Kasen

The Thirty Six Greats

Matsuo Basho

 

First folio, front - jo - preface
hokku au au [mn] sp sp su wi
wakiku au au [mn] sp sp su wi
daisan au au sp sp suns wins
4 short ns ns ns ns ns ns
5 long su mn nssu au mn wi mn au mn au mn
6 short su su au wi au au
First folio, back - ha part one - development
7 long ns ns au ns au au
8 short ns lv ns ns lv ns ns lv ns lv
9 long ns lv ns lv ns lv ns ns lv ns lv
10 short ns ns lv ns ns ns ns
11 long ns ns ns au ns ns
12 short ns wi [mn] ns au [mn] ns ns
13 long wi mn wi [mn] su mn au [mn] wi mn su mn
14 short wi ns su ns wi su
15 long ns ns ns ns ns ns
16 short ns sp [bl] ns sp ns ns
17 long sp bl sp [bl] sp bl sp bl sp bl sp bl
18 short sp sp sp sp sp sp
Second folio, front - ha part two - intensification
19 long sp ns sp ns sp sp
20 short ns ns ns ns ns ns
21 long ns ns ns ns lv ns ns
22 short ns ns lv ns ns lv ns ns
23 long su ns lv wi su su wi
24 short su su wi su su wi
25 long ns su ns ns ns ns
26 short ns lv ns ns lv ns ns lv ns lv
27 long ns lv ns ns lv ns ns lv ns lv
28 short ns au [mn] ns au ns ns
29 long au mn au [mn] au mn au mn au mn au mn
30 short au au au au au au
Second folio, back - kyu - finale
31 long au ns au ns au au
32 short ns ns ns ns ns ns
33 long ns ns ns ns ns ns
34 short nssp sp nssp sp nssp nssp
35 long sp bl sp bl sp bl sp bl sp bl sp bl
ageku sp sp sp sp sp sp

 

Notes

The Kasen is the exemplar of the jo-ha-kyu dynamic.

Moon appears three times and blossom twice. Typically autumn moon constitutes two of the three moon verses. Blossom positions are best considered fixed. Moon shows greater flexibility.

Love normally appears somewhere in the middle of each part of ha. Typically each appearance of love comprises a grouped pair which may be prefaced by call-for-love (koi no yobidashi) and followed by end-of-love (koi banare).

The season positions in the mid section of the first folio back may be brought forward or delayed briefly. Season positions move en bloc.

suns - if the season is chosen here non-season is more likely at #34, and vice versa.
wins - if the season is chosen here non-season is more likely at #34, and vice versa.
ns - non season.
bl - blossom position.
[bl] - blossom position - blossom will appear in either of the adjacent verses.
 mn - moon position
[mn] - moon position - moon will appear in either of the adjacent verses.
lv - love position

 


 

1