“A VISION OF THE FRESHNESS AND BEAUTY OF PARTICULARS . . .” to which emptiness opens the door, as illustrated in the world famous “frog haiku” poem by Matsuo Basho, 1644-1694.

First, phonetically, in Japanese:

Furu-ike ya

Kawazu tobikomu

Mizu no oto.

 

Here translated by Daniel C. Buchanan:

Into the old pond

A frog suddenly plunges.

The sound of water.

 

And this by Robert Hass:

The old pond—

A frog jumps in,

sound of water.

 

And by Sam Hamill:

At the ancient pond

a frog plunges into

the sound of water.

 

And anonymously:

old pond,

frog jumps in

—splash