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Paper short abstract

In 1689, Bashō and Sora journeyed through northeastern Japan, composing linked verse with local poets. Twelve surviving kasen sequences (36 contributions) reveal regional haikai culture. This paper explores their stylistic traits and local color compared to Bashō’s ideals and contemporary practice.

Paper long abstract

In 1689, the renowned haikai master Matsuo Bashō embarked on a long journey through the northeastern regions of Honshū, accompanied by his disciple Kasai Sora – better known as “Kawai Sora.” The most celebrated literary outcome of this journey is, of course, Oku no Hosomichi (The Narrow Road to the Deep North), a masterpiece that Bashō composed several years later and which has been translated into numerous languages. Yet the historical journey itself was far more than a solitary act of travel and reflection. It was punctuated by vibrant local poetic activity that deserves closer attention.

Along the way, Bashō and Sora met with regional poets and participated in gatherings to compose linked verse (renku), a practice that was not only a significant social event but also provided companionship and creative stimulation during their arduous travels. Sora recorded many of these poetic exchanges in his travel notes, though not all have survived. Today, twelve complete kasen sequences – each consisting of thirty-six verses – remain extant. None of these sequences, however, entered the haikai canon, and despite some scholarly interest in the latter half of the twentieth century, these compositions now risk

falling into obscurity. This is particularly regrettable, as linked verse was the only literary genre of its time that flourished outside the major metropolitan centers, offering a rare glimpse into regional literary culture.

In this presentation, I will examine the characteristics of these linked-verse gatherings at various stations along Bashō’s route. A central question is whether these sequences reflect a uniform style shaped by the authority of the Edo master, or whether they reveal distinctive local inflections – traces of a “Deep North” aesthetic that might illuminate the degree of haikai development in these peripheral regions. Finally, I will compare the stylistic features of Bashō’s ideal of haikai with those of other poets active during the same period, in order to situate these neglected sequences within the broader literary landscape of late seventeenth-century Japan.