Carpe Diem #1164 Onsen the hot springs of Japan

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

I am a bit sad, but I am also happy ... this is our last episode of February, so we will leave the land of the Rising Sun, the Mother land of Haiku, Japan and first I thought I will create a kind of departure episode, but than I thought ... "maybe I have to do an episode about Onsen or the hot springs of Japan. I think visiting an Onsen will bring us in peace and into relaxation before we leave the country which we all love dearly.

So today in our last episode I love to tell you a little bit more about the hot springs of Japan or Onsen. Even in Basho's time (17th century) there were already hot springs were the Japanese people could find relaxation and peace of mind. Basho wrote several haiku about the hot springs for example this one:

tonight my skin
will miss the hot spring
it seems colder

Yamanaka Hot Springs

at Yamanaka
it’s not necessary to pluck chrysanthemums
hot spring fragrance

© Basho (Tr. Jane Reichhold)

An onsen is a Japanese hot spring and the bathing facilities and inns frequently situated around them. As a volcanically active country, Japan has thousands of onsens scattered throughout all of its major islands. Onsens were traditionally used as public bathing places.

Onsens are a central feature of Japanese tourism, typically found in the countryside, but there are also a number of popular establishments found major cities. They are a major tourist attraction drawing Japanese couples, families, or company groups who want to get away from the hectic life of the city to relax. Japanese often talk of the virtues of "naked communion" for breaking down barriers and getting to know people in the relaxed atmosphere of a ryokan with an attached onsen. 

Traditionally, onsens were located outdoors, although a large number of inns have now built indoor bathing facilities as well. Onsens by definition use naturally hot water from geothermally heated springs. Onsens are different from sentō, indoor public bath houses where the baths are filled with heated tap water.

The legal definition of an onsen includes the requirement that its water must contain at least one of 19 designated chemical elements, including such minerals as iron, sulfur, and metabolic acid, and have an average temperature of 25 °C (77 °F) or warmer at the point of release. 

Onsen somewhere in Japan

The volcanic nature of Japan provides plenty of springs. When the onsen water contains distinctive minerals or chemicals, the onsen establishments typically display what type of water it is.

Some examples of types of onsen include:

Sulphur onsen

Sodium chloride onsen 

Hydrogen carbonate onsen 

Iron onsen

In Japan, onsen are said to have various medical effects. Japanese people believe that a good soak in proper onsen heals aches, pains and diseases, and visit onsen as part of the treatment for such ailments as arthralgia, chronic skin diseases, diabetes, constipation, menstrual disorders, and so on.

These medical benefits have given onsens a central role in balneotherapy which is called "Onsen Therapy". Onsen Therapy is a comprehensive bathing treatment conducted to maintain health, normalize dysfunctions, and prevent illness.

Onsen ... a wonderful place to relax and come in contact with your inner self. Relax ... let the hot springs of Japan cherish you and help you to be strong and healthy again to step in to a new month of CDHK in which we will read the wonderful poetry from Persia (nowadays Iran)

hot springs hidden

deep inside the holy mountain

giving new life

hidden in the forest

I ran into a secret hot spring -

Ah! that sweet scent

falling in love

while enjoying the warm water - 

secret hot spring 

© Chèvrefeuille

Well .... this was the last episode of our journey through Japan ... I hope you did like the trip and of course I hope to see you again next month.

This episode is open for your submissions tonight at 7.00 PM (CET) and will remain open until March 4th at noon (CET). I hope to publish our new episode, roses, later on.

Carpe Diem #1163 geisha, the beauty of Japan

!! Our prompt-list for March is complete, you can find it in the menu above !!

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Welcome at the penultimate episode of CDHK February 2017. This month we were "in a way" on a journey through Japan, the Mother land of Haiku. We have visited this wonderful country and we discovered the beauty of Japanese Art. Earlier this month we had an episode about the samurai and I just felt the need to bring also an episode about the geisha.

Recently I saw "Memories of a Geisha" for the third time I think. It's an awesome movie in which we can see the geisha culture of ancient Japan. I loved that movie, not only for its story, but also for the wonderful scenes of Japan.

Scene from "Memoires of a Geisha"

Geisha, geiko or geigi are traditional Japanese female entertainers who act as hostesses and whose skills include performing various arts such as classical music, dance, games and conversation, mainly to entertain not only male customers but also female customers today.
Geisha, like all Japanese nouns, has no distinct singular or plural variants. The word consists of two kanji, 芸 (gei) meaning "art" and 者 (sha) meaning "person" or "doer". The most literal translation of geisha into English would be "artist", "performing artist", or "artisan."

Apprentice geisha are called maiko (literally "dance child") or hangyoku "half-jewel" (meaning that they were paid half of the wage of a full geisha), or by the more generic term o-shaku, literally "one who pours (alcohol)". The white make-up and elaborate kimono and hair of a maiko is the popular image held of geisha. A woman entering the geisha community does not have to begin as a maiko, having the opportunity to begin her career as a full geisha. Either way, however, usually a year's training is involved before debuting either as a maiko or as a geisha. A woman above 21 is considered too old to be a maiko and becomes a full geisha upon her initiation into the geisha community.

