bare limbs – haiku – October 1, 2016

morning haze
caressing these bare limbs
beside the lake

Gsk ’16

Carpe Diem #1069 leafless trees – inspiration offered by Jane Reichhold’s series of haiku:

from the wind
the flute lesson
of a bare tree

wood smoke
shaping the radiant bodies
of trees in winter

in the clearing
hovering a circle of trees
their halos

© Jane Reichhold

 

Tan Renga with Jane Reichhold (CDHK) – July 28, 2016

Carpe Diem Tan Renga Challenge #108

the open window
screened with a web
leaf shadows

© Jane Reichhold

rustling in a breeze
projecting rain memories

© Gsk ’16

Tan Renga Challenge #105 “coming to sea cliffs” – July 4, 2016

coming to sea cliffs
the off-shore breeze raises
a flower fragrance

© Jane Reichhold

remembering spring-time
a single tear falls

© Gsk ’16

Carpe Diem Tan Renga Challenge #105 “coming to sea cliffs” by Jane Reichhold

Tan Renga 2 – Shadows of Leaves – May 2, 2016

shadows of leaves
cover the open holes
her flute forgotten

(© Jane Reichhold)

she slips into memories
hidden inside shadows

© G.s.k. ‘16

Carpe Diem Tan Renga Challenge month May 2nd (2) “shadows of leaves”

shadows of leaves
cover the open holes
her flute forgotten                         (© Jane Reichhold)

caressing summer breeze
enchanted melody rises                 (© Chèvrefeuille)

Ten Styles of Tanka – Post 10 – January 29, 2016

Photos: The great Alaska earthquake of 1964 – Alaska Dispatch News

rumbling silence
then Mother dances madly
buildings topple
new streets bloom as other’s die
mournful howling of lost dogs

© G.s.k. ‘16

10. Demon-quelling – onihishigitei (or kiratsu no tei), characterised by strong or even vulgar diction and terms

“Because its methods are at odds with the classical poetical values of beauty, elegance, and grace, Teika said the style to be “more difficult” and should be attempted only when the student has become proficient in the other methods. One of Teika’s examples is taken from the Man’yoshū, #4:503 which is a more violent version than a similar poem in the Shinkokinshū, #10:911:

kamikaze ya / Ise no hamaogi / orishikite / tabine ya suran / araki hamabe ni

divine winds
reeds on the Ise beach
are broken
to make a traveller’s bed
on this rough shore

The operative words to demonstrate the demon-quelling style are “divine winds” the breaking off of reeds, and the rough seacoast. Teika taught that even though the poet put these elements into a poem, they should be treated with sensibility and gentleness however, it seems this has been most easy to ignore. Yet in an exploration of current tanka examples, I found this style under-represented and in no way as violent as the ancient poems.”

Carpe Diem Tokubetsudesu #66 Teika’s Ten Tanka Techniques by Jane Reichhold

Ten Styles of Tanka – Post 9 – January 28, 2016

the falling clouds
bring to mind fire and grief
as the wind whispers
visions of the past haunt me
of a winter long ago

G.s.k. ‘16

9. Exquisite detail – komayaka naru tei

This style is indicated by exact and precise details with often complex imagery. In Teika’s anthology of tanka styles he has 29 examples. One of which is one from the Kokinshū, #4:193, written by Ōno Chisato (890-905):

tsuki mireba / chiji ni mono koso / kanashikere / waga ni hitiostu no / /aki ni wa aranedo

gazing at the moon
a thousand sad things
overcome me
not only I feel this
in autumn alone

Carpe Diem Tokubetsudesu #66 Teika’s Ten Tanka Techniques by Jane Reichhold

Ten Styles of Tanka – Post 8 – January 27, 2016

the cold moon
illuminates the clouds
high over the lake
but not even the moon
can illuminate closed minds

G.s.k. ‘16

 

