haikaiTALKS: a saturday gathering! 5th July 2025

haikaiTALKS: MA | a saturday gathering under the banyan tree

A Disclaimer

Responsibility for the originality of the haikai rests solely with the submitting poet. 

Should anyone feel it is similar to another haikai, they are encouraged to directly reach out to the concerned poet.

Triveni Haikai India will take action, if any, on the recommendation of the submitting poet.

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Special Guest Poet: Keiko Izawa

host: Srinivasa Sambangi 5th July 2025

haikaiTALKS: a saturday gathering under the banyan tree

Your Guest Poet for July for haikaiTALKS: Keiko Izawa

haikaiTALKS 5th July 2025

Japanese aesthetics – Ma (a.k.a. Yohaku no Bi)                 

The haijin Hasegawa Kai once asked an ikebana artist, “What is the difference between ikebana and flower arrangement?” The artist replied, “Flower arrangement tries to fill space with flowers, but ikebana tries to make space come alive with flowers”. This answer reflects ma, the beauty of blank, empty, white or negative space.

The Japanese have long preferred the beauty of emptiness to a clutter of objects -- even beautiful ones -- taking up space. Empty space, whether in ikebana, karesansui, gagaku, or sumi-e, as well as in haiku, allows the imagination to expand to new levels.

In haiku, ma refers to the space within letters, between letters and between lines. In Basho’s haiku, the kireji (cut/break): ‘ya’* creates a space between L1 and L2.  

古池や 蛙飛び込む 水の音

furuike ya* / kawazu tobikomu / mizu no oto

old pond

the sound of a frog

jumping in 

The furuike: 'old pond' creates a ma between itself and the sound of the frog jumping into the pond. The ma after L1 is a deep pause that evokes our aesthetic sense. Old ponds, like old wells, are forgotten places and are said to symbolize death. The sound made by a frog jumping into the water represents life and movement. By depicting the frog jumping into the ancient pond, which represents a world associated with death, the author breathes new life into it.

This week you are requested to write up to two haiku that express ma, creating a sense of space, rather than filling space with words.

As usual, try to use kigo from the lists below. You can also use your local season words that are not listed here.

“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/

Samples:

1.

swallowtail

maybe I’ll

say yes

~ Francie Banworth

2.

大の字に寝て 涼しさよ 淋しさよdai no ji ni nete / suzushisa yo / sabishisa yo

lying spread-eagle cool lonely

~ Issa

3.

tundra

~ Coh van den Heuvel

(References: Culture of Ma by Hasegawa Kai; Why Basho Is the Supreme Haijin by Ohwa Yasuhiro)

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KIGO WORDS

Shall we please try to include a kigo word in all the poems we share here?

Give the season and the word — under your poem. 

I'm quoting Lev Hart's request here: "This week’s goal is to compose two verses with toriawase, blending wabi, sabi, karumi, mono no aware, and/or yugen. Tell us which aesthetic concepts you mean to express in a line below the verse. Strive for originality. Avoid stock phrases and shopworn images."

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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Welcome, Keiko! It's lovely to have you once again.

I hope our poets take the challenge and create a haiku on these lines! Keenly looking ahead to this month.

Greatly indebted to you.

Dear Members,

Please give your feedback on others' commentary and poems, too. _()_

We are continuing haikaiTALKS in a grand manner!

Keep writing and commenting! _kala