Carpe Diem Utabukuro #12

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

It's my pleasure to bring to you a new episode of our special CD feature "Utabukuro" (or "poembag"). Let me tell you the goal of this special feature first:

The goal of this CDHK feature is not difficult, because I just ask you to share a haiku or tanka which you admire. That haiku or tanka can be one of a classical or non-classical haiku poet or one by you. You can choose whatever you like, but it has to be a haiku or tanka. Maybe the haiku brings you sweet (or sad) memories or you just like it. Explain why you have chosen that haiku or tanka to share here "in" CDHK's Utabukuro, poem bag and ... that's the second task for this feature, write/compose an all new haiku inspired on the one you have chosen.

For this episode I dived into my archives (built from 1988) and choose a haiku which I once have written myself for Wonder Haiku Worlds.

This haiku I wrote in 2006, it was a first try to write in the free style as Santoka Taneda did. (I also will give the Dutch translation):

silence
petals of cherry blossoms fall
so quiet

stilte
kersenbloesem valt
zo sereen

© Chèvrefeuille

Recently I wrote a few haiku for the haiku-contest of the Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival, which I (of course) cannot re-publish here, because the judging is still going on, and the haiku I submitted for this contest cannot be published earlier.

As you all know cherry blossoms are one of my favorite themes to write haiku about. So to fulfill the goal of this feature I love to share an all new haiku on Cherry Blossoms.

departing
cherry blossom petals fall
without sound

© Chèvrefeuille

And now it is up to you. Share your favorite haiku with us all and try to create an all new haiku inspired on your choice haiku.

This episode is open for your submissions at noon (CET) and will remain open until next Saturday July 2nd at noon (CET). Have fun!

Carpe Diem Extra June 25th 2016 Kukai "Prayers" and "3rd Renga Party"

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Maybe it escaped from your attention, but on May 27th 2016 I posted a call for submissions for our new kukai "prayers", but until now I have only one CDHK family-member who has submitted haiku for this kukai "prayers".

You all will understand that this kukai needs some more submissions so I have decided to prolong the time you have to submit your haiku for the kukai "Prayer".

Please email your haiku (a maximum of three not published earlier) for the kukai "Prayers" to our email-address:

carpediemhaikukai@gmail.com

Please write 'kukai prayers" in the subject line.

You can submit your haiku until July 10th 10.00 PM (CET).

Namaste,

Chèvrefeuille, your host.

PS. I will start with our third Renga Party after this weekend on Monday June 27th. I will make a line-up and publish it here at our Haiku Kai. I know this is somewhat later than planned, but as I wrote in one of our earlier posts this month I have underestimated the time which I need for the research of our Europe Ginko.

Carpe Diem #984 Malta

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Welcome at a new "stage" in our Carpe Diem Europe Ginko, in which we will visit a large part of the countries that are part of the European Union (EU). Maybe you have followed the new about the so called "Brexit" about the British referendum to stay in the EU or leave the EU. This referendum took place on June 23rd and a small majority voted to leave the EU, with 52% the UK will leave the EU. So as for today on the UK will be no longer an active member of the EU. It's for sure not very clear what will happen to the EU or the UK after the Brexit ... we will see in time.

Okay back to our "stage" today. Today we will visit Malta (once a part of the UK) were the people speak English and Greek. Let us take a brief look at the Maltese history.

Malta's location has historically given it great strategic importance as a naval base, and a succession of powers, including the Phoenicians, Romans, Moors, Normans, Sicilians, Spanish, Knights of St. John, French and British, have ruled the islands. 

Maltese flag

King George VI of the United Kingdom awarded the George Cross to Malta in 1942 for the country's bravery in the Second World War. The George Cross continues to appear on Malta's national flag. Under the Malta Independence Act, passed by the British Parliament in 1964, Malta gained independence from the United Kingdom as an independent sovereign Commonwealth realm, officially known from 1964 to 1974 as the State of Malta, with Elizabeth II as its head of state. The country became a republic in 1974, and although no longer a Commonwealth realm, remains a current member state of the Commonwealth of Nations. Malta was admitted to the United Nations in 1964 and to the European Union in 2004; in 2008, it became part of the Eurozone.

Malta has a long Christian legacy and its Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Malta is claimed to be an apostolic see because, according to the Acts of the Apostles, Paul the Apostle was shipwrecked on Malta. Catholicism is the official religion in Malta.

Let us take a closer look at the Maltese nature ... 