As I was preparing this episode I ran into an article about male geisha or Taikomochi I wasn't aware of the fact that there would be male geisha too, so I was intrigued by that, so I love to tell you also a little bit about the Taikomochi. (Source: Taikomochi, the male geisha)

Taikomochi Arai, the only taikomochi living today

The taikomochi, or the houkan, were the original male geisha of Japan. The Japanese version of the jester, these men were once attendants to daimyo (feudal lords) from the 1200s, originating from the 'Ji Sect of Pure Land Buddhism' sect which focused on dancing. These men both advised and entertained their lord and came to be known as doboshu ('comrades'), who were also tea ceremony connoisseurs and artists. By the 1500s, they became known as otogishu or hanashishu (storytellers), where they focused on story telling, humor, conversation. They were sounding boards for military strategies and they battled at the side of their lord.
A time of peace began in the 1600s and the otogishu and hanashishu no longer were required by their lords, and so they had to take on a new role. They changed from being advisors to becoming pure entertainers, and a number of them found employment with the yujo, high class Japanese courtesans.

Awesome ... I really didn't know about the existence of Taikomochi, the male counterpart of the Geisha.

Ah! the beauty of nature -
geisha, peonies in her hair,
playing the Shakuhachi

© Chèvrefeuille

And I found another haiku about geisha in my archives. This one can be seen as a haiku with a hidden meaning according to what I wrote above about the male geisha, the Taikomochi, but than you have to think back about the more erotical meaning of morning glory.

morning glories -
geisha in her silken kimono
rustles along them

© Chèvrefeuille

Well ... with this "double thought"-haiku I love to conclude this episode. This episode is open for your submissions tonight at 7.00 PM (CET) and will remain open until March 3rd at noon (CET). I will try to publish our last episode of February later on.

Carpe Diem #1162 Ueno Iga Province, birthplace of Basho

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

First I have to apologize for being two days off-line, there were other circumstances that needed my attention, so I am sorry that I couldn't publish.
Today we will visit the region in which Matsuo Basho, my haiku master, and the most famous haiku poet ever was born. Basho was born in Iga Province near (nowadays) Ueno. Basho's birth-place is now in Mie Prefecture.

Here at CDHK we have read a lot about Basho, because of the fact that I see him as my haiku master. His famous "frog pond" haiku was the first ever haiku I read and I immediately fell in love  with this little poem and the beauty of Basho's haiku. This all took place in the late eighties, so I am a haiku poet for almost thirty years.

I love to visit his birth ground together with you here at CDHK. So let us first take a look at the impressive nature of this Prefecture

Rice terraces Mie Prefecture

Maybe Basho wrote the following haiku as he saw these wonderful rice fields:

these fireflies,
like the moon
in all the rice paddies

the scent of early rice - 
cutting through the fields, on the right,
the Rough Shore Sea.

© Matsuo Basho (Tr. Barnhill)

Another nice view of Mie Prefecture we have seen here earlier. And Basho created haiku about it too. These are the so called "Wedded Rocks":

Wedded Rocks

a clam

torn from its shell

departing autumn

© Basho (Tr. Jane Reichhold)

To explain why this haiku points to the "wedded rocks" we need the Romaji translation of it. I will give it here:

hamaguri no   futami ni wakare   yuku aki zo

"futami" is the name of a port in Mie Prefecture were you can find the above "Wedded Rocks", it's a sacred place for Shintoism.

And to conclude tthis episode about the beauty of Basho's place of birth another wonderful image from one of the bays of Mie Prefecture.

Mie Prefecture coast line

And maybe Basho saw the beauty of this bay and worshiped it as a true haiku poet through the following haiku:

doubt it not:

the blossoms of the tide also show

spring upon this bay

© Basho (Tr. Barnhill)

What to say more ... Basho's birth-place is truly wonderful. How can I ever catch that beauty in my haiku? Well .... I have given it a try:

while the sun descends
the silvery moon ascends the black sky
listen ... a Nightingale

© Chèvrefeuille

I hope you did like this episode and I hope I have inspired you to create haiku or tanka. This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until March 2nd at noon (CET). I hope to publish our new episode later on. For now ... have fun!

PS.: Remember our "Cherry Blossom" kukai runs until March 4th 10.00 PM (CET)
PPS.: Maybe you have seen it already, but I have published our prompt-list for March, it is still under construction, but you can already read what is coming up next month.
PPS 2.: There will be no new Universal Jane or Namaste this week. I hope to share those features next month starting March 3rd with a new episode of Namasté.

Carpe Diem #1161 Matsuyama City birth-place of Shiki

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Shiki was born in Matsuyama City in Iyo province (present day Ehime prefecture) to a samurai class family of modest means. As a child, he was called Tokoronosuke; in adolescence, his name was changed to Noboru. His father, Tsunenao, was an alcoholic who died when Shiki was five years of age, but his mother, Yae, was a daughter of Ōhara Kanzan, a Confucian scholar. Kanzan was the first of Shiki's extra-school tutors.
At age 15 Shiki became something of a political radical, attaching himself to the then-waning Freedom and People's Rights Movement and getting himself banned from public speaking by the principal of Matsuyama Middle School, which he was attending. At this school he became friends with Natsume Soseki (maybe you remember him from one of our Theme Weeks).
Shiki was the name-giver of our beloved haiku, before him, haiku was mostly named “hokku” or “haikai”. With Shiki haiku entered the 20th century.

