“Writing a haiku is like meditating”

Spring is changeable. Snow turns into rain and vice versa. The sky, which had just promised light and warmth, suddenly turns gray, taking away all hope. How to find yourself, half already lost heart? Everyone is looking for their own way.

My friend Tatyana composes short poems:

A drop fell off

From a long-nosed icicle

And it shone

Tatyana is proud of the fact that she can withstand a given number of syllables: five in the first and last line and seven in the middle: “It makes you concentrate.” And she says, “When I put together a haiku, a new dimension opens up in the world. Sad, of course, does not become cheerful. But it’s getting great!”

Haiku is an ancient art form of traditional Japanese poetry. The term “haiku” was coined in the XNUMXth century by the poet and genre theorist Masaoka Shiki. In the West, “haiku” is used in a broad sense, and we use it here as well. The earlier name is haiku. From the XNUMXth century, the courtiers of the emperor and invited poets composed poems in turn: one said three lines, the other added two more to them – and the result was a five-line “tanka”. Four centuries later, almost the entire literate population had so much fun.

Joking haiku by the author under the pseudonym Chanel de Chapoklyak (Poetry.ru):

new year morning

dressed up

Trash can

And another author, signed “Worlds”, writes without any irony:

In the crystals of a chandelier

Lilac wind

It doesn’t matter what we’re talking about

This activity is still popular today: there are pages of fans of this genre not only on poetry sites, but also on Odnoklassniki and Facebook. Moreover, as in medieval Japan, some prefer comic poetry, while others prefer serious ones.

Poverty and simplicity

Modern authors most often confine themselves to three lines. Today, the obligatory addition in the form of the following two lines is not required: already in the XNUMXth century, the poet Matsuo Basho turned haiku into an independent genre. The son of a poor samurai, Basho followed the principles of Zen both in life and in poetry. Here are some of them: detachment (non-participation in everyday aimless fuss), poverty and simplicity (you can not be distracted by material worries), peaceful sadness (helps to see the beauty of the world).

The pitcher burst with a crash:

At night, the water in it froze.

I woke up suddenly.

(M. Basho)

Writing a haiku is like meditating, explains poet Vladimir Gertsik, author of more than a thousand Russian haiku: “Creating such a poem is fully in line with the principle of Zen Buddhism -“ An enlightened mind is like a pure mirror, in which no image is reflected except the one in front of it. “. This is the fruit of pure observation, in which conjectures are not introduced, therefore there are no metaphors, explanations, there is not even a “I”: it is dissolved in the lived moment.

Therefore, haiku is always about the present. According to tradition, it contains a natural image associated with the season. Peonies, moon, snow, cicadas are “markers” of cold weather. Cherry blossoms, a lark, a butterfly, plowed fields – spring, summer. This is beautiful, but it is important to remember that “the concept of beauty in Japan is very different from the ancient European with its ideal beauty,” notes Vladimir Gertsik. – In Japan, beauty is sad, with an admixture of bitterness, loneliness. It is discreet and is not the purpose of the poem. The goal is to capture the feeling of an elusive moment.”

Haijin way

Perhaps not everyone will become a real haijin – a poet who has dedicated his life to creating haiku. But why not try? Putting a three-line, even following the most strict rules, is easier than a long text into a rhyme. At the same time, immersion in a contemplative state is guaranteed.

“I wrote a haiku only once, posted it on the Web and enjoyed the thoughtful comments of readers,” says director and artist Alim Vetitov. “It seems to me that haiku allows you to set yourself up for a more subtle perception, as if cleaning the windows through which you look at the world.” Three lines are composed by engineers and teachers, and psychotherapists use haiku writing techniques in their work with patients. One cancer patient bravely endured months of treatment, jotting down “waiting room haiku,” as she called them, in a notebook.

Both experienced and novice haijins say that thanks to this, so simple at first glance, poetry, there is a precious feeling of a leisurely experience of one’s being. In the modern world, haiku is written on the subway and on the boulevards, on hikes and on vacation. According to tradition, it is not about paying attention only to the happy and joyful. The impulse to write arises, rather, from fleeting details that only an attentive eye can distinguish: a touching gesture, an unexpected event, an interesting scene.

Haiku gives us unusual sensations: a poem that obliges us to search for simple and true words allows us to feel the speed of time and the charm of everyday life.

With the help of a haiku, you can do a lot – transform sadness, express admiration, support a friend. You can arrange a game in the spirit of medieval Japanese traditions, where everyone composes his own haiku. Or, for example, on a holiday, put small messages next to the cutlery. You can hold poetry gatherings with children. Writing poetry is a great opportunity to say something good to loved ones. Email, WhatsApp and SMS are so suitable for this! Haiku allow us to convey what is so difficult to catch in the noise of modernity – the beauty of fleeting days.