We may be into the traditional spring as I write this, but much of the northern hemisphere is still pretty cold right now. Thinking about that, I was reminded of this winter haiku the other day.

This haiku has a few different versions. The one above appears in Bashō's haibun Oi no Kobumi ("Knapsack Notebook"). He originally wrote it at a book merchant's house in Nagoya. He was enjoying the effects of sake that evening and was in a jolly mood. When it started snowing and had accumulated a bit, he composed this poem and suggested everyone go outside for some snow-viewing (yukimi), an activity that was similar to Cherry Blossom viewing (hanami) or moon viewing (tsukimi); and just like those activities, usually involved ample sake.

With the last line he might be suggesting the alcohol will get the best of them and they will lose their balance, or that the snow will prove too slippery for them, or maybe both.

The Japanese begins with the repeated "yu" sound in yukan yukimi ("let's go, snow viewing") which gives it a light playful sound. He was drunk, after all, and this nicely captures the playful mood. I tried to capture this with my translation say...snow. Technically say would be iza, which is something like now, well and is used when a person has a sudden idea. We also something use say for this meaning, so it works. Adding a third s word in the last line continues the idea.

David LaSpina is an American photographer and translator lost in Japan, trying to capture the beauty of this country one photo at a time and searching for the perfect haiku. He blogs here and at laspina.org. Write him on Twitter or Mastodon.

1. That is, me! If you like this translation, feel free to use it. Just credit me. Also link here if you can. ↩