Harbor of Valletta, capital of Malta

clouds
moving forward
rain?

© Chèvrefeuille

As I was doing research for this episode I ran into a wonderful "creature" named Velella. The velella is found in all warm and temperature waters of all the oceans. The organism is like an oval, translucent, deep-blue plastic with a transparent sail on top.  It lives on the water surface and is at the mercy of the wind, tides and currents for transport. It is often found in large numbers and sometimes hundreds of thousands become stranded along the coast. This beautiful "creature" is found often in the waters around Malta.

Velella

small creatures
fighting against the wind
Velella

© Chèvrefeuille

floating plastic?
is the water polluted?
no ... Velella!

© Chèvrefeuille

 

Landscape of Malta

green meadow
as far as I can see
colorful flowers

© Chèvrefeuille

Malta ... paradise? I think so ... it's really a beautiful country. Must be awesome to live there. By the way ... I told you about the history of Malta and there are several ancient remains, so called megalithic temples, on Malta. One of those megalithic temples is Tarxien Temple:

 

Tarxien Temple

praying to the gods
offering them the gifts of nature
peace of mind

© Chèvrefeuille

With the beauty of Maltese nature and its rich history there have to be haiku poets on the Island. I searched for them on the Internet and found only one Maltese haiku poets, John P. Portelli (I couldn't retrieve an emailaddress or something to ask permission, but as always I credit the poet):

çass il-˙amiem
lil sidu jistenna –
ma jici qatt

the pigeons stare
awaiting their master —
he never comes

ri˙et ix-xita
fuq bjut im˙allba friski:
taqtig˙ il-qalb

the smell of rain
on terraces newly sealed:
losing heart

ri˙et ix-xita
fuq ˙axix mixwi sfajjar:
fer˙et il-qalb

the smell of rain
on scorched and jaundiced grass:
heart’s delight

g˙ollieq inigge!
jispunta kullimkien –
ming˙ajr avvi!

stinging thorns
growing everywhere —
no prior notice

tqattar ix-xita
ixiddu l-˙mura s-sicar
oqbra mg˙ottija

dripping rain
trees blushing
covered tombs

taqbe! il-˙uta
jin˙eba f’˙alqha l-ganç
ba˙ar ka˙lani

the fish leaps
in mouth the hook is hiding
azure sea

Azure Sea Malta

 

id-dell tad-dielja
jinfirex, jo˙loq kenn –
jg˙annu l-imrie!aq

the vine’s shadow
spreads, makes shelter —
the cicadas sing

il-weraq waqg˙u
qrie˙u s-sicar bla g˙ata
erwie˙ mitlufa.

the leaves have shed
bald the trees uncovered
lost souls.

waslet ix-xitwa
bil-ckieket u l-irwejja˙:
boççi tal-kamla

winter’s here
with jackets and scents:
moth balls!

u jg˙anni bikri
il-kardinal ˙amrani
u l-qattus jong˙os

he sings so early
the crimson bird –
the cat is dozing

tqattar ix-xita
jifir˙u !-!rincijiet
f’g˙adira niexfa

dripping rain
the frogs rejoice
in a dry pond

© John P. Portelli

 

Well I hope you did like this episode about Malta and of course ... I hope to have inspired you to create haiku yourself.

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until June 30th at noon (CET). I will try to publish our new episode, Austria, later on. For now .... have fun!  

Carpe Diem Extra June 24th 2016 Now Available "Chained Together", a new exclusive CDHK e-book

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Now available a new exclusive CDHK e-book "Chained Together", Tan Renga. In this new e-book I have gathered all the Tan Renga Challenges of May 2016 and the responses. I hope you will like it.

"Chained Together" is now available for download at the left of our Haiku Kai.

Namaste,

Chèvrefeuille, your host.

Carpe Diem Tan Renga Challenge #104 "by the mountain spring" by Goda Virginija Bendoraitienė

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Welcome at a new episode of our weekly special Carpe Diem Tan Renga Challenge. In this feature the goal is to add the second stanza (of two lines) towards a given "hokku". This week I have chosen to challenge you with a haiku by the Lithuanian haiku poetess Goda Virginija Bendoraitienė, as introduced in our Europe Ginko stage Lithuania.

by the mountain spring
we talk about the same things
just in other words

© Goda Virginija Bendoraitienė

And now it is up to you to create the second stanza through association on images in this "hokku".

