Basho Revisited, a river breeze

Also published for: The Gooseberry Garden Poetry Picnic

And for: Poets United The Poetry Pantry

In some of Basho's haiku he refers to himself as part of the scene or looks to the scene from a distance. Not very common for haiku poets. It isn't done to be part of your own haiku as haiku poet, but rules are there to be once read and than to forget them immediately.
In the following haiku he does both. He is part of the scene, but is also watching it from a distance. I think it's a great way to write haiku (unless it wasn't common).
This "not being part of your own haiku" is still in our times one of the rules. Rules? Basho once said: "Know the rules of writing haiku and forget them immediately". Well ... that's my way to write haiku. So I 'forgot' the rules of the classical haiku and embraced the rules of the Kanshicho style in which Basho wrote his haiku between 1683 and 1685. In that style the syllable count is different and less important. But as Basho said: "Forget the rules immediately". Well I can say "forgetting the rules feels good and makes my mind free". With that thought I have written all my haiku in this series of Basho Revisited.

kawa kaze ya   usu gaki ki taru   yu suzumi

a river breeze
the one wearing a light persimmon robe
enjoying the coolness

Basho wrote a preface to this haiku. (Source: Jane reichhold's Old Pond: Basho's (almost) thousand haiku).
"Enjoying the cool breeze on the bank of Shijo, an observance is practiced from the beginning to the middle of June. A special floor is set up right on the river, and people enjoy drinking and eating all night. Women tie their sashes correctly tight, and men wear their formal long coats. I see even the apprentices of a cooper and the blacksmith. They seem to have too much leisure time, singing and making noise. This is probably a scene which can only be seen in the capital (Edo, now called Tokyo).

observing the crowd
having fun on the seashore
almost naked

I love the full beaches in summer. Everyone has fun enjoying the warm summer and the coolness of the sea.
Children laugh making sandcastles, grown ups reading, playing, drinking, eating and laughing. Summer is a wonderful season and I think ... everyone enjoys it.

Until next time, sincerely,

Have a great summer! :)

Basho Revisited, a grass pillow

This episode is also published for: The Gooseberry Garden Poetry Picnic

Basho wrote several haiku for his students and followers. He also wrote the next haiku for one of his followers named Rotsu (1649-1738). In the preface he wrote:
"On the departure of Rotsu for Michinoku (the Northern part of Honshu)".


kusa makara   makoto no hanami   shite mo koyo


a grass pillow
is the best to use when coming
to view cherry blossoms

When the cherry blossoms are in full bloom whole Japan is going to view the cherry blossoms. A grass pillow was the best seat for sitting under the cherry trees.
According to Jane Reichhold Rotsu was leaving to follow Basho's trip of the previous year to the Far North. Rotsu was rather notorious for his bad behavior. While in Zeze, visiting in a home, he broke a valuable tea container. Instead of owning up to the accident, he blamed another one of Basho's students. Basho got very angry with him over the incident. He only forgave Rotsu shortly before his death. But he was so concerned about the situation that he had left a note in his will of his forgiving Rotsu for this. Rotsu did attend the funeral service of Basho at Gichuyi Temple in Zeze and wrote a detailed report of the end Basho's life and death.
I couldn't see the 'clou' at first of this haiku, but I had as I had an 'aha-erlebnis' when I read the haiku again. I saw the whole picture. In my country we have a proverb 'who burns his buttocks has to sit on his blisters'.
This proverb means that 'if you e.g. break something you have to pay for it'. Rotsu wouldn't do that. So Basho wrote the haiku with that proverb in mind. Because if you burn your bud you have to sit on the blisters. A pillow will be good than to sit on and watch the cherry blossoms. I had to laugh when I came to this conclusion.

I don't  laugh now, because I have to write a new haiku in the same Spirit as the one by Basho. It will be tough one.
Well it cost me a few days to write a new haiku, but I think ... I succeeded.

sitting cushion
a friend for today's accident
viewing the full moon

Mm ... not a very well done haiku, but I will use this one in this episode. Maybe ... another one will come to my mind.
It's a Chevrefeuille haiku, but is it also one in Basho's Spirit?


