風中傳來，曝屍荒野，骸骨，的歌聲，
Basho’s “Nozarashi o / kokoro ni kaze no / shimu mi kana” is a deeply evocative haiku, capturing the essence of impermanence, exposure, and the way nature permeates the self.
Literal Breakdown:
Nozarashi - exposed to the fields or weathered in the open (implying something left to decay in the wild, possibly a skeletal corpse).
Kokoro ni - in the heart/mind.
Kaze no - if the wind or the wind’s
Shimu - penetrates or seeps in deeply.
Mi kana - This body, how it is! (expressing an intense personal feeling, often melancholic or reflective).
Possible Translations:
1. Exposed to the fields / the wind pierces deeply / into my heart.
Highlights the emotional and physical exposure to nature’s harshness.
2. A weathered body / how the wind seeps / into my heart.
Emphasizes the personal, physical experience of transience.
3. Left in the open, / my heart feels the wind / sink into my bones.
Stronger bodily imagery, evoking both the literal cold and the deeper existential solitude.
4. A body laid bare / the wind’s touch / chills my soul.
More poetic and direct in English, preserving the emotional weight.
Interpretation:
This haiku reflects Bash’s wandering existence - a life exposed to the elements, physically and spiritually. It embodies:
Impermanence (muj, 無常）Everything is transient, including the self.
The fusion of nature and self The wind does not merely blow around him; it penetrates his being, mirroring his solitude.
A contemplation of mortality The phrase nozarashi (exposed to the elements) can evoke the imagery of a corpse in the wild, reinforcing the theme of human fragility.
Would you say this aligns with your metaphysics of van life? Bash, like the van-life pilgrim, embraced exposure to the world as a way of being - letting the wind, the journey, and impermanence shape him rather than resisting them.