Mountain Spring

Here is my attempt:

by the mountain spring
we talk about the same things
just in other words                             © Goda Virginija Bendoraitienė

the summer breeze whispers
through the willow leaves                  © Chèvrefeuille

This Tan Renga Challenge is open for your submissions at noon (CET) and will remain open until next Friday July 1st at noon (CET). Have fun!

Carpe Diem #983 Lithuania

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Welcome at this (belated) episode of our Europe Ginko. I am on the nightshift so I couldn't create it earlier. Today we will visit Lithuania, one of the Baltic states. Lithuania became a member of the European Union (EU) in 2004.

For centuries, the southeastern shores of the Baltic Sea were inhabited by various Baltic tribes. In the 1230s, the Lithuanian lands were united by Mindaugas, the King of Lithuania, and the first unified Lithuanian state, the Kingdom of Lithuania, was created on 6 July 1253. During the 14th century, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania was the largest country in Europe; present-day Lithuania, Belarus, Ukraine, and parts of Poland and Russia were the territories of the Grand Duchy. With the Lublin Union of 1569, Lithuania and Poland formed a voluntary two-state union, the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. The Commonwealth lasted more than two centuries, until neighboring countries systematically dismantled it from 1772–95, with the Russian Empire annexing most of Lithuania's territory.

Lithuanian flag

As World War I neared its end, Lithuania's Act of Independence was signed on 16 February 1918, declaring the re-establishment of a sovereign State of Lithuania. Starting in 1940, Lithuania was occupied first by the Soviet Union and then by Nazi Germany. As World War II neared its end in 1944 and the Germans retreated, the Soviet Union reoccupied Lithuania. On 11 March 1990, a year before the formal dissolution of the Soviet Union, Lithuania became the first Soviet republic to declare itself independent, resulting in the restoration of an independent State of Lithuania.

Lithuania is a small country, but its nature is overwhelming and breathtaking, similar with the other two Baltic states (Estonia and Latvia) we already have visited. So let us take a look at the Lithuanian nature.
Lithuania is a lowland country. Its highest point is merely 294 m above sea level (in fact Lithuania is the world's largest country without locations above 300 m). The lack of mountains on the horizon is compensated by lush forests and countless lakes.



Nemunas River Delta National Park, Lithuania

seeking their way
through the lowlands
clouds on water

© Chèvrefeuille

My country is flat, but I hadn't thought that there would be a country more flat than The Netherlands. Our highest "mountain", the Vaalserberg, is 322 m above sea level. Lithuanian's highest point is nearly 300 m above sea level.

Lithuania is sometimes called "the land of lakes", because thaere are about 6000 lakes in Lithuania. A lot of villages are situated on the borders of these lakes for example Trakai. As I saw this image I immediately fell in love with this small country, this "land of lakes". Look for yourself.

Trakai

surrounded by water
living on the borders of the lakes
I found true love

© Chèvrefeuille

Awesome ... what a beautiful country Lithuania is ... have to visit it ...

Lithuania, the land of lakes

land of lakes
Excalibur once thrown away
recovered in Lithuania

© Chèvrefeuille

Not a strong one, but the story of Excalibur came in mind as I saw this beautiful image of Lihuania. the land of lakes.

In Lithuania there are a lot of haiku poets and they are great. Back in 2011 the Japanese Embassy in Vilnius organized a haiku contest and I love to share a few of the haiku submitted for that contest here with you.

bumpt bumpt obuoliai
sodo tyloj į žemę
žiemos beldimas

flump and flump apples
in garden’s silence to earth
knocking of winter

© Dainius Dirgéla

Kiškiakopūstis
dreba nuo menko vėjo
meilės trikampis

a wood sorrel
shiver with gentle wind
love triangle

© Asta Čižiūnaitė  

 

Lihuanian nature (did you know that Lithuania is the geographical center of Europe?

 

Kūdron įmetė
Mėnulio pinigą – kas
vilias čia grįžti?

Someone’s dropped into the pond
the Moon coin – who’s
hoping to come back?

© Vaclovas Mikailionis

tavo atvaizdas
pageltusioj nuotraukoj
ankstyvas ruduo

your image
on the yellowing photo
early autumn

© Andrius Luneckas

kalnų šaltini
kalbam apie tą patį
tik kitais žodžiais

by the mountain spring
we talk about the same things
just in other words

© Goda Virginija Bendoraitienė

Well ... I hope I have inspired you with the beauty of Lithuania.

