Sunday, March 31, 2019

Carpe Diem #1637 April Fool ... (modern kigo)


Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

I hope you all have had a wonderful inspirational weekend, but the weekend is almost over ... so it is time for a new episode of our Haiku Kai. As I told you earlier in March, we are going to explore modern and classical kigo (seasonwords) for spring in April. I hope to give you all an idea of these spring kigo.

Today, as it is April Fool, I have chosen a modern kigo extracted from Jane Reichhold's "A Dictionary of Haiku", a modern saijiki. That will be ... April Fool, but why is the first of April called "April Fool"?

It's not easy to explain that, because there are several explanations about the origines of April Fool, but the explanation I share here is most commonly used to explain April Fool.

April Fool

Although April Fools’ Day, also called All Fools’ Day, has been celebrated for several centuries by different cultures, its exact origins remain a mystery. Some historians speculate that April Fools’ Day dates back to 1582, when France switched from the Julian calendar to the Gregorian calendar, as called for by the Council of Trent in 1563.
People who were slow to get the news or failed to recognize that the start of the new year had moved to January 1 and continued to celebrate it during the last week of March through April 1 became the butt of jokes and hoaxes. These pranks included having paper fish placed on their backs and being referred to as “poisson d’avril” (April fish), said to symbolize a young, easily caught fish and a gullible person.

The challenge for today is to create haiku or tanka in which you use humor or riddle and I hoe to read wonderful "April Fool" haiku and tanka.

To conclude this episode I love to share a haiku created by Jane Reichhold as an example for this modern kigo, April Fool:

no April Fools
these crocus buds closed
against the snow

© Jane Reichhold (Extracted from "A Dictionaru of Haiku")

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until April 7th at noon (CEST). I will try to publish our new episode later on. For now ... have fun! Have a great hilarious April Fool's Day.


Friday, March 29, 2019

Carpe Diem Weekend Meditation #78 Renga With ... Jane Reichhold ... springtime


!! This episode is open for your submissions next Sunday March 31th at 7:00 PM (CEST) !!

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Welcome at a new weekend meditation here at our wonderful Haiku Kai. That special feature I started a while ago to have some time off for being your host. It has given me the balance and peace I need to stay in tune with nature, and in tune with my muses.

This weekend here in The Netherlands the so called "summertime" is on again. That means that we, the Dutch, will set our clocks one hour forward. That means also that you will see the CEST abbreviation instead of the CET abbreviation. Several of you will live also in that same timezone, but the most of you will stay in their own timezone.




As you all know Jane was a very dear friend of CDHK and of me. She has meant a lot for our Haiku Kai and she is still missed. You also will know that she was one of the most renown modern haiku poets. Her own website AHApoetry.com is still online and will provide you with a lot of knowledge about our beloved haiku.

This weekend I love to invite you to create a renga with Jane Reichhold. Take this opportunity to create a renga together with her, to honor her and give tribute to her wonderful spirit.

Here are the six haiku by Jane to work with and create your renga with Jane Reichhold:

beach diamonds
a new day crystallized
in sunny surf foam

forgotten brook
running the centuries down
locked in rock

white pussy willows
above a muddy swollen river
fat raindrops

White Pussy Willow

rippling grass
wind moves up the hill
light waves

flute melodies
across green ocean waves
spring meadows

floating clouds
down from the mountain
a puddle of rain

© Jane Reichhold

A wonderful series of haiku chosen from the section spring from her modern saijiki "A Dictionary of Haiku". It fits our theme I think ... so enjoy this challenge. You may as always choose your own "line-up" and by adding your two-line stanza you create a renga together with our beloved and so missed Jane Reichhold.

PS. Last weekend I used the linking widget of "blenza", but there are troubles with using it. So this weekend I am going back to our old widget. Sorry for those who prefer the Mister Linky.

This weekend meditation is open for your submissions next Sunday March 31st at 7:00 PM (CEST) and will remain open until April 7th at noon (CEST). Enjoy your weekend together with Jane Reichhold.


Thursday, March 28, 2019

Carpe Diem #1636 California poppy (modern kigo)


Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

What a joy to bring a new episode of our wonderful Haiku Kai. We have left the Kumano Kodo and are exploring the modern and classical kigo (seasonword) for spring. Today I have chosen a modern kigo for spring taken from Jane Reichhold's "A Dictionary of Haiku", section spring, sub-section "plants".

