Old Issa again with his love of insects and small creatures, which he never tired of.

又泊れ行灯にとまれ青い虫
mata tomare ando ni tomare aoi mushi

stop once more,
green insect, linger here
on my lantern’s glow
—Issa

(trans. David LaSpina^[1])

^{Lake Biwa by Koho}

As always, Issa the insect and animal lover, comes through. Here he is inviting his little friends to stay and warm themselves by the fire. I think we all have the experience of watching bugs attracted to light at night. Well, instead of shooing them off as most of us would do, Issa hopes they can stay awhile. This kind of interest in the well-fare of animals and insects may be one of the reasons for his enduring popularity. You can imagine a Bob Ross of 200 years ago and his happy little friends.

❦

David LaSpina is an American photographer and translator lost in Japan, trying to capture the beauty of this country one photo at a time and searching for the perfect haiku. He blogs here and at laspina.org. Write him on Twitter or Mastodon.

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1. That is, me! If you like this translation, feel free to use it. Just credit me. Also link here if you can. ↩