Haiku-Senryu

The granddaddy of short poetry

Haiku, Senryu, and its variations.

 

Senryu deals primarily with the human condition while Haiku deals with nature. There are many disagreements on what is and is not Senryu. Some consider that haiku concerns itself with nature and Senryu human nature. Others see some human nature poems as haiku. The bulk of Haiku usually combines both human nature with nature. Primarily the big difference between Haiku and Senryu is tone. Senryu deals with political issues, heavy satiric humor and darker themes concerning humanity. The structure 5/7/5 or 17 syllables or less is similar.

 

 

Example of Haiku and Senryu:  All the poetry in this last section was written by me.

 

a hug and a kiss--

midmorning sun clear skies and          (this is a Haiku)

melting icicles

 

 

 

strangers on a train-

a hundred thousand virgins                 (this is a Senryu)

unholy jihad

 

 

The first piece can be considered haiku –it’s a first impression imprint with a kigo and has a natural feel to it. The second is a little more dark dealing with the baser aspects of human nature.

 

I mainly write Senryu in variation .

 

What do I mean by Variation.

 

Variation means a change in the basic rules.

 

All of my Senryu and Haiku have titles. Now that’s a no no in form. Some of them rhyme again a no no. Some are in two and three fragments – A haiku should have one fragment and 2 lines explaining that fragment. I like titles – I usually write the Senryu first and than title it. It’s kind of a cop out but I use haiku/Senryu as short poetry and am not married to the form if an opportunity arises that can make the poem better(at least in my mind). In clearer terms –rules are made to be broken as long as you know the rules. Understand the form first and than when you are comfortable suit that form to your needs. This is how Cinquain came about and many other wonderful forms, by creating variations.

 

 

Here are a few of my Senryu warts and all-although some can be classified as Haiku-you be the judge. Now I mainly stick with the 5/7/5 syllable count. Modern haiku(western) is mainly 17 syllables or less. 13 is the norm-it fits better with the English language. Do what’s best for you because it’s all Haiku.

 

Kung Fu Master

 

it prays for its prey-

snap pop crunch-a quick hello

bye bye grasshopper

 

Climatic Landscapes

 

tropical rainstorm

winter frost desert mirage

natures thunder taps

 

Debt Collector

 

Day and night begin

Innocence lost death awaits’

Salvation comes with a price

 

Faith Is Not Enough

 

don’t leave - not just yet

wait until she falls asleep

hope is all that’s left

 

My Pen Has No Eraser

 

to be forgotten

no one seems to know my name

I will shout louder

 

Snowflakes in Arizona

 

pebbles in a glass

seashells in a parking lot

a bird in a cage

 

A Rocky Mountain Fever

 

blood in our  bellies

where deer and antelope play

in the woods we hide

 

Broken Wings

 

a walk in the park

wandering lost and alone

no one knows my name

 

Divide and Conquer

 

ketchup and oil slicks

cowboys sailboats and sunsets

a matter of choice

 

Family Outing

 

leaves crumbs soldier ants

honking geese picnic baskets

scrapped knees and band-aids

 

Lies Promises and a Smile

 

the morning after

spin doctors and apathy

election results

 

Napalm Memories

 

aces over eights

a slow walk in the jungle

tears fire and rain

 

The Empty Garden

 

the apple tastes sweet

as the snake laughs his tail off

god takes a long nap

 

Violets are Blue

 

red rose

a thorn in the heart

wilted petals

 

Violets are Blue (revised)

 

red rose

a prickly heart

wilted petals

 

Winter Silhouette

 

snow drifts and chapped lips

dancing on a crystal lake

end of an ice age 

 

Alaska Moonlight

 

winter approaches

the sun takes a vacation

happy polar bears

 

Carry Me Forward

 

a fork in the road

a walk on a moonlit beach

footsteps in the sand

 

Country Music

 

tingling windchimes

babbling brooks and dragonflies

song birds and a flute

 

Eruption

 

a kiss from those lips

sunrise rainbows and sunsets

a bit of heaven

 

From the Mind of an Ant

 

a mote in gods eye

in my soup does swim a fly

it’s all relative

 

Wrath

 

A blast from heaven

It slithers back in its hole

Gods nap is disturbed

 

Renewal

 

billowing clouds

a garden fragrance

anxious seedlings

 

Tick Tock Twelve O’Clock

 

in the dead of night

shadows on the windowsill

a shot in the dark

 

Tears of Blood

 

connection unplugged

the garden; now a desert

as she menstruates he hunts

 

 

Here is another mixed form with a few variations that includes two Senryu –a double Ethere,  2 Cinquain  and a tyburn

 

 

 

War

Chaos

Terrorists

Suicide bombs

Religious jihad

Homeland security

Political corruption

Corporate greed a Wall Street creed

Guns body bags pipelines and black gold

A hollow ring does democracy bring

 

smoke and mirrors-

accusing eyes and crooked smiles

no honor among thieves

 

Power

nation building

smart bombs and oil wells

a country cries as the eagle

Corrupts

 

lying

buying

crying

dying

The politicians are lying about whose oil we are buying

No end to the crying as our soldiers lay dying

 

hunger breeds contempt-

nothing to lose but ones life

bread over bullets

 

United

the great divide

voices in the wilderness

the fault lies with not one but all

Nations

 

Multi-national cooperation

with communal participation

will fix what’s wrong and make it right

open communication

some patience and respect

a bit of foresight

some tolerance

forgiveness

and a

prayer

 

 

 

Now go do some Haiku……

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Author's Note

Haiku

Haiku is the Granddaddy of Short Poetry. Most the short forms that I discussed previously (Cinquain, Tetraitys, Ethere, and Rictameter) are to a certain degree extreme variations of the Haiku. Without Haiku these forms would never exist.


