Takarai Kikaku ( ja, 宝井其角; 1661–1707) also known as Enomoto Kikaku, was a Japanese haikai

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or w ...

and among the most accomplished disciples of

Matsuo Bashō born then was the most famous poet of the Edo period in Japan. During his lifetime, Bashō was recognized for his works in the collaborative '' haikai no renga'' form; today, after centuries of commentary, he is recognized as the greatest ma ...

.Katō, Shūichi and Sanderson, Don. ''A History of Japanese Literature: From the Man'yōshū to Modern Times'',Routledge, 1997, p.159 His father was an

Edo Edo ( ja, , , "bay-entrance" or "estuary"), also romanized as Jedo, Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of Tokyo. Edo, formerly a ''jōkamachi'' (castle town) centered on Edo Castle located in Musashi Province, became the ''de facto'' capital of ...

doctor, but Kikaku chose to become a professional haikai poet rather than follow in his footsteps. Kikaku set the tone for haikai from Basho death until the time of Yosa Buson in the late 18th century; and he also left an important historical document, describing Bashō's final days, and the immediate aftermath of his death, which has been translated into English.

Later influence

In commemoration of the 300th anniversary of Kikaku's death, Nobuyuki Yuasa led an international bilingual (Japanese and English) renku, or collaborative linked poem, which opened with the following hokku by Kikaku: :鐘ひとつ賣れぬ日はなし江戸の春 :Springtime in Edo, :Not a day passes without :A temple bell sold.

Bashō's criticism

*Kikaku wrote of coarser subjects than Bashō, and in this respect his poetry was closer to earlier haikai, as well as to senryu, and his master is known to have denigrated Kikaku's 'flippant efforts'. *Comparing Kikaku's paired haiku in 'The Rustic Haiku Contest', Bashō remarked of one that "these are artifices within a work of art; too much craft has been expended here". *
One day, Kikaku composed a haiku, :''Red dragonfly / break off its wings / Sour cherry'' which Bashō changed to, :''Sour cherry / add wings to it / Red dragonfly''; thus saying that poetry should add life to life, not take life away from life.The Conversation Continues – Page 28
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References

External links

A selection of Kikaku's haiku translated into English
the international renku composed in memory of the 300th anniversary of Kikaku's death 1661 births 1707 deaths Japanese poets Japanese writers of the Edo period Japanese haiku poets {{japan-poet-stub

Later influence

Bashō's criticism

See also

References

External links