Today our modern kigo is "California poppy". It sounds like the regular poppy, but I had never heard from the California poppy. By the way the chosen haiku example is created by Jane Reichhold and she used it as an example for this modern kigo.

expanding the warmth
the first poppies
in spring sunshine

© Jane Reichhold (Extracted from "A Dictionary of Haiku")


California Poppy Flowers (Eschscholzia californica)

Here is a haiku from my archive about poppies, not about the California poppy, but by the "regular" poppy.

at sunrise
poppies still redder
sacrifice for God

© Chèvrefeuille (2012)

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until April 4th at noon (CET). I will try to publish our new weekend meditation later on.


Wednesday, March 27, 2019

Carpe Diem #1635 "Go get yourself a saijiki and read it many times". Kigo: butterfly


Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Welcome at a new episode of CDHK. We have left the Kumano Kodo to explore the modern and classical kigo (seasonword). Yesterday we had a classical kigo and today I will give you another classical kigo to work with.

First I love to give you a little bit more background on the classical kigo (seasonword):

Nature provides us with variuos phenomenon during the seasons, but NOT with words about them.

We humans make up words, classify them, write poetry with them and collect them in almanachs.
The Japanese have been the first to put their seasonal words into collections, call the short poems HAIKU and archived them in books called SAIJIKI, that is why even today as haiku poets we stick to these human conventions and we use these books as reference for our own haiku.


blossoms are a kigo for spring

Traditional Japanese haiku are about the many changes during the seasons (not simply about nature ! but about the seasonal changes of nature), the changes in the life of plants and animals, heaven and earth, but also the changes in the daily life of humans within the society, like festivals and food.

The Japanese saijiki started in a time when the Asian lunar calendar was used in Japan, so even now we have a sort of timeslip of one month between the ... natural phenomenon.. and the .. kigo about them ...
February, equated to the second lunar month, for example is early spring in the Asian Lunar Calendar system but late winter in the reality of the weather conditions in most parts of Japan.
Consider Northern Hokkaido and Southern Okinawa ... and yet Japanese haiku poets use the same saijiki when they write about natural phenomenon. (Source: World Kigo Base)

All these kigo (seasonwords) were gathered in a so called Saijiki: A Japanese saijiki is a handbook of the culture of Japan, a travelouge through their many festivals, a description of their food and drink, a celebration of their nature.
Kigo are not ment to be a weather forecast or a biology textbook, but a reference to these words used in the Japanese poetic cultural context.


Cherry Blossoms

Kigo are not simply seasonal words representing animals, plants and natural phenomenon, they also include local festivals and other human activities, and thus carry a lot of cultural background information.

The first advise of a haiku teacher (sensei) in Japan is always:
Go get yourself a saijiki and read it many times.

Well enough about the background on the kigo and the saijiki. Let me give you our classical kigo for spring to work with today. Today I have chosen for the classical kigo "choo" or "butterfly". Butterflies are seen for the first time in spring ... so that makes it a kigo for spring.

wake butterfly - 
it's late, we've miles
to go together


© Matsuo Basho

A beauty by my sensei, Basho (1644-1694), and here is another one, also by Basho:

wings of a butterfly
how many times do they flutter
over roof and wall




And of course I have also a haiku written by myself:

cobweb scattered
by the fluttering of wings
a blue butterfly

on the verandah
a yellowish butterfly
the light of sun down

© Chèvrefeuille

Wonderful haiku about butterflies, our classical kigo for spring to work with.

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until April 3rd at noon (CET). I will try to publish  our next episode later on.


Tuesday, March 26, 2019

Carpe Diem #1634 Hanamatsuri ... the celebration of the birth of Buddha (classical kigo)


Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Welcome at a new episode of our wonderful Kai. As you all know I changed our theme for this month recently. So to day we go on this new path in which we will explore (already) modern and classical kigo (seasonwords) for spring. Spring has started and I am enjoying the view of plum blossom, cherry blossom and more young leaves opening. Yes ... it's spring.

Today's theme is "hanamatsuri" a wonderful Asian festival in which the birth of Buddha is celebrated.

The following text comes from a pamphlet published by the Northwest Ministerial Association, Buddhist Churches of America.

Hanamatsuri, literally flower festival, is celebrated on April 8, commemorating the birth of Siddhartha Gautama. Siddhartha became enlightened as Sakyamuni Buddha and this marks the release of sentient beings from suffering and sorrow.

According to our tradition, the historical Buddha, Sakyamuni, was born in Nepal on April 8, 566 B.C. He was born the son of King Suddohana and Queen Maya. There are many flowery descriptions of the scene at his birth, including celestial birds singing beautiful songs, beautiful flowers, and a sweet gentle rain bathing the baby Buddha. It is not necessarily the beauty of the flowers, the sounds of the celestial birds, nor the sweet gentle rain that fell, but the vibrant fact that on this day was born the greatest of sentient beings who became the Enlightened One, the Buddha.

