Haiku Workshops
Quick Reference Sheet
Introductory/Reference card to Haiku
Used with the Haiku workshops led by Amehana Ishtari.
Haiku is a Japanese poetry form hanging most basically on the use of syllables and does not rely on rhyme but does make use of emotion.
Five syllables
Seven syllables
Five syllables
It originates from what is called Renga, a poetry game of 100 linked verses. The first verse is called a Hokku, containing 17 syllables and including a seasonal theme. The following verses or hokku were intended to be connected, even if at first the relation is not readily apparent.
The samurai Basho is one of the most well known haiku artists, others being Issa and Shiki. Haiku is also linked to Zen Buddhism and many of the koan are presented as haiku.
Example poem (Basho)
Original:
Furuike ya, kawazu tobikomu, mizu no oto.
Translated
Breaking the silence
Of an ancient pond,
A frog jumped into water-
A deep resonance.
References:
Burleson, Patricia. "The History and Artistry of Haiku." Japan Digest. October 1998. http://spice.stanford.edu/docs/the_history_and_artistry_of_haiku/
Strand, Clark. Seeds from a Birch Tree: Writing Haiku and the Spiritual Journey. Hyperion: New York, 1997.
Used with the Haiku workshops led by Amehana Ishtari.
Haiku is a Japanese poetry form hanging most basically on the use of syllables and does not rely on rhyme but does make use of emotion.
Five syllables
Seven syllables
Five syllables
It originates from what is called Renga, a poetry game of 100 linked verses. The first verse is called a Hokku, containing 17 syllables and including a seasonal theme. The following verses or hokku were intended to be connected, even if at first the relation is not readily apparent.
The samurai Basho is one of the most well known haiku artists, others being Issa and Shiki. Haiku is also linked to Zen Buddhism and many of the koan are presented as haiku.
Example poem (Basho)
Original:
Furuike ya, kawazu tobikomu, mizu no oto.
Translated
Breaking the silence
Of an ancient pond,
A frog jumped into water-
A deep resonance.
References:
Burleson, Patricia. "The History and Artistry of Haiku." Japan Digest. October 1998. http://spice.stanford.edu/docs/the_history_and_artistry_of_haiku/
Strand, Clark. Seeds from a Birch Tree: Writing Haiku and the Spiritual Journey. Hyperion: New York, 1997.