A Caterpillar
haiku
melancholic
A Caterpillar - context Summary
Final Journey Haiku
Written in autumn 1694 during Basho's final journey to Osaka, this haiku appears in the 1698 Zoku Sarumino. Composed just weeks before his death, the poem is commonly read as Basho's meditation on aging, mortality, and a sense of incomplete spiritual transformation. Its spare image of a caterpillar late in the season captures a personal awareness of unfulfilled change at the end of life.
Read Complete AnalysesA caterpillar, this deep in fall -- still not a butterfly.
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