This episode is also published for The Poetry Picnic of The Gooseberry Garden



Gooseberry Garden


Until next time,

Sincerely,

Basho Revisited, wisteria beans

In Basho's lifetime it was common to write a preface to a haiku. In Jane Reichhold's "Old Pond", she has prefaces discovered by a lot of haiku. The preface shows some background information such as the place where the haiku was written and e.g. for whom.
The following haiku had a preface that's telling the reader where and when the haiku was written. This haiku was one of the first which Basho wrote after he returned home from his Narrow Road to the Far North.
First I will give the preface followed by the haiku.

"A certain Sogyu of Seki visited me when I stayed in Ogaki. I composed this for him in the lingering scent of the flowers which Sogi (1421-1502, a famous renga poet) had called the flowers of Fujishiro (white wisteria) Misaka". When Sogi had passed through this same area, he had seen some white wisteria growing on the slope and had written: 'seki koe te / koko mo fujishiro / misaka kana' (crossing  Seki / there still are the white wisteria / at the town in Misaka).

fuji no mi wa   haikai ni se n   kana no ato


wisteria beans
let's make that a theme for haikai
a flower fruit

In this verse the second sentence refers to renga. Haiku which are included in a renga are called haikai. As I earlier in this series have told the first verse of a renga was called 'hokku'. Just to inform you, my dear reader, the last closing verse of a renga was called 'ageku'. The ageku closes the 'circle' of verses of a renga by association on the first verse, the hokku. So a renga was an enclosed chain. You can say that the 'hokku' and the 'ageku' are the lock of a necklace and the verses inbetween are the 'links'.
I have been part of several renga sessions on the Internet (e.g. on Haiku-Ritsu, a Dutch haiku website). I loved doing that. An amount of my haiku were once part of a renga. I will include a few 'haikai' and 'hokku' after the new haiku I will write as inspired by the haiku of Basho.

what a party
writing a renga together -
waterfall of flowers

It's a new haiku in which I have tried to draw a picture of a renga session. Writing renga together with friends is a joyfull activity. Try it yourself it will be wonderful to write renga with friends.

As promised a few haikai. I have translated them to English out of Dutch (my maiden language).

This one was the 'hokku' of the renga "snow is softly falling":

snow is softly falling
along the windowglass
the fireplace burns

A link from the above mentioned renga:

a last leaf
struggles with the storm -
moonless night

Another 'hokku', this one is from the renga "spring heat":

tonight my skin
will miss the spring heat
it seems colder

And a link from the renga "spring heat":

midsummer night
in the light of the full moon
a young woman dancing

Well I hope you liked these verses from two renga in which I participated.

Sincerely,

Also published for: The Gooseberry Garden's Poetry Picnic

The Gooseberry Garden's Poetry Picnic

Basho Revisited, an autumn morning

In Basho's time figurines made of paper maché were popular. There were even ones with their heads balanced separately so they seemed to nod. Maybe you have once made such a figurine of paper maché.
When I was young I made surprises with paper maché to use them to hide a gift or present.
In one of Basho's haiku he mentions a cat made of paper. This one was written in autumn 1681.

hari nuki no    neko mo shiru nari    kesa no aki

made of paper
the cat seems to know
an autumn morning

Picture this haiku. I think that Basho was sitting on the verandah in front of a house of one of his friends or disciples. Or maybe he was sitting in front of his own banana tree cottage. In front of his eyes he sees a cat of paper maché that's nodding his head in the autumn wind.
I think this is one of Basho's best haiku and it can easily compete with for example the haiku 'Old Pond' or 'On a Withered Bough'. It's a shame that this haiku is not so well known.

Can I write a haiku like this? I don't know, but I will surely give it a try.

an autumn evening
in the westerly wind
the wind chime

In this haiku, I think, I have touched the tone and sense of Basho's 'paper cat' with a complete different picture of the wind chime.

Sincerely,

Also published for The Poetry Picnic of the Gooseberry Garden.