Kawai Chigetsu was born in Yamashiro (Kyoto) and served in the Imperial Court. In 1686, after the death of her husband, Chigetsu adopted his younger brother, Otokuni, and became a nun. They both joined the Basho School.
 
Her work is singular in its expressions of intimacy and self-awareness.

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鶯に手もと休めむながしもと
Uguisu ni temoto yasumen nagashi moto
 
     Yellow bird
I rest my hands
          in the kitchen sink

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我も子の心や飛ぶ蛍
Ware mo ko no kokoro ya tobu hotaru
 
     Same as I am
so childish
          flying fireflies

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きり～す鳴や案山子の袖の内
Kirigirisu naku ya kakashi no sode no uchi

    A cricket
crying inside
          a scarecrow’s sleeve

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POEMS OF KAWAI CHIGETSU is a short and varied collection of Chigetsu’s haiku. Each translation is accompanied by the original Japanese text and English transliteration. 

Author: Kawai Chigetsu 
Translator: Anthony Opal
Booklet, 12 pp, 7 x 5.25 in
Language: Japanese / English
ISBN: 979-8-9955954-3-4
Release Date: August 10, 2026
Publisher: The Economy Press