Thursday, January 10, 2013

Carpe Diem Special #16, Shiki haiku 2



Dear haijin, visitors and travelers,

What a joy to host Carpe Diem ... in the past months I have read wonderful posts and also the post inspired by our Specials are fantastic to read. When I started with the Specials I tought that it would be tough to write your own haiku inspired on a haiku of a classical haiku master, but it seems so easy as I read all your wonderful haiku inspired on the haiku masters. Really awesome.

Our haiku master for this month is Masaoka Shiki and he is one of the four greatest haiku masters next to Basho, Buson and Issa. What a great group of haiku masters isn't it? By the way I already have chosen our Special haiku master for February. That will be Chiyo-ni (1701-1775) a fenale haiku master. She has written wonderful haiku e.g.:

wakakusa ya  kirema kirema ni  mizo no iro

green grass -

between, between the blades
the color of the water

Wow! Isn't it a wonderful haiku? Well ... Chiyo Ni is for next month our Special haiku master. Now ... let's go back to our Special haiku master of this month Shiki.

Today I have chosen the next haiku written by Shiki for your (and my) inspiration:

minazuki no  koku ni suzushi  hototogisu

in the coolness

of the empty sixth-month sky
the cuckoo's cry

This is, in my opinion a nice haiku by Shiki in which he used his own 'nom de plume' Shiki, hototogishu, Let us look closer to this one.
What do I see, hear, feel, smell? I can feel the coolness of the bright blue sky of the sixth-month. I see that bright blue color, the color of the third eye, as we know from our rainbow-week in November 2012. I can hear the cry of the cuckoo, it's thrilling and when it's song becomes a joy to hear, his throat bleeding (as Shiki  , who had tuberculosis). I can smell the coolness of the air in the sixth month, mid-spring. A lot of senses are here in this haiku ... don't you think?

I was inspired and have written the next haiku ... I hope with the same senses and in the same tone as the one by Shiki.

high in the sky
against the bright blue
white of a seagull

white of a seagull

triggers my senses and my mind
a cry far away

a cry far away

hands above my eyes, something,
high in the sky

I have found a wonderful haiga by Shiki in which we can see a hototogisu. It's another haiku by Shiki, if you like the one in the haiga better than the one I gave ... well ... be welcome to use that one.

Credits: Hototogisu haiga by Shiki

This one is also gorgeous ... well ... enjoy the read, be inspired and creative. Share your haiku and your comments with Carpe Diem.

This prompt will stay on 'til January 12th 11.59 AM (CET) and I will post our new episode of Carpe Diem later on today around 10.00 PM (CET). The prompt for our next episode will be cave (provided by Dulcina of Dulcina's Garden). 



4 comments:

  1. I'm quite perplexed that hototogisu is written: 时鸟- time/hour bird, which reminds me of the cuckoo clocks of Black Forest. Just a queer idea, which crosses my mind.

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  2. I love that line "between, between the blades" it forces you to look again and think. Masterful indeed.
    That said, your set is wonderful, I especially like the imagery of a cry far away/hands above my eyes/something, high in the sky.
    I am heading of with the family to camping at the beach for a few days, so if I don;t get to post I shall look forward to catching up on everyone's wonderful work on my return...have fun!

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  3. Hi, very nice haiku. Cuckoo's have a special meaning for us in Sweden, so that is definitely a great inspiration. I liked your interpretation of a seagull.

    Nice to be back and being able to contribute. :-)

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  4. Wonderfully informative and creative post ~ Your haiku are lovely and definitely hear the seagulls ~

    (A Creative Harbor) aka ArtMuseDog and Carol ^_^

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