haikaiTALKS: a Saturday gathering! 20th June 2026

haikaiTALKS: Two-line haiku|a Saturday gathering under the banyan tree

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haikaiTALKS 

Guest poet: Srinivasa Rao Sambangi

haikaiTALKS: a Saturday gathering under the banyan tree

20th June 2026

Two-line haiku

Haiku poet and archivist, Charles Trumbull maintains an English language haiku database of about 5.5 lakhs. Out of this, two-line haiku are about 1.6% only, and majority of them are a part of linked forms like renga. Standalone two-line haiku are negligible.

According to Jim Kacian, since haiku is, most often, a juxtaposition of two images, the two-line form should ideally be a better fit. But to have a sudden shift, the surprise element, we need a third line. And, a two-line form cannot provide the asymmetry inherent in the Japanese haiku.

However, the two-line form is preferable when a longer pause is needed. It allows you to create these pauses by having a missing second or third line. David Grayson describes the circumstances in which one might prefer a two-line form when the writer wants to magnify the impact of line one relative to line two.

For further details and examples, you may refer to the link given below. You may also see in this link, the correspondence between Alan Summers and Michael Lindenhofer. I suggest you see the comments section of the link as well.

Examples:

In the woodpile

the broken ax handle

     -- Michael Facherty

october loneliness

two walking sticks

   -- Vincent Tripi

winter’s end

a wardrobe slaps closed

         -- Alan Summers (tinywords, issue 21.1)

(See the link given for the commentary on the above poem)

fields of wildflowers

many shades of silence

      -- Linda Love

Please write and post one or two of your two-line haiku this week.

Ref:

New to Haiku: An Introduction to Two-Line Haiku - The Haiku Foundation

http://www.hsa-haiku.org/frogpond/2015-issue38-3/Grayson-2lineHaiku-Fp38-3.pdf

For seasonal references, please check these lists:

“A Dictionary of Haiku Classified by Season Words with Traditional and Modern Methods,” by Jane Reichhold:

https://thehaikufoundation.org/omeka/files/original/7fb6654a1dfd1afef97369da920530f8.pdf

indian subcontinent SAIJIKI:

https://www.trivenihaikai.in/indian-saijiki

The Five Hundred Essential Japanese Season Words:

http://www.2hweb.net/haikai/renku/500ESWd.html

The World Kigo Database:

https://wkdkigodatabase03.blogspot.com/

The Yuki Teikei Haiku Season Word List:

https://yths.org/season-word-list/

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Dear poets,

Please provide your feedback on others' commentary and poems as well.

We are continuing haikaiTALKS in full swing!

Keep writing and commenting! _kala