Michihiko, who lived in the time of Issa, wrote:
Kare-ashi ya yuki no chirakutsuku kaze no ato
Withered-reeds ya snow’s flitting wind ‘s after
Withered reeds;
The snow flutters down
After the wind.
The wind has ceased, and the snow flutters softly down over the withered reeds.
The setting is “withered reeds.” The subject is “the snow.” The action is “flutters down after the wind.” So this is another standard hokku, consisting of setting, subject and action.
“Withered reeds” is in keeping with the deathly yin of winter. And of course the snow is yin. And the ceasing of the wind is also yin — the change from motion to stillness. And in that stillness, over the withered reeds, the cold snow flutters downward — a yin direction.
Sōchō wrote:
Yuki akari akaruki neya wa mata samushi
Snow light bright bedroom wa moreover cold
Snow-lit,
The bedroom is bright
But cold!
The brightness comes from the snow outside, but it is a winter brightness, meaning very chilly. This shows us the relativity of Nature — how there are no absolutes in Yin and Yang, but rather one thing is yin in comparison to another. Light is conventionally thought of as yang, but being the light of winter, it is very yin in comparison to the light of summer — so very cold!
David
