The Essence of Haiku

Haiku wad invented by Matsuo Basho in Japan in the 17th century.  Though Japanese Haiku have seventeen syllables in three lines of 5, 7, 5 syllables, in English translation or adaptation those stick to the same syllable pattern is called strict-form haiku and those who find the syllable rigid tend to create Haiku shorter than seventeen syllables and this is called free form haiku.

The essence of Haiku are:

1.    Show not Tell. The poet should not show off in the poem. Poetry works through images, not explanation.  The image shows; the explanation tells.

2.    Simplicity   -  ‘ the truth of original noticing’

3.    Karumi ( lightness): this applies to both the subject and the form of the poem. Basho described Karumi like ‘ looking at a shallow river with a sandy bed.’

4.    About Haiku: (1) beauty  - everything in the Haiku is in the present. Haiku poems may be a description of a nature scene, but have a strong association of feelings. (2) Basho Haiku association with Zen Buddhism; (3) form  - It is better for the spirit of Basho to take precedence.

Overall, Haiku poem uses concrete situation, named objects and fully image scene brought to life in vivid details at a particular moment in time, avoid subtractions, and leave the readers to draw the conclusions. They show.

The haiku that are considered the most beautiful have images that have hit upon universal oppositions: something in movement and something still; something massive and something delicate; something natural and something man made; rising things and falling things; a living thing and an inanimate one; warmth and chill; something clear and something hazy. Or they might put together more subtle combinations that are beautiful in their contrast: a sound and a smell; a feeling and an object; loneliness in company

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My own reflection on Haiku is that feelings of the poet is inseparable from describing a nature scene. I wrote Haiku to record a particular moment. It is not necessarily a 'decisive moment'; more often it is about feelings or emotions that run through me like water; Haiku holds the shapes of water.   

Reference:

1.    haiku.org.uk

2.    Podcast: Haiku chronicles 

3.    Masuo basho poetry online