Hanamatsuri

Every year we celebrate our own birthday. In our youth we are anxious to reach “adulthood,” and in our old age we attempt to cling to our “youth.” What is the meaning and reason for celebrating our birth? Much of the meaning of our own birth is often lost in the gifts and the merriment. The celebration of our birth is an expression of gratitude. This gratitude is extended towards our friends, parents and to life itself. This gratitude grows from an understanding that our birth is the result of many people and that our lives are in- tertwined with all others.

Understanding the Buddha’s teaching of interdependancy of all things will make it clear that our birth is the result of many causes and conditions. Realizing this we can see that our birth is truly a rare and wonderful gift, and we have an obligation to live out this life in accordance with the teachings of the Buddha.

happening to be born
on Buddha’s birthday
a baby deer!

© Basho (Tr. unknown)

This obligation to live our lives out to the fullest becomes even more striking when we look at the symbolism and the significance of the flower. The flower, as with all human beings, has its moment of youth and beauty, but its beauty soon begins to fade and eventually it dies. Our birth is like the blossoming of a beautiful flower, but it is the seed of our own demise. When we can understand our own impermanent nature, then it becomes very clear how we should live our lives.

Isn't it a wonderful festival ... I love the background on this festival and I am glad to bring it to you here at CDHK.

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until April 2nd at noon (CET). I will try to publish our new episode later on. For now .... have fun!


Monday, March 25, 2019

Carpe Diem #1633 Wedding



Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Welcome at a new episode of our wonderful Kai. As you know I have changed our theme for this month instead of Kumano Kodo it's now A New Route Leaving Kumano Kodo a journey along modern and classical kigo (seasonwords) for spring. Yesterday I started with "desire" taken from Jane Reichhold's "A Dictionary of Haiku" and today I have another nice modern kigo for spring also taken from "A Dictionary of Haiku".

Today our modern kigo is "wedding". I can hear you think "why is wedding a modern kigo?" Let me try to explain that. In Nature Religions, like Shinto and Paganism for example, it is not done to marry in the dark part of the year (autumn and winter), but in the light part of the year you can marry. So that's why Jane has chosen to bring "wedding" as a modern kigo for spring.
Ofcourse I don't know what kind of religion Jane belonged to, but what I know ... she was a haiku poet and as you all know haiku is rooted in nature ... so maybe that was Jane's reason to bring "wedding" as a spring kigo.

Pagan Wedding (image found on Pinterest)
Here are a few examples of haiku by Jane Reichhold themed "wedding":

rehearsing vows
in the middle of the night
frogs

honeymooners
boats in the harbor
anchored together

© Jane Reichhold

Two beautiful haiku themed "wedding". I am married for 28 years next month and I am still deeply in love with my wife. We had a wonderful (low budget) wedding, but we enjoyed it very much. We celebrated our wedding at our home with all of our loved ones ... yes it was a wonderful day that I will never forget.

early this morning
the sound of church bells
through the mist

© Chèvrefeuille

And I ran into a nice haiku in my archive, that in a way resonates with the above haiku. I revised the original by the way to make the connection a little bit clearer.

croaking frogs
the old mansion is alive
a farmer's wedding

© Chèvrefeuille 

What a joy it was to create this episode for you all. It's a small token of my love for Jane Reichhold and my love for our CDHK family. Have fun!

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until April 1st at noon (CET). Have a wonderful day ...!

Sunday, March 24, 2019

Carpe Diem #1632 Desire ...


Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Welcome at a new episode of our wonderful Kai. I hope you all have had a nice weekend full of inspiration. I had a very busy weekend at work and at home. We had visitors the whole weekend and the last visitor has just left ... that's why I am late with publishing. Forgive me ...

Last week I decided to leave the Kumano Kodo and start a new route ... classical and non-classical kigo (seasonwords) for spring and today I have a nice modern spring kigo taken from Jane Reichhold's "A Dictionary of Haiku", a modern saijki. The modern kigo I have chosen is "desire" and that's a wonderful "emotion" for spring. I desire for the beauty of young green leaves, lots of spring flowers and of course the blooming of the plum and cherry.

Maybe you can remember our theme week about the "Latifa Prayer", one of the main lines of that prayer is "I desire". However the "Latifa Prayer" is not about spring but about "finding the way to inner balance and enlightenment", but isn't that also spring?

As you all know Jane Reichhold was a close friend of mine, but also a close friend of CDHK, she even was one of the hosts here. I have only warm loving memories about her and I am so glad that I had the opportunity to get to know her ... I still miss her, but I know for sure her spirit is still dwelling here at CDHK.