Let us visit the region were Shiki was born, Iyo Province (nowadays Ehime Prefecture).

Ehime Prefecture is known for its waterfalls, mountains and meadows and for sure those were an inspiration for Shiki and I think we can be inspired through the beautiful nature of Ehime Prefecture too.

Ehime Prefecture

shaded by cherry trees
high up on the mountain
desolate castle

© Chèvrefeuille

Is this in Shiki's style? I don't know but I think it could have been written by Shiki, because Shiki was a master in using the haiku writing technique "shasei" or "depicting the thing as it is". (More on "shasei" you can find HERE.

An example of a "shasei"- haiku by Shiki:

come spring as of old
when such revenues of rice
braced this castle town! 

© Masaoka Shiki

© photo Ehime Prefecture

A wonderful "natural" bridge. This wooden bridge is all covered with green leaved bushes and makes it one with nature like a chameleon.

Look!

that bridge looks alive
green leaves

© Chévrefeuille

Ehime Prefecture looks awesome and to conclude this episode I love to share an image to inspire you, say a kind of Imagination.

Machu Picchu in the East

The above image shows you what is called "Machu Picchu of the East", it's excavation side in Ehime Prefecture were you can see how ancient life was in Japan. It's a side like Machu Picchu in Peru.

ancient ghosts
wandering through the streets
colorful leaves

© Chèvrefeuille

Well I hope you did like this episode. It's open for your submissions tonight at 7.00 PM (CET) and will remain open until February 27th at noon (CET). I will try to publish our new episode, about the region were Basho was born, later on.

Carpe Diem #1160 Kema, birth-place of Yosa Buson

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Welcome at a new episode of CDHK. We are on a journey through Japan and today I love to visit the region in which Yosa Buson (1716-1784) was born. Buson, is also one of the haiku poets which I love to call "the big five" (Basho, Issa, Buson, Chiyo-Ni and Shiki).

Yosa Buson was born in Kema Settsu Province, nowadays known as Kema-cho, Miyakojima Ward, Osaka, Osaka Prefecture. Buson's original family name was Taniguchi. Nature around his birth-place is gorgeous and I think it was a rich source of inspiration for him.

Kema-cho, Osaka Prefecture, in autumn

An example of a haiku which could have been inspired by this scene, but not in autumn, but in spring:

from far and near
hearing the sounds of waterfalls
young leaves

© Buson

Around Kema-cho, Osaka Prefecture, there are a lot of waterfalls and they are all wonderful. Must be awesome to be there listening to the sound of falling water, very relaxing I think. So another beautiful image of a waterfall in the region of Buson's birth-place.

Another waterfall somewhere around Kema-cho

the waterfall
ah! that sound ...
mesmerizing

© Chèvrefeuille

Well it has become a short episode, but I think I have given an idea about the region were Buson was born. And I hope it will inspire you to create haiku or tanka.

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until February 26th at noon (CET). I will try to publish our new episode, about the birth-place of Shiki, later on.

Carpe Diem #1158 Kashiwabara, birth-place of Kobayashi Issa

!!! Sorry for being late with publishing, there were a few technical problems !!!!

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

First this: Maybe you remember the episode about the results of our "autumn" kukai (HERE) In that episode I invited you to create haiku themed on Cherry Blossom for our next kukai. This kukai runs until March 4th 10.00 PM (CET). You can still submit your haiku (only haiku and a maximum of three (3) haiku) to our email-address: carpediemhaikukai@gmail.com Please write "kukai cherry blossom" in the subject-line.

Second: As you have noticed earlier this week I published a survey for our fifth CDHK anniversary to get some insight in our haiku family members. (HERE)

Third: Earlier this week I told you that I will change a few things, just for my own health, my own time. These changes are not that big, but I will share the changes here:

1. Starting March 2017: I will only publish on weekdays.
2. I will bring Universal Jane and Namasté alternating eachother weekly on Fridays.
3. (NEW) To give you the change to be inspired in the weekend I will bring back the special feature "Time Glass", also on Fridays. The former idea was to respond within 24 hours, but because of the weekend inspiration I have changed that into 72 hours (three days).

Kashiwabara, Shinano Province, Nagano Prefecture

Kobayashi Issa (1763 – 1828) was a Japanese poet and lay Buddhist priest of the Jōdo Shinshū sect known for his haiku poems and journals. He is better known as simply Issa, a pen name meaning Cup-of-tea. He is regarded as one of the five haiku masters in Japan, along with Bashō, Buson, Chiyo-Ni and Shiki — "the Big Five."

Issa was born and registered as Kobayashi Nobuyuki, with a childhood name of Kobayashi Yatarō, the first son of a farmer family of Kashiwabara, now part of Shinano-machi, Shinano Province (present-day Nagano Prefecture).