I had a numbing amount of words written on the history, rules and differences between Japanese and western Haiku before I realized that I was complicating the matter with too much technical lingo and weighing it down with pedantry. Keep it simple stupid- which I have decided to do-being a simple stupid poet myself 

I am by no means an authority on Haiku, so for a more in-depth view on Haiku (Japanese or Western) there are many sites on the net to choose from that gives a more in-depth and thoughtful analysis of the subject. This piece is intended as a broad and basic overview of the subject.


Japanese Haiku

A Haiku is a unrhymed Japanese poem consisting of 17 kanas. It usually consists of three lines of 5/7/5 (5 kana in the first line, 7 kana in the second and 5 kana in the third). It records the essence of the moment � It mainly concerns itself with nature � humanity being part of it. The Philosophy of Haiku is very Tao �Zen. This form takes a lifetime to understand the beauty and complexities of its rich spiritual tapestry and years to even scratch the surface of its intricate simplicity.

Definition of Kana and Kigo

1. Japanese syllabic writing. The characters are simplified kanji and are used with kanji primarily to write inflections, particles, and function words and to show the pronunciations of some kanji and of all foreign words.

2. Western Syllables and Kana although similar in certain ways are not a match. The kana has a slightly shorter run or stretch-less variation in length. Herein lays all the controversy in the 5/7/5 count.
3. Haiku usually contains a season word (called Kigo). It is not a requirement, but season words are a big part of haiku. However, it's best to avoid dual or conflicting Kigo unless you�re quite experienced with the form. Do not fill your haiku with them. Haiku is a short poem, and must contain some substance. It should not be a weather report or a mere snapshot piece concerning nature.

What is Haiku?
Haiku is one of the most important forms of traditional Japanese poetry. Haiku is, today, a 17-syllable verse form consisting of three metrical units of 5, 7, and 5 syllables. Since early days, there has been confusion between the three related terms Haiku, Hokku and Haikai. The term hokku literally means "starting verse", and was the first starting link of a much longer chain of verses known as haika. Because the hokku set the tone for the rest of the poetic chain, it enjoyed a privileged position in haikai poetry, and it was not uncommon for a poet to compose a hokku by itself without following up with the rest of the chain.
Largely through the efforts of Masaoka Shiki, this independence was formally established in the 1890s through the creation of the term haiku. This new form of poetry was to be written, read and understood as an independent poem, complete in itself, rather than part of a longer chain.
Strictly speaking, then, the history of haiku begins only in the last years of the 19th century. The famous verses of such Edo-period (1600-1868) masters as Basho, Yosa Buson, and Kobayashi Issa are properly referred to as hokku and must be placed in the perspective of the history of haikai even though they are now generally read as independent haiku. The distinction between hokku and haiku can be handled by using the terms Classical Haiku and Modern Haiku.
Modern Haiku.
The history of the modern haiku dates from Masaoka Shiki's reform, begun in 1892, which established haiku as a new independent poetic form. Shiki's reform did not change two traditional elements of haiku: the division of 17 syllables into three groups of 5, 7, and 5 syllables and the inclusion of a seasonal theme.
Kawahigashi Hekigoto carried Shiki's reform further with two proposals:
1. Haiku would be truer to reality if there were no center of interest in it.
2. The importance of the poet's first impression, just as it was, of subjects taken from daily life, and of local colour to create freshness.
(Kenneth Yasuda-{The Japanese Haiku} 1957)


How to write Haiku (Western Style) (One school of Thought)
In Japanese, the rules for how to write Haiku are clear, and will not be discussed here. In foreign languages, there exist NO consensus in how to write Haiku-poems. Anyway, let's take a look at the basic knowledge:
What to write about?
Haiku-poems can describe almost anything, but you seldom find themes which are too complicated for normal PEOPLE's recognition and understanding. Some of the most thrilling Haiku-poems describe daily situations in a way that gives the reader a brand new experience of a well-known situation.
The metrical pattern of Haiku
Haiku-poems consist of respectively 5, 7 and 5 syllables in three units. In Japanese, this convention is a must, but in English, which has variation in the length of syllables, this can sometimes be difficult.
The technique of cutting.
The cutting divides the Haiku into two parts, with a certain imaginative distance between the two sections, but the two sections must remain, to a degree, independent of each other. Both sections must enrich the understanding of the other.
To make this cutting in English, either the first or the second line ends normally with a colon, long dash or ellipsis.
The seasonal theme.
Each Haiku must contain a Kigo, a season word, which indicate in which season the Haiku is set. For example, cherry blossoms indicate spring, snow indicates winter, and mosquitoes indicate summer, but the season word isn't always that obvious.
Please notice that Haiku-poems are written under different rules and in many languages. For translated Haiku-poems, the translator must decide whether he should obey the rules strictly, or if he should present the exact essence of the Haiku. For Haiku-poems originally written in English, the poet should be more careful. These are the difficulties, and the pleasure of Haiku. (Harold G. Henderson {An Introduction to Haiku}-1958)

Reviews

[FR Toscano]

It's a strange thing to separate the human condition from nature because we belong to nature. Haiku/Senryu, does it make a difference? You're a master of your domain, Bob. Recently posted one on livejournal. I would say I'd post it here but I'll probably forget to do so as soon as my fingers leave the keyboard.

Umm, what were we talking about?

[deeps]

Wow! I like this form here, this one don't look too tough to write.
Wonderful write like this alot. very creative and well written.
I do like this style.

[Gheeneil]

Whoa! I'm in awe. You're always good at what you're writing. You take time studying the definition and then make your own variation to come up with something original. That's very unique and creative. Besides that, you're sharing us what you've learned. Whatta wise poet you are!