Snowdrops are mostly the first flowers that trumpeting the coming of spring ... so they are in my opinion the natural "desire" the longing for a new day, a new season ... spring.

cold winter night
dreaming about the coming of spring -
Ah! the first snowdrops

© Chèvrefeuille

I hope I have awakend your muse and I hope I have inspired you today.

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until March 31st at noon (CET). I will try to publish our new episode later on. That will be another wonderful kigo for spring.


Friday, March 22, 2019

Carpe Diem Weekend Meditation #77 Poetry Archive (3) ... cherry blossom


!! Open for your submissions next Sunday March 24th at 7:00 PM (CET) !!

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Welcome at a new episode of our special weekend meditation. This weekend I have another nice challenge for you ... a new episode of "Poetry Archive", that special feature in which I love to ask you to dive into your archive(s) and find a haiku, tanka or other Japanese poetry form you have created. This weekend, as it's Spring, I love to ask you to search your archive for poems themed "Cherry Blossom". As you all know I love creating haiku about cherry blossoms and I even created a special E-book "fragile beauty" with only haiku about cherry blossom.

Maybe you know the Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival (VCBF) that already has started in Vancouver region Canada. I think you know that the VCBF also organized a haiku contest every year during the VCBF. I had the opportunity to be part in that contest and a few of my haiku got an honorable mention. I have still warm memories about that so I love to share a few of my haiku that got a honorable mention. For that I had to dive into my archive(s).


Cherry Blossoms 2019 Vancouver Canada

the cooing of pigeons
between blooming cherry trees -
the cool rain

© Chèvrefeuille (2010, honorable mention)

In 2013 I offered again two haiku for this haiku contest and got a honorable mention for the following haiku:

finally Spring
the old Sakura in the backyard
in full bloom

© Chèvrefeuille (2013, honorable mention)

Two wonderful haiku I think that brought me nice memories while searching for them in my archives. As you know for this feature you have to choose a poem from your archives and create a new one inspired on your choice and ofcourse I love to hear why you have chosen that specific haiku, tanka or other Japanese poetry form.

As I said above the task is to create an all new haiku inspired on the poems of your choice ... so I have to create a new one also. I have given it a try:

at sunrise
a pair of pigeons awaken
between cherry blossoms

© Chèvrefeuille

Cherry Blossom in Vancouver (photo© Alexandra Grant)

Well ... with this wonderful photo by Alexandra Grant of  "To Vogue Or Bust" I end this weekend meditation. I am looking forward to all of your wonderful responses. Enjoy your weekend!

This weekend meditation is open for your submissions next Sunday March 24th at 7:00 PM (CET) and will remain open until March 31st at noon (CET). By the way I will use another Linking Widget for this weekend meditation ... I don't know if I will continue with that linking widget, but we will see. (Click on the CDHK logo below to open the linking widget)


Thursday, March 21, 2019

Carpe Diem #1631 A new chapter ... leaving the Kumano Kodo


Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Maybe you have read the CD Extra already than you know that I am a bit sad that the Kumano Kodo doesn't bring you what I had hoped for so I have decided to leave the Kumano Kodo and go on another trail. That trail ... I already mentioned in our CD Extra of today. I will give you new themes for the rest of this month ... those themes have all to do with Spring, New Life, Nature coming to life again and the light returning back to us.

It's maybe an unexpected turn this month, but it really makes me sad that the responses are in a downfall ... Every day I try to create posts to inspire you ... creating those episodes takes my time. Don't understand me wrong, I like to give my time for you ... but as I see the downfall of your responses than I have difficulties to take time in creating for your inspiration.

It's the second time in our wonderful CDHK history that I decide to change the theme in a running month. Maybe you can remember that I did that earlier in the month about the Quran ... it feels like failure ... to change our theme, but ... well it had to be that way I think.




For today I have chosen to inspire you with a wonderful sonnet by William Shakespeare titled: From you have I been absent in the spring. So you can see this as an episode of that special feature "Distillation" in which I challenged you to create a haiku or tanka inspired on a longer poem. Or create a haiku or tanka from the given poem.




Here is the poem by William Shakespeare:

Sonnet 98: From you have I been absent in the spring

From you have I been absent in the spring,
When proud-pied April, dressed in all his trim,
Hath put a spirit of youth in everything,
That heavy Saturn laughed and leaped with him.
Yet nor the lays of birds, nor the sweet smell
Of different flowers in odour and in hue,
Could make me any summer’s story tell,
Or from their proud lap pluck them where they grew:
Nor did I wonder at the lily’s white,
Nor praise the deep vermilion in the rose;
They were but sweet, but figures of delight
Drawn after you, – you pattern of all those.
    Yet seem’d it winter still, and, you away,
    As with your shadow I with these did play.

