The old pond;
a frog jumps in —
the sound of the water.
Furu ike ya
kawazu tobikomu
mizu no oto
Old pond!
frog jumps in
water’s sound
Now. Six more translations:
A lonely pond in age-old stillness sleeps . . .
Apart, unstirred by sound or motion . . . till
Suddenly into it a lithe frog leaps.
Translated by Curtis Hidden Page
Into the ancient pond
A frog jumps
Water’s sound!
Translated by D.T. Suzuki
The old pond;
A frog jumps in —
The sound of the water.
Translated by R.H. Blyth
An old pond —
The sound
Of a diving frog.
Translated by Kenneth Rexroth
Pond, there, still and old!
A frog has jumped from the shore.
The splash can be heard.
Translated by Eli Siegel
Old pond
and a frog-jump-in
water-sound
Translated by Harold G. Henderson
To read the other twenty-four translations, along with Robert Aitkin's commentary and analysis, go to the Bureau of Public Secrets' "Matsuo Bashô: Frog Haiku."
