbeam.
jm
Maybe this leaves us wondering how the flies (with their antenna vision) see US!
Tracy
Issa, that old drunk! He knows there are no humans, no flies and no Buddhas. And now there is no Issa etiher.
Hi there Ivan..
The anwer is here..
In me are the angel and the lucifer…
In me only angel will conquer.
(ibn ali)
Hi Ivan,
Its Buddha & fly, which will come to good & bad,
sweet and sour a like.
Many times,many times.
at times, humans get irritated,but still,
they will come back,they will come back.
salam
HI! Ivan
It is a very interesting and relevant question.
To me we are all “Buddhas” or “Gods” each in its own way and each with its faith.
I believe that the wars that mankind make would “End” if there is no war of religions.
where does that leave us?
a haiku tells the tale …
budding, flowering
wilting on compost pile
fly restarts cycle
Thanks, Ivan, here’s one of my favorite Issa’s:
What good luck!
Bitten by
This year’s mosquitoes too.
Don @ Issa’s Untidy Hut
Great poem, great commentary - interesting comments. Illuminating indeed. Thanks.