Section : Nasu - 那須
("I have an acquaintance at a place called Kurobane ...")
...

Two children ran along behind the horse. One of them was a little girl named Kasane [Double]. The unusual name was so charming that Sora composed this poem:

かさねとは
八重撫子の
名成べし

Kasane to wa
yae-nadeshiko no
na naru beshi

Double--that must be
The name somebody gave to
A double-petalled pink.

(from The Narrow Road to Oku,
Donald Keene, translator)
link to original Japanese web page
At right is Yosa Buson's 1779 depiction of the scene. Click here for full image (625 x 240, 78k). Click here to go to the original Japanese web page. This portion of Ilustrated Scroll of Narrow Road to the Interior 奥の細道画巻 is housed at the Kyoto National Museum 京都国立博物館.
The "nadeshiko" or "pink". This flower has been a favorite in Japanese poems since at least the Man'yoshu (9th c.). It is appreciated for the small beauty of the flower. Some poems emphasize how it trembles in the wind. "Nade-shi-ko" in classical Japanese is honomynous with "the child who is lovingly caressed / patted" and it is considered a charming name. "Kasane" means "layered" and in the case of flowers refers to double-petaled or multiple-petaled blossoms terms yae-. 学名：Dianthus superbus var. longicalycinus　別名：Yamato nadeshiko ヤマトナデシコ（大和撫子），Kawara (riverside) nadeshiko カワラナデシコ（河原撫子）.