As a big fire swept the post station of Kashiwabara on July 24, 1827, according to the Western calendar. Issa lost his house and had to live in his storehouse, which is still kept in the town. Issa died on November 19, 1828, in his native village.

Issa's storehouse where he lived in the last years of his life

As I was preparing this episode I discovered that Issa was also a painter. This I didn’t know about him.

Kashiwabara, Shinano Province (nowadays Nagano Prefecture) was a long stretched, so called, poststation. Issa lived close to the poststation that burned down in 1827. He lost his house to that fire and had to go living in his storehouse.

Kashiwabara is one of the most attractive places to go skiing. I wonder if all the tourists are aware of the history that Issa, one of the best haiku poets ever, lived in this mountain village.

One of Issa's drawings (including a haiku):

niwa no chô ko ga haeba tobi haeba tobu

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

(c) Issa

Issa wrote a lot of haiku, more than 20.000. His body of work is 20 times bigger than that of the most famous haiku poet (and my haiku master) Matsuo Basho, who wrote around 1000 haiku.

The region were Issa lived is now one of the most beloved places to go on holiday every season. That's not strange, because the region around Kashiwabara is really wonderful as you can see on the images I have used in this episode.

Kashiwabara, birth-place of Issa, is a wonderful place to be.

To conclude this episode of Carpe Diem, in which we visited the birth place of Kobayashi Issa, I have a few nice haiku written by Issa about the Shinano Mountains.

Shinano's deep wooded mountains
even in Fifth Month...
cherry blossoms

sleeping side by side
Shinano's mountains too...
evening snow

deep wooded mountains--
home-grown in Shinano
glorious blossoms

Eighth Month--
a rainy night, pre-harvest moon
in the mountains of Shinano

(c) Kobayashi Issa (Tr. David G. Lanoue)

Grave of Issa in Kashiwabara

 I just had to create a few haiku myself inspired on this episode:

mountain peaks
covered in all colors of the rainbow
departing summer

I am a dreamer
wandering through Kashiwabara
I feel like Issa

(c) Chèvrefeuille

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until February 24th at noon (CET). I will (try to) publish our next episode about the birthplace of Chiyo-Ni later on.

Carpe Diem #1157 Sakura, the national pride of Japan

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

What a joy to visit Japan in all its beauty. We have seen the beauty of Matshushima and the beauty of the diversity of Japanese art, but the most wonderful thing of Japan is their love for Cherry Blossoms. As you all (maybe) know I am a big fan of Cherry Blossoms and I write very often haiku (and tanka) about the Sakura in my backyard. Every year again I submit Cherry Blossom haiku for the Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival's "kukai". Sometimes I won and sometimes my haiku got no prizes at all, but that's nothing to be ashamed of, because there are a lot of haiku poets around the globe and ity is just fun to submit haiku for this Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival.

through the branches
of blooming Sakura trees
I see Fuji

© Chèvrefeuille

Today I love to take you on a trip along the beauty of Cherry Blossom, not only through haiku and texts, but also with beautiful images of Japanese Cherry Trees.

Let me first tell you al little bit more about the national pride of Japan ... the Sakura.

They are swooned over during picnics. They are painstakingly painted. They are obsessed over in poems. They are cited as a symbol of the transient nature of life. And they are sprinkled on Starbucks lattes.

Welcome to Japan’s pink and modern world of cherry blossoms. It is impossible to think of springtime Japan without an iconic image of a sea of cherry trees awash with perfect pink blooms instantly coming to mind.
As well as leading the way in robotics, sushi and skyscraper technology, the Japanese have long been celebrated as global leaders in the art of cherry blossom appreciation. From as early as the eighth century, elite imperial courtiers paused to appreciate the delicate pink cherry blossoms known as sakura before indulging in picnics and poetry sessions beneath the blooms. Fast-forward more than a millennium and the flowers that launched a thousand haiku are no less revered in modern-day Japan.

The First Cherry Blossoms appear in Okinawa

Today, as spring approaches, the entire nation turns a shade of pink. Months before they arrive, retailers switch into sakura mode – cue supermarkets filled with plastic cherry blossom flowers and cherry blossom-flavored innovations in convenience stores. The countdown excitement is heightened further by the televised Cherry Blossom Forecast which offers a petal-by-petal analysis of the advance of the blooms – known as the cherry blossom front – as they sweep from the south to the north of the archipelago.

When the blooms actually arrive (as confirmed by teams of meticulous cherry blossom officials), it is time to indulge in one of the nation’s all-time favorite pastimes – hanami, which literally translates as “looking as flowers” and refers to flower appreciation picnics under the blooms.

Every year, a microcosm of society – from salary men and students to housewives and grannies – takes part in hanami picnics (some civilized, some rowdy) in every corner of the country.

The nation’s deep-rooted attachment to cherry blossoms goes far beyond buying a pink fizzy drink at 7-Eleven.

