“Do not seek to follow in the footsteps of the men of old; seek what they sought.” –Matsuo Basho, a Japanese poet from the 1600s
I can’t remember where I found that quote, but I really like it. All of us have a certain level of respect for at least one or two people who have gone before us in fields that interest us, and we become so influenced or inspired by those people that we see them as the standard, rather than just people who did something well. I’m certainly guilty of it. It’s one of the reasons I write down quotes. Sometimes I love the way a writer sheds light on a topic and I want to remember it.
That’s not a bad thing, but Basho was right. The idea that he, or any other writer, captured the essence of something so well that it is remembered more than 400 years later would probably be beyond his comprehension. But even if he could grasp it, he would probably tell writers who followed him to continue seeking truth rather than seeking to emulate him, because in the seeking of truth, they’ll make great discoveries about the human spirit, and not simply become clones of who he was.