© William Shakespeare (1564-1616)

A wonderful sonnet by renown Shakespeare. Shakespeare is one of my favorite poets and I hope he can inspire you to create haiku or tanka.

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until March 28th at noon (CET). I will try to publish our new weekend meditation later on. For now ... have fun!


Carpe Diem Extra March 21st 2019 ... sneak preview 2nd quarter 2019


Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

I love to give you a sneak preview for our 2nd quarter of 2019, but first I have a question for you all. This month we are on the Kumano Kodo pilgrimage, but it seems like you all have not enough inspiration for this month. So I love to hear from you what is the matter? CDHK was a blossoming group of poets that share their love for Japanese poetry, but ... I don't know what is happening but it looks like CDHK has no future anymore.

As you all know I love to create CDHK, but if enthousiasm starts to become smaller than I don't know if I will go on with CDHK. Ofcourse there will be all kinds of reasons why the responses are not that much anymore. Maybe it's the theme for this month or maybe it takes to much of your time. So please let me know what I can change to bring back your enthousiasm. Maybe you have ideas for new themes, new features or maybe another way of making CDHK.


Okay ... let me tell you my ideas for the 2nd quarter of 2019.

April 2019:

I have ran through our rich history and I found a few months in which there was an awesome response. Those months were all about classical and non-classical kigo (seasonwords). So in April all our prompts will be classical and non-classical kigo for Spring.

such a sad event
young cherry blossoms frozen
in a cold spring night

© Chèvrefeuille (2016)


May 2019:

Another theme on which your responses were wonderful were the Tan Renga Challenge months. That wonderful kind of chained verse that brings poets together. In May I will create a month full of Tan Renga Challenges with ofcourse also several hineri (with a twist) episodes.
Tan Renga is a chained verse of two stanza, the first stanza has three lines and the second stanza has two lines. The second stanza is created through association on the scenes in the first stanza. Tan Renga looks similar with Tanka, but is written by two poets (as in a renga).

morning sun
the twinkle of stars
still in the dew                                                      (Jane Reichhold)

her bright shining eyes
she unpacks her new doll                                     (your host)


June 2019:

In June I will challenge you (again) because in that month I hope to bring a month full of Troiku, that creative new way of haiku-ing that I invented back in 2012. In June I hope to challenge you to create a Troiku Hineri every week.

morning dew
vanished in a second as the sun rises -
life is short


morning dew
makes the spiderweb crystaline
nature's treasure

vanished in a second as the sun rises
the fragile hoarfrost on the branches -
ice skating

life is short
I see the thin grey hair of my parents
I become grey too

© Chèvrefeuille

I am looking forward to this 2nd quarter and I hope you will too.

Namasté,

Chèvrefeuille, your host


Wednesday, March 20, 2019

Carpe Diem #1630 Kumano Kodo Pilgrimage ...The Kohechi Trail


Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

I have to apologize (again) for not publishing yesterday, but sometimes ... time is not at my side. Today however I had time to create a new episode of this wonderful pilgrimage month.
As I told you earlier this month the Kumano Kodo (Ancient Road) is a complex of five different pilgrimage route and today I love to take you on another Kumano Kodo trail ... The Kohechi trail.

Let me tell you a little bit about this Kohechi trail: Kohechi connects Kumano with Koyasan. This mountaintop route is long and challenging, and consequently should not be undertaken without careful preparation. Inns are rarely found without zigzagging up and down the mountainsides into valley towns, greatly increasing the distance traveled. Kohechi was used mainly by Buddhist monks from the temple complex of Mount Koya.

a fallen cocoon
in the first rays of the morning sun -
a butterfly rises
drying it's young blue wings
to live fully

© Chèvrefeuille (2014)

About the temple complex of Mount Koya there is a lot to tell but of course that;s not possible, but I just had to tell you a little about it.

Mount Koya (Kōyasan) is the center of Shingon Buddhism, an important Buddhist sect which was introduced to Japan in 805 by Kobo Daishi (also known as Kukai), one of Japan's most significant religious figures. A small, secluded temple town has developed around the sect's headquarters that Kobo Daishi built on Koyasan's wooded mountaintop. It is also the site of Kobo Daishi's mausoleum and the start and end point of the Shikoku 88 Temple Pilgrimage.


Garan Temple

Kobo Daishi began construction on the original Garan temple complex in 826 after wandering the country for years in search of a suitable place to center his religion. Since then over one hundred temples have sprung up along the streets of Koyasan. The most important among them are Kongobuji, the head temple of Shingon Buddhism, and Okunoin, the site of Kobo Daishi's mausoleum.

pilgrims chanting
the Heart Sutra to honor Kukai -
cry of a Vulture
breaks through the serene temple -
pilgrims chanting

© Chèvrefeuille (2014)

Here we make a connection with one of our earlier pilgrimages here at CDHK ... the Shikoku pilgrimage. Back in 2014 we digitally walked this pilgrimage for two months visiting the 88 temples on Shikoku Island. The above tanka I wrote back in those months.