The flowers are deeply symbolic: their short-lived existence taps into a long-held appreciation of the beauty of the fleeting nature of life, as echoed across the nation’s cultural heritage, from tea ceremonies to wabi sabi ceramics. The blossoms also, quite literally, symbolize new beginnings, with April 1 being the first day of both the financial and academic year in Japan.

cherry blossoms

looking so fragile in the moonlight -

ah! the spring breeze

such sadness

the spring wind has molested

cherry blossoms

fading moonlight

caresses the fragile blossoms

finally spring

© Chèvrefeuille

In a nutshell? The cherry blossoms are not just pretty pink flowers: they are the floral embodiment of Japan’s most deep-rooted cultural and philosophical beliefs.

The nation prides itself on its devotion to the important task of forecasting the exact arrival of the first cherry blossoms. Since 1951, teams of meteorologists have been dispatched to monitor the advance of the cherry blossom front – sakura zensen in Japanese – as they burst into bloom across the country.

Officials traditionally observe the pale pink blooms of the yoshino cherry tree – Japan’s most common type – with the season declared open when at least five or six flowers have opened on a sample tree in any given area. 

The flowers only bloom for around a week before the so-called “sakura snow” effect starts and they float sadly off the trees.

The first blossoms generally appear in Okinawa in January and slowly move up the archipelago, passing through Japan’s central islands (including Kyoto and Tokyo) in late March and early April, before progressing further north and hitting Hokkaido in early May.

Cherry Blossom

Of course I cannot leave without a few haiku by the classical masters, for example this one by Issa:

Shinano's deep wooded mountains

even in Fifth Month...

cherry blossoms

© Issa

The part of Japan were Issa lived knows long winters and late springs, so sometimes the cherry blossoms started to bloom in June.

Or what do you think of this one by my master, Matsuo Basho:

how many, many things

they bring to mind — 

cherry blossoms!

© Basho (Tr. Robert Aitken)

[...] "Instilled in the Japanese mind is the association of the ephemerality of the cherry blossoms with the brevity of human life. Blooming for so short a time, and then casting loose in a shower of lovely petals in the early April wind, cherry blossoms symbolize an attitude of nonattachment much admired in Japanese culture." [...] (Source: A Zen Wave,Basho's Haiku & Zen  by Robert Aitken Published by Weatherhill, NY in 1996)

And another one by Buson:

these tired old legs -

is it for them that we stop, 

or the late cherry blossoms?

© Buson

Cherry Blossom Kyoto

And to end this episode with I have another nice haiku master who wrote about the cherry blossoms:

double cherry blossoms
flutter in the wind
one petal after another

© Shiki

And another one by a not so well known classical haiku poet, Onitsura:

the wild cherry:

stones also are singing their songs

in the valley stream

© Onitsura

Of course I can go on with this wonderful episode, but it must be fun to read and therefore I try to make the episodes not that big, but in this case ...

cherry blossom viewing

together with friends and family

celebrating spring

blossom haze -

walking in the middle

of falling petals

Ah! those cherries

have to let go their blossoms -

blossom haze

the cooing of pigeons

between blooming cherry trees -

the cool rain*

* written for the Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival 2012, I won a honorable mention.

© Chèvrefeuille

Sakura

And to really conclude this episode I love to share a "twin-tanka" about Cherry Blossom:

departing

cherry blossom petals fall

without sound

cherry blossom petals ride

on gusts of wind

on gusts of wind

cherry blossom petals, full circle,

the taste of cherries

helping me through the cold winter

Sakura blooms again

© Chèvrefeuille

Well ... this episode became a little longer than I had thought, but I hope it will inspire you to create haiku, tanka or other Japanese poetry form. Have fun!

This episode is open for your submissions tonight at 7.00 PM (CET) and will remain open until February 22nd at noon (CET).

Carpe Diem #1156 Bonsai, the Japanese Tree-scaping Art

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

As I told you all earlier I have decided to create one episode of CDHK in every weekend, starting in March, because the lack of time gives me no other choice. I also will change a little in the appearance of CDHK. I am busy to create a new CDHK logo (as shown in the background) which I will use every month again, except in our anniversary month October. And I will cut back the special features, for example Universal Jane will be a bi-weekly feature. Our new feature Namasté will be a bi-weekly feature too, so these both special features will alternate. Than ... our CD Specials created after every kukai, will stay were they are and of course the Tokubetsudesu episode (for the "runner-up") will stay also.
Of course I will have the opportunity to treat you sometimes with one of our other special features here as for example "Imagination"  and "Only the First Line".
Next to these changes I am busy with creating a Five Years of CDHK survey to hear from you. Your opinions, your thoughts and ideas and most of all how do you think about CDHK and do I need to change CDHK.
To give you already something to thing about "I am looking for a way to make it easier for myself, the first thing I thought of was "only an episode of CDHK on weekdays and no longer in the weekend". What do you think of that?

Bonsai the Japanese Art of Tree-scaping

Earlier this week I told you that I would bring a few episodes about Japanese art forms, we have already seen Sumi-e, Ikebana and the Tea Ceremony and today I love to tell you all a little bit more about Bonsai, the Japanese Art of Tree-scaping.

