About Matsuo Basho
Matsuo Basho was one of the most famous haiku masters of the world. His poems were influenced by his firsthand experience of the world around him, often encapsulating the feeling of a scene in a few simple elements. Despite his success, Basho grew dissatisfied and lonely. He began to practice Zen meditation, but it seems not to have calmed his mind. He traveled during all his lifetime where he met several poets who called themselves his disciples and wanted his advice. Even during his lifetime, the effort and style of his poetry was widely appreciated; after his death, it only increased. Several of his students compiled quotations from him about his own poetry, most notably Mukai Kyorai and Hattori Doho.Browse all poems and texts published on Matsuo Basho
Some of his best haikus and poems are now celebrated on monuments and traditional sites.