I have wonderful memories of that Shikoku pilgrimage and I hope, you my dear Haijin, have those memories too.

deep meditation
high up in the mountains
chanting Buddhist monks

© Chèvrefeuille

What an awesome feeling this episode gives me. Here we can feel how all the post on CDHK are connected with each other ... isn't that awesome?

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until March 27th at noon (CET). I will try to publish our new episode later on. Have fun!


Tuesday, March 19, 2019

Carpe Diem Extra March 19th 2019 Delay


Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

During circumstances and lack of time I hadn't the opportunity to create and publish our new episode. I hope to create our new episode later on on March 20th 2019. My excuses for the inconvenience.

Namasté,

Chèvrefeuille, your host

Monday, March 18, 2019

Carpe Diem #1629 Kumano Kodo Pilgrimage ... the East route


Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Welcome at a new episode in our journey straight through the Kii peninsula were we are on the Kumano Kodo Pilgrimage. As I told you earlier the Kumano Kodo is not just one route, but five different routes and today I love to follow the East route better known as Iseji the Eastern route to Kumano.

Let me tell you a little bit more about this Eastern route: The Iseji route runs along the east coast of the Kii Peninsula between Ise-jingu Shrine and the Kumano Sanzan. The use of this trail rose dramatically in the Edo period (1603-1868) with the increasing number of pilgrims to the Ise-jingu Shrine. After paying homage in Ise, devotees would continue on the Iseji route to Kumano. To prevent erosion from heavy rains, extensive sections were paved with picturesque cobblestones. This route has a diversity of mountain passes, bamboo forests, terraced rice fields, and beaches.

In the Edo period lived a haiku poet who we all know, Matsuo Basho (1644-1694). In the last ten years of his life Basho went on several journeys and one of them was a journey to the Ise-jingu Shrine. So let us look at a few haiku by Basho about the Ise shrine.


Ise-jingu Shrine (also known as Ise Grand Shrine)

from what tree's 
blossoms I know not:
such fragrance

© Basho (Tr. Barnhill)


month's end, no moon:
a thousand year cedar
embraced by a windstorm

© Basho (Tr. Barnhill)

These haiku are written during Basho's visits to the Ise shrines. He didn't actually used the name of the shrine, but in these haiku we see a Shinto touch, because (as you know) Ise shrine was a Shinto temple.

Ise Grand Shrine is one of the renown Shinto temples that are part of the Kumano Kodo pilgrimage and it's the most important Shinto Shrine.

Well ... this episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until March 25th at noon (CET). I will try to publish our new episode later on.


Sunday, March 17, 2019

Carpe Diem #1628 Kumano Kodo Pilgrimage ... by boat


Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

I hope you all have had a wonderful weekend full of inspiration. I had a very relaxed weekend and have new energy for a full new week.

This month we are on a pilgrimage straight through the Kii peninsula, the Kumano Kodo (ancient road) pilgrimage. The Kumano Kodo has five different routes and we have seen already two of those routes this month.

The Kumano river is an important part of this pilgrimage. 1000 yrs ago pilgrims had to cross Kumano river to reach their pilgrimage goal ... the Great Ise Shrine, but this Kumano river has also a deeper meaning in Shinto. The Kumano river was the last stage of someones life before he entered Paradise. This kind of idea we also see for example in the ancient history of Egypt. Pharaohs had to cross the river of death, the river to the stars, so in many religions we see the river also as being part of the last stage to Paradise.

Kumano Kodo ... by boat on the Kumano River

For over 1000 years pilgrims have been making the journey to Kumano. The Kumano-gawa River was a vital section of the Kumano Kodo pilgrimage route between Kumano Hongu Taisha in Hongu, and Kumano Hayatama Taisha in Shingu. The pilgrims used wooden flat-bottom boats. As I wrote above this part of Kumano Kodo was a deep spiritual experience and it gave the pilgrims the opportunity to meditate and contemplate before going on to Ise Grand Shrine.

Isn't it a wonderful pilgrimage? I like that deeper spiritual meaning in this part of the Kumano Kodo ... especially because of the deeper meaning of the river ... the last stage to Paradise.

at the horizon
faint impression of paradise
the sound of water


© Chèvrefeuille

Not a very strong one I think, but it fits the theme for today.

This episode is open for your submissions tonight at 7:00 PM (CET) and will remain open until March 24th at noon (CET). I will try to publish our new episode later on. For now ... have fun!