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until June 29th at noon (CET). I will (try to) publish our new episode, Malta, later on. For now ... have fun!

!!! PS. I am behind with commenting, but I hope to catch up a.s.a.p. !!!

 

Carpe Diem #982 Latvia

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

First this: I promised you at the start of this month that our new Theme Week would start on June 20th, but as you already have seen I haven't started that Theme Week. I underestimated the research and time for our Europe Ginko. I want to apologize for this. Because of the underestimation of this month's research I have decided to do no Theme Week this month. I will create the planned Theme Week next month. I am sorry.

Okay back to today's stage in our Europe Ginko. We are going to the North of Europe, to Latvia, one of the three small Balkan states. We visited this part of Europe earlier this month when were in Estonia ... and now we are going to visit Latvia. Latvia became a member of the European Union (EU) in May 2004.

Latvia officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe, one of the three Baltic states. It is bordered by Estonia to the north, Lithuania to the south, Russia to the east, and Belarus to the southeast, as well as a maritime border to the west alongside Sweden.

Latvia has a rich history and has always kept its own identity notwithstanding influences from outside of the country or foreign rules to let go of their (for example) own language. So I think the Latvians are a very proud and strong race.

Let us take a closer look at the natural beauty of Latvia and I hope to inspire you all to create wonderful haiku. One of the first things which came in mind was a beautiful cape. Cape Kolka on the northern tip of Latvia at the gulf of Riga.

Cape Kolka

rough sea
destroyed the old tree
a seagull cries

© Chèvrefeuille

Cape Kolka is in my opinion the reflection of the strength of the Latvian people as described earlier in this post. Look at that strong tree surrounded by young trees. In perfect harmony ... death and life ... that's the power of the Latvians. They survive and stay close to themselves ... is this not also the strength of a haiku poet? Staying close to our roots, rooted in the strong barren earth one with nature.

As I was doing research for this episode I also sought for haiku by Latvian poets, but it wasn't easy to find them. What I did encounter was Latvia's own short (haiku-like) poem ... the Daina. It's a nice poetry form, but not well known outside Latvia because of the language and culture of Latvia. Only the Latvian people can understand these Dainas which were orally given from the one generation to the other generation. An example: 

« Sen to Rigu daudzinaja, Nu to Rigu ieraudziju, Visapkart smilšu kalni, Parti Rīga udeni.  »

« For a long time Rīga has been glorified, finally I saw it, everywhere around the sandy hills, Rīga, even in the water.  »

I don't know the name of the poet, but this Daina sounds similar to a haiku. It brought a haiku by Basho in my mind, which you all surely know too, because I used it as an example for one of our Haiku Writing Techniques "repetition":

"Matsushima,
Ah! Matsushima!
Matsushima!"

© Basho 

Latvia has the fifth highest proportion of land covered by forests in the EU.

still life -
forests covered in million of colors
amazing autumn

© Chèvrefeuille

Look at those forests, amazing ...

And than ... I ran into a wonderful image of  Venta Rapid, the widest European waterfall, in Kuldiga. Cherished by the Latvian people and protected by European laws as an natural monument of Latvia.

Venta Rapid at Kuldiga

the sweet sound of water
resonates through the summer air
a croaking frog

© Chèvrefeuille

Latvia is really an awesome country ... rich soil for haiku ... and here are a few of Latvia's most known haiku poets:

Gaisma ir zobens
Tā tevi nocērt līdz pašai
Tavas tumsas saknei

Light is a sword 

That will cut you
To your darkest roots

© Leons Briedis, Latvia, (“World Haiku 2010 No.6”, p.13. )

Or what do you think of these beauties by Valdis Jansons:

Poetess's car:

silver handles and piston rods...

a train far away

Invisible thread:

a black butterfly pulling

the yellow locomotive

Night train...

after sleep, I wake up

within my dream

© Valdis Jansons

Or these by the well-known haiku poet Janis Petersons:

A frozen window.

The TV set

Keeps silent too...

A pink sunbeam

In dark blue ice.

Evening in March.

Tiny Lizard on a wall

Old stone wall in sun. 

A tiny lizard on it. 

Tranquility.

Autumn thoughts

Like swallows on a wire

Before flying away

© Janis Petersons

Well ... I hope you did like our visit to Latvia ... it was again a joy to create this post and I hope that I have inspired you all to create haiku, tanka and other Japanese poetry forms.

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until June 27th at noon (CET). I will (try to) publish our next episode, Lithuania, later on.