This road. No one walks it in the autumn dusk.

What it means

Basho wrote this about the path of his art, and it reads as the loneliness of any serious calling. Few people walk the road you have chosen. Walk it anyway.

The source

"This road. No one walks it in the autumn dusk." Matsuo Basho said it in Haiku (1694). Translated from the original Japanese by Spartan Surfers.

"此道や行く人なしに秋の暮"

Original Japanese, Haiku (1694). Text read at ja.wikisource.org.

Who said it

Matsuo Basho (1644-1694). The master of Japanese haiku, who spent his last years walking the roads of Japan. His travel diary Oku no Hosomichi (The Narrow Road to the Deep North) is a classic of the form.

Questions

What does "This road. No one walks it in the autumn dusk." mean?

Basho wrote this about the path of his art, and it reads as the loneliness of any serious calling. Few people walk the road you have chosen. Walk it anyway.

Who said "This road. No one walks it in the autumn dusk."?

Matsuo Basho (1644-1694). Source: Haiku (1694).

What is the original Japanese?

此道や行く人なしに秋の暮. Translated from the original Japanese by Spartan Surfers.

Is "This road. No one walks it in the autumn dusk." on a shirt?

Yes. We print it to order on our tees in 7 illustrated looks, from $44, with free US shipping.

"This road. No one walks it in the autumn dusk." (Matsuo Basho, Haiku (1694), translated by Spartan Surfers). https://spartansurfers.com/quotes/this-road-no-one-walks-it-in-the