Saturday, March 16, 2019

Carpe Diem Time Glass 2019-02 shimmering dew


!! This Time Glass episode is open for your submissions until Monday 18th 6:oo AM (CET) !!

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

I had some spare-time so I thought I will give you a new CD Time Glass episode. As you all know a while ago I changed the responding time of our Kai into seven days, a whole week, but (as you all know) haiku is an impression of a moment as short as the sound of a pebble thrown into water. That short time can help you to create your haiku (or tanka) based on that single moment.

I love to improve your haiku (and tanka) writing skills so I think this "Time Glass" feature can help you with that. But ... we are a haiku loving family from all over the world and we live all in different time zones, so I think it's a good thing to extend the (original) 24 hours of the "Time Glass" feature to 36 hours to respond on the theme.

That theme can be a haiku, a tanka, a waka, an image or just a word. For this Time Glass episode I have chosen a haiku written by myself to inspire you:

Shimmering Dew
dewdrops shimmer
in the flower of the Morning Glory
a diamond necklace

© Chèvrefeuille (2014)

Well ... a nice time challenge I think. Try to create your haiku or tanka inspired on this given haiku and share it with us within 36 hours. That means this episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until March 18th 6:00 AM (CET). Have fun!


Friday, March 15, 2019

Carpe Diem Weekend Meditation #76 Renga With ... the Big Five


!! Open for your submissions next Sunday March 17th at 7:00 PM (CET) !!

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Time flies when you have fun they say, but time flies really fast. It's again time for a new weekend meditation and after that first Light Retreat, started today, I have another challenge for you. As you all know in my opinion there were five great haiku poets, or as I call them "The Big Five". Maybe you know which haiku poets I mean with the big five?

Yes ... I knew you all would know it. The "big five" are Basho, Issa, Buson, Shiki and Chiyo-Ni. This weekend I love to challenge you with a new episode of "Renga With ..." This weekend that will be a Renga With ... The Big Five.


I have chosen a two haiku by Basho and of the other four I have chosen one haiku. It's up to you to create a renga with those haiku. You can choose your own "line-up" and I hope you will try to "close" the chain by a ageku (closing verse) that refers back to the hokku (starting verse).

Here are the haiku to work with:

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

how glorious
young green leaves
flash in the sun

© Basho (Tr. Jane Reichhold)

garden butterfly
as the baby crawls, it flies―
crawls close, flutters on

© Issa

Plum Blossom

in nooks and corners
cold remains:
flowers of the plum

© Yosa Buson (tr. RH Blyth)

the wild geese take flight
low along the railroad tracks
in the moonlit night

© Masaoka Shiki

the flowering branch of the plum
gives its scent
to him who broke it off

© Chiyo-Ni

A wonderful range of haiku by these five haiku poets and you, my dear haijin, can enjoy the opportunity to create a renga with these five great haiku poets by adding your two-lined stanza.

I hope you all will have a wonderful weekend with a lot of inspiration. I am looking forward to your renga with the big five.

This weekend meditation is open for your submissions next Sunday March 17th at 7:00 PM (CET) and will remain open until March 24th at noon (CET). Have a wonderful weekend.


A New Feature ... Carpe Diem's Light Retreat 2019 ... The Joy Of Light


Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

With joy I invite you to a new challenge here at our wonderful Haiku Kai. Maybe you can remember that I created our seasonal retreat, a period of 30 days to create haiku and tanka inspired on a theme. Not so long ago I told you about the Pagan idea of a Light and Dark part of the year. That gave me the idea to create two retreats this year, a Light Retreat and a Dark Retreat instead of our four seasonal retreats. So here it is our new feature ... Carpe Diem's Light Retreat 2019.
It works exactly the same as our earlier retreats. I will give you a theme and your task is to create on an every day base a haiku or tanka inspired on that theme. So after 30 days you have created 30 haiku or tanka inspired on that theme.

For this first Light Retreat I have chosen the next theme ... "THE JOY OF LIGHT" what can you create inspired on this theme? Give it a try ... try to create a haiku or tanka every day (for 30 days) themed "The Joy Of Light".

The Joy Of Light

This Light Retreat starts tonight and will and on April 14th at 10:00 PM (CET). Please number your daily haiku or tanka.

And here is my first haiku inspired on this theme "The Joy Of Light":

thousand orange leaves
counting my blessings every day -
I light a candle

© Chèvrefeuille (2014)

Well ... are you with me? Are you in to a new challenge? A new retreat about "The Joy Of Light"?

This Light Retreat is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until April 14th at 10:00 PM (CET). Enjoy this retreat ...


