On his travels documented in The Narrow Road to the Deep North (Oku no hosomichi), Basho left Sakata in Dewa (now Yamagata Prefecture) on the twenty-fifth day of the sixth month of Genroku 2 (1689), passing through Echigo and heading south. On the fifteenth day of the seventh month, he crossed the Kurikara Pass near Takaoka in Etchu Province, entering Kaga and eventually arriving in Kanazawa. This scroll contains three hokku that Basho composed in Kaga. The poem prefaced “When arriving in Kaga…” reads:

    Wase no ka ya / wakeiru migi wa / Ariso-umi
    The ripening grain, / Walking in the fragrance while on the right / The rocky shore of the sea.

Basho was traveling in a region known for cultivating a type of rice harvested earlier than others. The fifteenth day of the seventh month in the lunar calendar corresponds to August 29 in the Gregorian calendar, just when one expects the ears of rice grain fully developed. Basho felt inspired to compose this hokku by the fragrance of the grain and the sight of the ocean to his right when he descended the mountain pass. It continues:

    Shiorashiki / na ya komatsu fuku / hagi susuki
    How nice it sounds, / The name Komatsu, where wind ruffles over / The bush clover and pampas.

This poem is preceded by the introduction “At a place called Komatsu.” It evokes the sentiment of the beautiful Komatsu, as a gentle wind blows through bush clovers and Japanese pampas grasses, creating the notion of the clear, refreshing atmosphere of autumn. The third poem is introduced as follows: “At the same place, at Tada Shrine, where they preserve the helmet of [Saito] Sanemori:”

    Ana muzan ya / kabuto no shita no / kirigirisu
    What a loss is here: / Beneath the warrior’s splendid helmet / A chirping cricket.

Saito Sanemori’s helmet is a revered treasure of Tada Shrine. Sanemori, a Heian period military commander, met his heroic, yet tragic end at a battle nearby. Knowing about his impeding death he dyed his white hair black to fight for a last time like a young warrior. Basho’s haiku superimposes the notion of this legend with the bleak sound of the autumn insects’ voice. The first part in Oku no hosomichi is actually rendered Muzan ya na…, but is appears here as Ana muzan ya… in reference to a similar line in the Noh play Sanemori.

The work is sealed “Aki ni taezu,” “Basho” and “Tosei.” With its script so crisp that one deems to almost smell the ink, this scroll of one of Japan’s towering literary geniuses is of an undeniable elegance and beauty. It was handed down in Basho’s birthplace Iga, and has been included in numerous exhibitions honoring Iga’s famous poet. As such, it is a well-known, precious work that should be appreciated for its history as well as for its artistry.

Matsuo Basho (haiku poet; 1644–1694)
A native of Iga Province (today Mie Prefecture), Basho initially served his local feudal lord but in 1666 abandoned his warrior status and moved to Edo. He first mastered the Teimon style and then the Danrin style of haikai poetry, but eventually left the urban poetry circles. Elevating the status of the hokku (starting verse of a linked verse session, now known as haiku), Basho established his own Shofu style. Many of his works reflect is his travels in rural or remote areas.