A bonsai is created beginning with a specimen of source material. This may be a cutting, seedling, or small tree of a species suitable for bonsai development. Bonsai can be created from nearly any perennial woody-stemmed tree or shrub species that produces true branches and can be cultivated to remain small through pot confinement with crown and root pruning. Some species are popular as bonsai material because they have characteristics, such as small leaves or needles, that make them appropriate for the compact visual scope of bonsai.

The source specimen is shaped to be relatively small and to meet the aesthetic standards of bonsai. When the candidate bonsai nears its planned final size it is planted in a display pot, usually one designed for bonsai display in one of a few accepted shapes and proportions. From that point forward, its growth is restricted by the pot environment. Throughout the year, the bonsai is shaped to limit growth, redistribute foliar vigor to areas requiring further development, and meet the artist's detailed design.

Bonsai (sumi-e painting) (found on Pinterest)

Bonsai aesthetics are the aesthetic goals characterizing the Japanese tradition of growing an artistically shaped miniature tree in a container. Many Japanese cultural characteristics, in particular the influence of Zen Buddhism and the expression of Wabi-sabi, inform the bonsai tradition in Japan. A number of other cultures around the globe have adopted the Japanese aesthetic approach to bonsai, and, while some variations have begun to appear, most hew closely to the rules and design philosophies of the Japanese tradition.

Over centuries of practice, the Japanese bonsai aesthetic has encoded some important techniques and design guidelines. These design rules can rarely be broken without reducing the impact of the bonsai specimen. One of these techniques, principles is the following:

No trace of the artist: The designer's touch must not be apparent to the viewer. If a branch is removed in shaping the tree, the scar will be concealed. Likewise, wiring should be removed or at least concealed when the bonsai is shown, and must leave no permanent marks on the branch or bark.

In this principle we can find ourselves I think, because isn't that one of the rules or principles of haiku? I think it isn't a great sin to find the poet back in his/her haiku, but in a way it makes the haiku less strong, less beautiful, but ... at the other hand ... haiku is written right from the heart and than we, the poets, are visible or invisible, in our haiku.
"No trace of the artist", is what makes Bonsai and Haiku a strong pair ...

Pine Tree Bonsai

As I saw this beautiful Pine Tree Bonsai I thought immediately at that wonderful place Basho visited while on the road to the Deep North, Matsushima and I ran through my archives to find some beauty to share here with you. I ran into a wonderful cascading haiku, which I have re-done into a "twin-tanka":

anxious to see
the twin pine of the stories
once told
a tale on pine trees
bonsai like

bonsai like
the islands of Matsushima
covered with pines
but the wondrous twin pine
stays invisible

© Chèvrefeuille

Well I hope you did like this episode. You can submit your haiku, tanka or other Japanese poetry form right now until February 21st at noon (CET).

Carpe Diem #1155 Sumi-e, the Japanese Way of Painting (2)

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

First this during lack of time I will not publish a new episode of Universal Jane this week, I hope to release a new episode next week. Because of this everlasting problem of time I have decided to create Universal Jane once in two weeks and I have a little change for the weekends. In the weekends I will publish only one episode of Carpe Diem Haiku Kai from now on. In other words I will have six (6) regular prompts a week instead of seven (7). I hope you are okay with that.

Today I love to tell you a little bit more about Sumi-e, the Japanese Way of Painting.

Ink wash painting, also known as literati painting is an East Asian type of brush painting of Chinese origin that uses black ink—the same as used in East Asian calligraphy, in various concentrations. Names used in the cultures concerned include: in Chinese shuǐ mò huà, in Japanese sumi-e or suibokuga , in Korean sumukhwa , and in Vietnamese tranh thủy mặc .

Textual evidence suggests that Shan shui style painting existed during China's Liu Song dynasty of the fifth century. Ink wash painting developed further during the Tang dynasty (618–907). The 8th-century poet/painter Wang Wei is generally credited as the painter who applied color to existing ink wash paintings. The art was further developed into a more polished style during the Song Dynasty (960–1279).

Asian aesthetic writing is generally consistent in stating the goal of ink and wash painting is not simply to reproduce the appearance of the subject, but to capture its spirit. To paint a horse, the ink wash painting artist must understand its temperament better than its muscles and bones. To paint a flower, there is no need to perfectly match its petals and colors, but it is essential to convey its liveliness and fragrance. East Asian ink wash painting may be regarded as a form of expressionistic art that captures the unseen.

Pine Trees (Sumi-e painting)

In landscape painting the scenes depicted are typically imaginary, or very loose adaptations of actual views. Mountain landscapes are by far the most common, often evoking particular areas traditionally famous for their beauty, from which the artist may have been very distant. Water is very often included.

"The painter ... put upon the paper the fewest possible lines and tones; just enough to cause form, texture and effect to be felt. Every brush-touch must be full-charged with meaning, and useless detail eliminated. Put together all the good points in such a method, and you have the qualities of the highest art".

Arthur Wesley Dow (1857–1922)

As I read the above again than I realize that sumi-e and haiku are almost similar with each other. Why? Well both art forms are representing an impression from a scene. Sumi-e  through the paintwash and haiku through the pencil of the poet. Both art forms make use of the moment as short as the sound of a pebble thrown into water. Maybe we can say "sumi-e is haiku in paint" and "haiku is sumi-e in words".