Thursday, March 14, 2019

Carpe Diem #1627 Kumano Kodo ... Shide ... Shinto lightning symbol


Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

As you all know Kumano Kodo is one of the most important Shinto pilgrimages, but what do we know about Shinto. So I thought to dive into Shinto religion while we are on our Kumano Kodo pilgrimage.
Along the Kumano Kodo (ancient road) we visit several Shinto shrines and those Shinto shrines are decorated with so called "shide". A "shide" is shaped like a thunder bolt. For this episode I have chosen to give you a little back ground on this "shide".


Shide (image: wikimedia)

Shide is a zigzag-shaped paper streamer, often seen attached to shimenawa or tamagushi, and used in Shinto rituals. A popular ritual is using a haraegushi, or "lightning wand", named for the zig-zag shide paper that adorns the wand. A similar wand, used by miko for purification and blessing, is the gohei with two shide. A Shinto priest waves the haraegushi over a person, item, or newly bought property, such as a building or car. The wand is waved at a slow rhythmic pace, but with a little force so that the shide strips make a rustling noise on each pass of the wand. For new properties, a similar ritual known as jijin sai is performed with a haraegushi, an enclosed part of the land (enclosed by shimenawa), and sake, or ritually purified sake known as o-miki. The haraegushi has been used for centuries in Shinto ceremonies.

rustling leaves
listen to the voices of the gods
a lightning bolt


© Chèvrefeuille (2019)

What a wonderful symbol (and ritual) this is ...

Shide are traditionally bound to the sacred Shinto rope

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until March 21st at noon (CET). I will try to publish our new weekend meditation later on.


Wednesday, March 13, 2019

Carpe Diem #1626 Kumano Kodo ... Mount Tengurasan ... CD Imagination


Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

During lack of time I have made it myself easy. As you all know we are on the Ancient Road or Kumano Kodo Pilgrimage sttaight through the Kii peninsula (Japan). Yesterday we changed our route to one of the other five routes part of the Kumano Kodo. This Iseji trail leads along wonderful bright and beautiful landscapes and one of the most beautiful points on this route is Mount Tengurasan.

For today I have chosen (to make it myself easy) for a CD Imagination episode. The goal is to create new haiku, tanka or other Japanese poetry form inspired on a given image (ofcourse you may use another image by yourself, but it has to be in the same sense and tone as the given image).

Mt. Tengurasan
overwhelming
the brightness and loneliness

high up the mountain
in touch with the blue sky
while listening to the breeze


© Chèvrefeuille

I hope this image will inspire you to create your Japanese poetry.

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until March 20th at noon (CET). I will try to publish our new episode later on.


Tuesday, March 12, 2019

Carpe Diem #1625 Kumano Kodo ... a new trail


Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

What an awesome pilgrimage this Kumano Kodo (ancient road) is. We are on our way through the Kii peninsula and are close to nature ... The Kumano Kodo is one of the most important Shinto pilgrimages and it's not a one trail pilgrimage. As I told you in an earlier episode ... the Kumano Kodo is a pilgrimage created out of five different trails. Until today we walked the Nakahechi Route, and today we will go further on one of the other trails ... the Iseji Route. Let me tell you a little bit more about this Kumano Kodo trail.

Iseji connects Kumano with Ise Shrine in Mie Prefecture. Like Ohechi, much of Iseji's coastal trail has been covered by paved roads and towns. Only short, isolated sections remain as stoned or earthen trails today. Among them, the Magose Pass in Owase City and Matsumoto Pass in Kumano City are some of the most picturesque.

Magose Pass

Magose-toge Pass forms the boundary between Miyamacho and Owase City. A moss covered stone path stretches about 2 Km into the beautiful cypress forest covered with ferns.
There are points of historical interest along the path which include a Haiku monument, 5-7-5 syllable poetry created by Karyoen Toitsu, Yonaki-jizo, a stone statue of the guardian deity of children and a Magose Milestone.
There is a hiking trail which leads to Tengura-san Mount overlooking Owase City on the east side of the pass. Magosekoen Park on the way down the pass is renowned for its cherry blossoms.

I ran through our rich history and surfed the WWW to find the haiku by Toitsu, but couldn't find it, but maybe one of you has more luck in finding that haiku. To give a haiku in the same sense I love to share one by myself:

on the mountain slopes
fragile cherry blossom petals fall
it seems to snow

© Chèvrefeuille

I think this one fits, because we are walking the Kumano Kodo straight through the Kii peninsula, a wonderful region in Japan with a lot of mountains.


cherry blossom on the mountain slope
Well ... a wonderful start of our new trail on the Kumano Kodo. I am looking forward to your responses.

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until March 19th at noon (CET). I will try to publish our new episode later on.