Poem Explorer

Poets by place

Japanese poets and poems

Japanese poetry includes many formal and historical traditions whose brevity can be deceptive in translation.

The poems gathered here come from verified older source editions and are presented as a starting point rather than a comprehensive national survey.

1 poet4 poemsPublic-domain source editions

Poets in this collection

  1. Matsuo BashoEdo haiku · 4 poems

Selected poems

4 starting points, with featured poems first.

  1. A cloud of flowersMatsuo Basho · 3 lines
  2. An ancient pondMatsuo Basho · 3 lines
  3. On a withered branchMatsuo Basho · 3 lines
  4. The cry of the cicadaMatsuo Basho · 3 lines