on the rain-washed roof -
prayer wheels to an unknown god
- ventilators spin
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Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi
Kumbha
Basho
silver kumbha
Haiku Poems and paintings inspired by Sahaja Self-realisation
Haiku Mind
Haiku mind is the awareness to tune into the vastness of the moment. Actually to create and appreciate this tiny form of poetry, one needs a vast mind like the sky.
- Patricia Donegan
- Patricia Donegan
Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi
Kumbha
Haiku Poetry
Haiku is a Japanese form of poetry traditionally using three lines of 5, 7, 5 syllables. This structure is often relaxed by haiku poets writing in languages other than Japanese. The Japanese language is much more syllabic in nature than English, and some have argued that there is no point in keeping to the traditional syllable counting with English, because it can never produce the same effect as it does in Japanese.
A haiku can be about anything; however, it should, traditionally, evoke a sense of place, time of day, or season. Often one of the lines is a so-called 'cutting line' which may shatter the logical flow of the poem, rather like a Zen koan (irrational statement designed to startle the mind out of its slumber of conventional thought).
According to the masters of Japanese Poetry, good haiku may only be composed in a state of egolessness. The poet and the subject of the poem must become one, in a state of thoughtless awareness (meditation). This is the same principle by which the art of yoga (union with the authentic self) is practised.
The style of the haiku is not one of commentary or didacticism. There should not be an attitude of sermonizing or expounding one's own opinions on things. The subject of the poem (or the poetic moment) should be allowed to speak for itself (for the Universal Self).
The poet Doho was a disciple of Basho (perhaps the most famous exponent of the art form). Doho, recalling what he has learned from Basho, relates:
"The master said, 'learn about a pine tree from a pine tree, and about a bamboo stalk from a bamboo stalk'. What he meant was that the poet should detach his mind from self [ego]… and enter into the object, sharing its delicate life and its feelings. Whereupon a poem forms itself. Description of the object is not enough: unless a poem contains feelings which have come from the object, the object and the poet's self will be separate things."
In the philosophy of Zen (from Chinese 'dzan', a word itself derived from Sanskrit Dhyana = 'meditation') the aim is to free the mind from opinions and thoughts, not to clutter it up with more - hence Zen-influenced Haiku poetry can sometimes appear banal or pointless to the uninitiated. The way to appreciate the beauty of Haiku is to try to enter into the meditative-ness of the poetry and so participate in the mood of transforming everyday natural things into the inexpressible... or allowing them to transform you.
A haiku can be about anything; however, it should, traditionally, evoke a sense of place, time of day, or season. Often one of the lines is a so-called 'cutting line' which may shatter the logical flow of the poem, rather like a Zen koan (irrational statement designed to startle the mind out of its slumber of conventional thought).
According to the masters of Japanese Poetry, good haiku may only be composed in a state of egolessness. The poet and the subject of the poem must become one, in a state of thoughtless awareness (meditation). This is the same principle by which the art of yoga (union with the authentic self) is practised.
The style of the haiku is not one of commentary or didacticism. There should not be an attitude of sermonizing or expounding one's own opinions on things. The subject of the poem (or the poetic moment) should be allowed to speak for itself (for the Universal Self).
The poet Doho was a disciple of Basho (perhaps the most famous exponent of the art form). Doho, recalling what he has learned from Basho, relates:
"The master said, 'learn about a pine tree from a pine tree, and about a bamboo stalk from a bamboo stalk'. What he meant was that the poet should detach his mind from self [ego]… and enter into the object, sharing its delicate life and its feelings. Whereupon a poem forms itself. Description of the object is not enough: unless a poem contains feelings which have come from the object, the object and the poet's self will be separate things."
In the philosophy of Zen (from Chinese 'dzan', a word itself derived from Sanskrit Dhyana = 'meditation') the aim is to free the mind from opinions and thoughts, not to clutter it up with more - hence Zen-influenced Haiku poetry can sometimes appear banal or pointless to the uninitiated. The way to appreciate the beauty of Haiku is to try to enter into the meditative-ness of the poetry and so participate in the mood of transforming everyday natural things into the inexpressible... or allowing them to transform you.
Basho
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All haikus are by Jeronimus unless otherwise stated. Please do not steal them. Not only is it bad karma but most have been published in books already and you will be in breach of copyright.
silver kumbha
4 comments:
Hello. I am a Sahaja Yogi from America and I wish to do a collaboration with you. I love to write Haiku as well. May I submit haiku to you and post here? I do not always write in the 575 because the transliteration into English is awkward.
1)
amongst pine trees,
a metal pole
is slanted
2)
before leaving
to teach,
the rain begins
3)
the water fountain
has ceased -
autumn leaves rustle above
Hi Bhalachandra. Sorry I missed your message as I have not posted to this blog for a while. Usually Blogger notifies me of comments. Not sure what happened here.
It would be great to have a more collective blog, so I will post your haikus. Send as many as you like. Keep it up.
JSM
Thank you. Jai Shri Mataji.
Here is some more Haiku and Haiku related poems:
1)
spring in Seattle -
the white side of leaves
showing in the wind
2)
standing on a fallen tree,
I am finally
as tall as this fern
3)
more and more,
I stay
in this empty room
4)
stuck to the bristles,
dust and dirt months old -
the kitchen broom
5)
back to sleep
at dawn -
outside, the birds
only know the morning
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