I have tried to paint with words ...:

one summer day
poppies coloring the meadows -
raindrops start to fall

© Chèvrefeuille

This episode is open for your submissions tonight at 7.00 PM (CET) and will remain open until February 20th at noon (CET).

 

 

Carpe Diem #1154 Sumi-e, the Japanese way of painting, Imagination introduction

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

We are still discovering the beauty of Japan and as I told you earlier this week I love to introduce a few Japanese ways of art and today I love to "trigger" you with an introductory episode on Sumi-e with a piece of fine Sumi-e to inspire you. Another Imagination I would say.

Sumi-e Landscape

Let this fine sumi-e piece inspire you to create haiku or tanka. Have fun!

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until February 19th at noon (CET). (By the way I will try to publish our new Universal Jane episode tomorrow).

Carpe Diem #1152 Ikebana

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

We are on a journey through Japan we have and will visit several wonderful and beautiful places in this great country, the mother of haiku, but I love to discover also some real and awesome kinds of Arts of Japan.
Today I ran into a beautiful FB-group about Ikebana, the Japanese floral art, The World Ikebana Society In this group you can find wonderful pieces of Ikebana and inspired on one of these beauties I created the following haiku (by the way you can find that beautiful artwork of Ikebana here):

the day ends
blue changes in red and purple
a Nightingale's song

After looking at the photo of this Ikebana piece on my desktop I changed it into the following:

at sunrise
the deep purple of the night disappears
in dew drops

© Chèvrefeuille

I love to tell you a little bit more about Ikebana. So let's go ...

Ikebana ("arranging flowers") is the Japanese art of flower arrangement, also known as kadō (the "way of flowers"). The tradition dates back to the 7th century when floral offerings were made at altars. Later they were placed in the tokonoma alcove of a home. Ikebana reached its first zenith in the 16th century under the influence of Buddhist teamasters and has grown over the centuries, with over 1000 different schools in Japan and abroad. The most well-known schools are Ikenobo, Ohara-ryū, and Sōgetsu-ryū.

Ikebana -Yoshiko Nakamura (© photo: Jmabel)

(photo © Jmabel)

More than simply putting flowers in a container, Ikebana is a disciplined art form in which nature and humanity are brought together. Contrary to the idea of a particolored or multicolored arrangement of blossoms, Ikebana often emphasizes other areas of the plant, such as its stems and leaves, and puts emphasis on shape, line, and form. Though Ikebana is an expression of creativity, certain rules govern its form. The artist's intention behind each arrangement is shown through a piece's color combinations, natural shapes, graceful lines, and the implied meaning of the arrangement.

The spiritual aspect of Ikebana is considered very important to its practitioners. Some practitioners feel silence is needed while making Ikebana while others feel this is not necessary. It is a time to appreciate things in nature that people often overlook because of their busy lives. One becomes more patient and tolerant of differences, not only in nature, but also in general. Ikebana can inspire one to identify with beauty in all art forms. This is also the time when one feels closeness to nature, which provides relaxation for the mind, body, and soul.

Recent historical research now indicates that the practice of tatebana ("standing flowers"), derived from a combination of belief systems including Buddhist and Shinto Yorishiro, is most likely the origin of the Japanese practice of Ikebana that we know today. During ancient times, offering flowers on the altar in honor of Buddha was part of worship. Ikebana evolved from the Buddhist practice of flower offerings combined with the Shinto Yorishiro belief of attracting kami by using evergreen materials. Together they form the basis for the original purely Japanese derivation of the practice of Ikebana.

Jiyuka (© Sorin Mazilu, as indicated on the photo)

Hundreds of schools and styles have developed throughout the centuries. The most notable and the original Ikebana school is:

Ikenobō, which goes back to the Heian period, is considered the oldest school. This school marks its beginnings from the construction of the Chōhō-ji in Kyoto, the second oldest Buddhist temple in Japan. It was built in 587 by Prince Shotoku, who had camped near a lake in what is now central Kyoto. During the night he dreamed that Nyoirin Kannon appeared to him saying, “With this amulet I have given you, I have protected many generations, but now I wish to remain in this place. You must build a six sided temple and enshrine me within this temple. Many people will come here and be healed.” So Prince Shotoku built the Chōhō-ji temple, now referred to as the Rokkakudo Temple (six sided) and enshrined Nyoirin Kannon within it. In subsequent years an official state emissary, Ono, brought the practice of placing Buddhist flowers on an altar from China, became a priest at the Chōhō-ji, and spent the rest of his days practicing flower arranging. The original priests of the temple lived by the side of a lake, for which the Japanese word is 'Ike', and the word 'Bō', meaning priest, connected by the possessive particle 'no' gives the meaning, 'priest of the lake', 'Ikenobō'. The name Ikenobō granted by the Emperor became attached to the priests there who specialized in altar arrangements. This school is the only one that does not have the ending -ryū in its name, as it is considered the original school. (Source: wikipedia)

Isn't it wonderful? All those beautiful aesthetic kinds of art in the mother land of Haiku. Haiku isn't the only art form as we will see in the upcoming days. I hope to create a few episodes in a row  about Japanese art work.