8. Novel treatment – hitofushi aru tei, Using an unusual or original poetic conception

Among the 26 examples is the poem by Fujiwara Motozane (ca 950) from the Shinkokinshū, #11:1060:

namidagawa / mi mo uku bakari / nagaruedo / kienu wa hito no / omoi narikeri

a river of tears
floats my body off
on its current
but it cannot quell the fire
you have set in my heart

 

Carpe Diem Tokubetsudesu #66 Teika’s Ten Tanka Techniques by Jane Reichhold

Ten Styles of Tanka – Post 7 – January 26, 2016

on the cobbles
the duck went for a stroll
in Malcesine
posing for the tourists
for an evening snack

G.s.k. ‘16

 

7. Clever treatment – omoshiroki tei, a witty or ingenious treatment of a conventional topic

The style must have been popular because Teika gave 31 poems in his anthology of style examples. This one is by the Archbishop Jien (1155-1225) on the topic of “snow” from the Shinkokinshū, #6:679:

niwa no yuki ni / waga ato tsukete / idetsuru o / towarenikeri to / hito ya miruran

in the snow only
I was in the garden
leaving footprints
will people think someone brought
comfort to my loneliness?

Carpe Diem Tokubetsudesu #66 Teika’s Ten Tanka Techniques by Jane Reichhold

Ten Styles of Tanka – Post 6 – January 25, 2016

the old gull
sitting on the ancient pylon
silently waits
the sun plays hide and seek
in the gathering clouds

G.s.k. ‘16

6. Visual description – miru tei

“This is a rather bland style emphasising visual description and imagery and often containing no subjective or emotive statements. Some of the decedents of Teika, such as his son Tameie, used this style or technique to counteract the strong subjective vein of the “Fujiwara style”. In the Teika Jittei are 12 examples of this style among which is this poem by Minamoto Tsunenobu (1016-1097) written on the subject of “young rice shoots” as published in Shikokinshū, #3:225:

sanae toru / yamado no kakehi / morinikeri / hiku shimenawa ne / tsuyu zo koboruru

the water pipe
leading into mountain fields
must be leaking
moisture drips down sacred ropes
around the beds of rice

It seems Shiki’s shasei style of “sketching” in haiku would be a carry-over from this tanka technique.”

 

Carpe Diem Tokubetsudesu #66 Teika’s Ten Tanka Techniques by Jane Reichhold

Petriolo – Haiku – January 25, 2016

Photo by: Art Trav – a great site about Tuscany

just laying back
in this heart throbbing heat
Petriolo springs

under this cold moon
lying nude in the Tuscan hills
caressing hot springs

G.s.k. ‘16

The following are haiku I wrote in 2014 for the prompt “hot springs”:

under the hot springs
dashing to the cool river
Petriolo

summer moonshadows
nude in the hot springs
Tuscan hills

sulfur scented air
heart throbbing heat
hot springs

G.s.k. ‘14

Carpe Diem #903 hot springs

“In Basho’s time there were several wonderful hot springs which were frequently visited by the Japanese people and by Basho himself. One of the hot springs Basho visited was in Yamanaka. In his wonderful haibun “Oku no Hosomichi” Basho says the following about this well-known hot spring in Yamanaka:
“I enjoyed a bath in the hot spring whose marvelous properties had a reputation of being second to none, except the hot spring of Ariake.

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

© Basho (Tr. Jane Reichhold)

yuno nagori kayoi wa hada no samukara n

tonight my skin
will miss the hot spring
it seems colder

© Basho (Tr. Jane Reichhold)

But today’s  prompt is based on Jane Reichhold’s “A Dictionary of Haiku”, in which she gathered modern kigo for all  the seasons.

crystal waters
warmed with the scent
of earth

ancient earth
tiredness of my old body
in hot springs

dreams
from hot mineral baths
a bright lava flow

winter night
joining us in the bath
foggy stars

© Jane Reichhold

And Chèvrefeuille’s efforts with the kigo:

hot springs hidden
deep inside the holy mountain
giving new life

© Chèvrefeuille (April 2014)

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