Shrines, hot springs and Zen: Following Donald Keene on Basho's 'Narrow Road'
After leaving Kanazawa, Donald Keene's late-spring 1955 journey following the route described in Matsuo Basho's "Oku no Hosomichi" (translated by Keen
In late-spring 1955, Donald Keene embarked on a journey along the route described in Matsuo Basho's Oku no Hosomichi, known as The Narrow Road to Oku. His travels took him to various sites throughout the Hokuriku region, starting in Komatsu. On his journey, Keene visited Tata Jinja, also referred to as Tada Shrine, where he witnessed the helmet of Saito Sanemori and fragments of his brocade robe.
The helmet, engraved with a chrysanthemum arabesque pattern, was offered to the shrine by Kiso Yoshinaka after he defeated Sanemori in battle during the Genpei War.
Keene then journeyed to Natadera temple, a center of the Hakusan faith, which boasts a towering rock formation, Kigan Yusenkyo. He compared Natadera's rocks to those of Yamadera, noting the latter's nature-inspired stones and the former's more graceful, garden-like formations.
Continuing his journey, Keene visited Yamanaka Hot Springs, where Basho stayed for eight nights. The area is known for its exceptional hot springs, and poets gathered there to compose haiku. Keene stayed at Basho-do Hall, a facility built around the poet's former lodging. The town also features Basho no Yakata, a renovated traditional inn now housing Basho's house, which allows visitors to take a haikai stroll through the resort town.
Written by urgent.news from The Mainichi's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
