Episode 16: The Four Pillars Part III – Issa: The Uses of Adversity
Kobayashi Issa, Japan’s most beloved haiku poet is put under a microscope in order to distinguish and delineate three basic directions his poems take. Written and narrated by Anita Virgil.
- Read the complete essay of, Issa: The Uses of Adversity (PDF) by Anita Virgil. Reprinted from the Red Moon Anthology 1998; Published here by the author’s permission, copyright (c) 1998 by Anita Virgil
A world of grief and pain,
Even when cherry blossoms
Have bloomed.~Issa
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Original Kobayashi Issa Portrait by Muramatsu Shunpo; pop graphic design by Donna Beaver and Alan Pizzarelli.
What a pleasure to listen to Anita on haiku. I’m always treated to new insights as she reveals her understanding of individual poets and poems. After hearing this talk on Issa I will read his work in a deeper way than ever before, though I’ve been reading it now for over fifty years. Thank you.