Ojaiku
My most recent post about poetry in this area was met with a spontaneous flurry of poems in the comment section. As a result, and at Tyler's prompting, I thought it might be fun to invite readers of The Ojai Post to submit Haiku. To submit a poem or read others already submitted, simply click the comment link right underneath this article. If you already know what Haiku is all about, you can skip down there now to read and write some Haiku.
For those of you unfamiliar with the form, English Haiku is loosely based on the Japanese form from which it gets the name. In English Haiku, the only constraint is that each line have a certain number of syllables. It is actually quite easy: the first line must have five syllables, the second line seven, and the third line five again. That's it. Three lines, twelve syllables total.
Traditional Japanese Haiku usually sprung from deep observation of nature. Often the first two lines are meditative and descriptive, and the third and final line of a Haiku presents some element of surprise or revelation, or perhaps a new angle on the subject. This is not always the case, but works well to delight the reader and hopefully leave them with a lasting impression. Here is probably the most famous of all Haiku by a seventeenth century poet named Bashō:
The old pond
frog jumps in -
water's sound.
(Note: because this was translated from Japanese, the English version does not conform to the 5, 7, and 5 syllables rule. But it gives you a flavor of traditional Haiku.)
If you are interested, you can read more about the Haiku form here.
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Comments (10)
first stop on the web
Ojai Post community -
what's new in our town?
Comment #1 Posted by: Tyler | November 28, 2006 10:48 AM
high time, for haiku
to post occidental 'mother verses'
p'raps enlightening, in-furr-iating, some few ...
~~
Comment #2 Posted by: Millennium Twain | November 28, 2006 10:58 AM
Millennium Twain
marching to his own drumbeat
an Ojai treasure
Comment #3 Posted by: Tyler | November 28, 2006 11:07 AM
oak tree branches sway
prickly leaves drop to the ground
ouch, I step'd on one!
Comment #4 Posted by: Lisa Snider | November 28, 2006 01:43 PM
Ojai we cradle
fragile arms we've had thus far
now joined - strength behold!
Comment #5 Posted by: Long Time Ojai Resident | November 28, 2006 02:11 PM
it's almost midnight
finally, a bite in the air!
leaping thoughts settle
Comment #6 Posted by: Leslie Davis | November 28, 2006 11:56 PM
calmness irrigates
these mountains I sleep between
peace my dreams have sown
Thanks Robert and Tyler. You've given me a soothing new hobby!
Comment #7 Posted by: Long Time Ojai Resident | November 29, 2006 05:07 AM
To connect with others who have found equal enjoyment in writing Haiku, you might check out the Haiku Society of America:
http://www.hsa-haiku.org/
They offer a newsletter, contests, and an annual gathering in Sacramento.
Comment #8 Posted by: Robert | November 29, 2006 09:28 AM
I can't take credit for this one, but this is my personal favorite Haiku:
Yesterday it worked
Today it doesn't
Windows is like that
Comment #9 Posted by: heather | November 29, 2006 04:15 PM
Deer like Bok Choy too
Their midnight Spirit lingers
Theives that dance up hills.
Comment #10 Posted by: Raymond | November 29, 2006 09:42 PM