Frosty December
The pink sky pours into me
Such days of wonder
The pink sky pours into me
Such days of wonder
-
Last edited by Gustaf Källvik; 12-15-2024, 12:06 PM. -
Like the flying birds
Like the billowing noon breeze
The mind, still at last
Gasho,
sat/lahComment
-
Lovely haiku. Thank you all for writing!
Just a reminder that you do not have to stick to 5-7-5 syllables as that refers to Japanese sound units than tend to be shorter than western syllables, and it is more important to focus on the intent of the poem rather than count syllables.
That said, if you can write a good poem in 5-7-5 that is fine but it is not a requirement.
Rohatsu retreat
the Buddha awakens
to the morning star
in each moment
of our lives
(that's a tanka rather than a haiku!)
Gassho
Kokuu
-sattoday/lah-
Comment
-
Flowers in the park,
the smell of the rain,
who is this who
that notices them?
Gassho!
SatLahJunshō 純聲 - Pure Voice, Genuine Speech
Standing in protest against wars around the world. We must put an end to this insanity!
“Since, in any case, it’s just ordinary people who wage war on each other, everybody is wrong, friend as much as foe. The winner and the loser are in any case just ordinary people.
It’s so sad to watch the world’s conflicts. There’s such a lack of common sense.“ - Kodo Sawaki Roshi - To You (Page 66)Comment
-
Would love to learn Haiku writing.
Guidelines?Comment
-
5-7-5
Bah! Who need guidelines?
English is not Japanese-
Stupid syllables!
Sat LAH
Gassho
NiallComment
-
Hi Niall
Yes, this has been noted for quite some time in English Language Haiku (ELH) and the fact is that 5-7-5 in terms of Japanese sound units tends to be briefer than English syllables. Very few ELH poets write in 5-7-5 now and syllable counting tends (but not always) to get in the way of writing a good haiku.
That said, all poetry forms do have guidelines, and a sonnet is not a Limerick or a villanelle. You can write a six line poem and call it a villanelle but good luck convincing anyone else of that!
The late Jane Reichhold explains much of this in her piece here, in terms of what makes a haiku and what doesn't. Sadly, in western schools, the notion that a haiku is any poem written in 5-7-5 has persisted, and that is both untrue and misses the heart of what makes this form so enduring both in Japan and elsewhere.
Gassho
Kokuu
-sattoday/lah-Last edited by Kokuu; 05-23-2025, 02:09 PM.Comment
-
rising from Zazen
I watch the tea make itself
one hundred grass tips
Gassho
Kokuu
-sattoday/lah-Comment
-
It's wonderful to watch this thread continue to grow and evolve with so many great voices contributing.
I figured I'd share an older and a newer, WIP haiku (although the latter is more of a senryu, to be fair):
fresh ink
to refill my pen—
wood thrush's song
Buddha mind—
a duck swims
without getting wet
Gassho,
Seikan
sat/lah聖簡 Seikan (Sacred Simplicity)
"See and realize / that this world / is not permanent. / Neither late nor early flowers / will remain."
—RyokanComment
-
Wonderful to see you, Seikan!It's wonderful to watch this thread continue to grow and evolve with so many great voices contributing.
I figured I'd share an older and a newer, WIP haiku (although the latter is more of a senryu, to be fair):
fresh ink
to refill my pen—
wood thrush's song
Buddha mind—
a duck swims
without getting wet
Gassho,
Seikan
sat/lah
I particularly love the first poem.
evening sun
a cloud of thoughts
come and go
Gassho
Kokuu
-sattoday/lah-Comment
-
filling the gap
between summer and autumn
a glut of acorns
Gassho
Kokuu
-sattoday/lah-Comment
-
Summer morning rain
Mud puddles and slimy toes
Frog hop hoping
Sat today
TroyComment
-
small, shriveled eggplant
rest upon the dark green moss
rabbit nibbled endsComment
-
autumn shadow
clouds in the sky
clouds in my mind
Gassho
Kokuu
-sattoday/lah-Last edited by Kokuu; 09-07-2025, 08:53 PM.Comment
Comment