Classical Ikebana art work

For this episode I have tried to create an Ikebana tanka in which I have tried to bring the beauty and serenity of this art form together with the beauty of tanka.

New Year celebration
an Ikebana piece on the table
scaring the demons
bare willow branches
embrace cherry blossoms

© Chèvrefeuille

Unfortunately I couldn't find an Ikebana art work as described in this tanka, but I think you can imagine the sight of it.

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until February 17th at noon (CET). I will try to publish our next episode later on.

Carpe Diem #1151 Shikoku Island

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

First this: At the left side of our Kai you can find the link to the download of "Only Footprints" by Candy, the latest exclusive CDHK e-book. Candy has created a wonderful e-book and I hope, as the editor of it, that you all will like it as much as I liked creating it.

Maybe you have noticed it already, but I haven't published our new episode of our new special feature "Namasté", but that had to do with time. After our regular episode I will also publish our new "Namasté" episode.

We are on a journey "criss-cross" through Japan the native country of haiku and today I love to travel on to the island of Shikoku. Maybe you can remember our pilgrimage along the 88 temples on this island. The Shikoku pilgrimage is a once in a lifetime to do pilgrimage of Buddhist, as is the Hadj for the Muslim.

The Shikoku pilgrimage is originated by Kobo Daishi (also know as Kukai), the founder of the Shingon sect of Buddhism, and it brings you along the 88 temples on Shikoku island. During some circumstances that take a bit of time from me I have taken the easy way today. I will reproduce the first episode of our Shikoku pilgrimage back in 2014 here again. I hope you don't "hate" me for that choice (smiles).

Sakura Temple on Shikoku Island

Shikoku is one of the four main islands (Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu) that make up Japan. The island is located between the Seto Inland Sea and the Pacific Ocean. There are four prefectures located there: Tokushima, Kagawa, Ehime, and Kochi. Tokushima has close political, economic, and cultural ties to the Kansai region of Honshu, which includes cities like Osaka and Kyoto. In recent years, three bridges spanning the Seto Inland Sea have created land routes between Honshu and Shikoku. One connects Kobe to the city of Naruto in Tokushima via Awaji Island on the Kobe-Awaji-Naruto Expressway (the Akashi Kaikyo Bridge). The second route connects Okayama Prefecture's Hayashima with the city of Sakaide in Kagawa via the Seto-Chuo Expressway (the six Seto-Ohashi Bridges; this route also features a rail line). The third connects Hiroshima's Onomichi with the city of Imabari in Ehime via the Nishi-Seto Expressway (the three Kurushima-Kaikyo Bridges; this route is also accessible on foot or by bicycle). With the construction of these routes, travel between Honshu and Shikoku via expressway and railway (Seto-Ohashi Bridge) has become more convenient than ever before.

Iya Kazurabashi Bridge, Takushima Prefecture Shikoku

The Pacific side of the island, which consists of the portion located to the south of Shikoku's mountain range that runs east to west, sees more than its share of rain, but the climate of the entire island is relatively warm.
There are plenty of wild and natural spots, scenic and historic places, and traditional festivals.
Naoshima, where nature and contemporary art coexist, Mt. Ishizuchi, one of the highest peaks in West Japan and a popular destination for hikers, the Naruto whirlpools, one of the largest whirlpools in the world, the thatched traditional house known as Chiiori which is located in the Iya valley, known as one of the three most remote places in Japan and the place where the defeated Heike warriors took refuge at the end of the 12th century, the Shimanto River which is called Japan's last clear stream where local people enjoy river recreation., Kompira Shrine which is home to the god of the sea, Dogo Hot Spring which is one of Japan's oldest hot springs with several thousand years of history, Awa Odori summer festival which attracts 1.3 million people annually, Kochi prefecture's summer Yosakoi festival which attracts 1 million people, Kochi's outdoor Sunday Market which is one of Japan's largest, and many many other attractions are what make up Shikoku.

Kan Henro, tradiotnal pilgrim clothing for the Shikoku pilgrimage

mysterious Island
dedicated to the Path of Enlightenment
four countries as one

© Chèvrefeuille

Shikoku Island knows four prefectures and that's reflected in it's name that means "four countries". Back in 2014 I enjoyed this Shikoku pilgrimage very much and I hope you all have nice memories at it too. By the way if you would like to read those episodes again or for the first time? Scroll down in the menu at right side of our Kai and click on the year 2014, February and March. Than you can "re-do" that pilgrimage again or discover the beauty of that pilgrimage.

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

© Chèvrefeuille

To enlighten the meaning of the above tanka I have a short explanation for you about this tanka.

Ryozenji Temple, the first temple of the Shikoku pilgrimage, is also known as "Vulture Peak" which refers to one of the sermons the Buddha once gave on a mountain with the same name. It was on that mountain that Buddha started with his religion and wrote the Heart-Sutra and e.g. the Lotus-Sutra.

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until February 16th at noon (CET). I will try to publish our next episode later on.