A haiku by Taneda Santōka, with a commentary by Osho.
Santōka wrote a small, very small haiku:
I have no home;
autumn deepens.
Just visualize a homeless wanderer – that’s what a seeker is, a homeless wanderer – in search of the home. He has not reached yet.
But a homeless wanderer has no attachment, has no possession, has no burden, has no tension, has no anxiety. The homeless wanderer slowly slowly relaxes in a deep let-go.
Sitting under a tree, perhaps, near a river or a mountain, he says, “I HAVE NO HOME; AUTUMN DEEPENS” – but it does not matter. The autumn is so beautiful, and it is deepening every moment.
“I have no possessions, no home, no barriers, no blindfold on my eyes. I can see the autumn is deepening. I am so clean and clear… that autumn deepens.”
Osho, Christianity: The Deadliest Poison and Zen: The Antidote to all Poisons, Ch 4
Taneda Santōka, (born Taneda Shōichi, 3 December 1882 – 11 October 1940) is the pen-name of a Japanese author and haiku poet. He is known for his free verse haiku – a style which does not conform to the formal rules of traditional haiku. He published seven collections of poems and numerous editions of Sambaku, a publication of his own.
Featured image by Antar Marc
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