Carpe Diem #979 Hungary

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Welcome at our next "stage" in our Europe Ginko ... yesterday we were visiting Greece and now we are visiting Hungary. Hungary became part of the EU in 2004. And now ... figuratively speaking ... we make it part of our Carpe Diem Haiku Kai Europe Ginko. Let me give you a brief overview of Hungary's history:

Flag of Hungary

Following centuries of successive habitation by Celts, Romans, Huns, Slavs, Gepids and Avars, the foundation of Hungary was laid in the late 9th-century by the Hungarian grand prince Árpád in the Honfoglalás ("homeland-conquest"). His great-grandson Stephen I ascended to the throne in 1000 CE, converting the country to a Christian kingdom. By the 12th century, Hungary became a middle power within the Western world, reaching a golden age by the 15th century. Following the Battle of Mohács in 1526 and about 150 years of partial Ottoman occupation (1541–1699), Hungary came under Habsburg rule, and later formed a significant part of the Austro–Hungarian Empire (1867–1918).
Hungary's current borders were first established by the Treaty of Trianon (1920) after World War I, when the country lost 71% of its territory, 58% of its population, and 32% of ethnic Hungarians. Following the interwar period, Hungary joined the Axis Powers in World War II, suffering significant damage and casualties. Hungary came under the influence of the Soviet Union, which contributed to the establishment of a four-decade-long communist dictatorship (1947–1989). The country gained widespread international attention regarding the Revolution of 1956 and the seminal opening of its previously-restricted border with Austria in 1989, which accelerated the collapse of the Eastern Bloc.
Of course haiku is about nature and so I love to share a few wonderful pictures of Hungarian nature. I start with a photo of the Wooden Bridge over Lake Balaton:

Wooden Bridge over Lake Balaton

wooden bridge
connects the banks of Lake Balaton -
spreading my wings

© Chèvrefeuille

It's really wonderful this bridge, I found another photo of it, but I couldn't use it because of a "virus". Hungarian nature is very varied and so is the Hungarian landscape. Here are a few images of the landscape(s) of Hungary:

The Matra Mountains (in the north east of Hungary)

In this part of Hungary we will find the famous Danube which has been sung since ages. I love to share a piece of music about the Danube here with one of our greatest (Dutch) artists, Andre Rieu, this piece of music is titled "The Beautiful Blue Danube", composed by Strauss Jr.:

I love this music (and Andre Rieu is awesome). Let us go on with our discovery of Hungary. I have another wonderful part of Hungary to share with you all ... it's one of the most beautiful pusztas of Hungary, Hortobagy:

Hortobagy puszta Hungary

driving wild
gulyás on the puszta -
cooking gulyás

© Chèvrefeuille

Hortobagy Puszta

far away horizon
a concert of water birds
beauty in a heartbeat

© Chèvrefeuille

Of course I did some research before creating this episode of our Europe Ginko and I found a few wonderful examples of Hungarian haiku (poets).

Here are a few haiku created by the (young) Hungarian haiku poet Dávid Beatrix (1976 -):

Passing

Branches without leaves
forests longing for birdsongs
footprints in the sand

Weakness

A song in the wind
words crying for human sounds
sunbeam among clouds

Dawn in Autumn

The berry is cold
trembling on a naked branch
hoarfrost is its coat

Rain

Its drop-wandering
biography on window
its way is fatal

Wheat Grain

Wheat Grain

Dying in winter
it resurrects in spring
its passing is life

Sunshine

A light-shadow game
two-faced sun's weeping and smile
a slice of life- bare

Desert

Lines of wavy sand
silent dumbness petrified
is the cry of God

Trees

All their stretching arms
are revelations of thirst:
old longing for sky

Or what do you think of this one by Futár Iván (1951 -):

Vallejo

Painted dragonfly -
shadow of grey morning sky.
Fireless dragon.

Or these by Gergely Lászlo (1940-2010):

a few departing
yellow leaves hide some
tiny bunch of grapes

table-cloth of leaves
around the trees - winter comes
to clear the table

swirling vapor
from a sigh
it's not spring yet

Ice Flowers on the Window

the frostwork on my window
melts when you come
but runs cold if you go

warmth in November
a band of tom-tits
invades my willow

not the clouds
darken my shadow -
it is the evening

luminous lantern
over the silent graveyard -
glowing full moon

 

All wonderful haiku by Hungarian poets. As I look back at the other episodes this month than in every European country we have visitied we can find haiku poets and haiku poetesses. Really awesome that Europe has so many haiku poets ... and we ... our CDHK family is part of it ...

happiness
nature becomes alive
through a little poem

© Chèvrefeuille

I hope I have inspired you to create haiku, tanka or an other Japanese poetry form, by taking you on a trip trhough Hungary.

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until June 23rd at noon (CET). I will (try to) publish our next episode, Ireland, later on. I hope also to publish a new episode of our special feature Utabukuro.