triveni spotlight: 7th January 2026
- Anju Kishore
- Jan 7
- 1 min read
triveni spotlight A FEATURE EVERY ALTERNATE DAY hosts: Anju Kishore and Mohua Maulik GUEST EDITOR: Mohua Maulik
7th January 2026
triveni spotlight January 2026
face reading …
nothing new to say
about my husband
—Lakshmi Iyer
haikuKATHA issue 6
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The Lightness of Being
Humor in haikai is what first drew me to this extraordinary genre of poetry. Humor that is subtle or overt, one that makes me giggle or one that stings and yet brings a smile.
Quoting from the essay, Humor in Haiku by Susumu Takiguchi, “...the true spirit of haiku as the word “haiku” is composed of two parts, “hai” and “ku”, and it is the meaning of the former which is often forgotten or never learnt in the first place, creating one of the most serious flaws in Western writing of haiku. The “hai” is part of another word “hai-kai” of Chinese origin, whose Japanese equivalent is “kokkei”. Now, the word “kokkei” can be variously translated into English: comicality, drollery, waggery, jocularity, joke, jest, pleasantry, humour, witticism, pun, farce, funny things etc.”
As we begin a new year, I invite you to join me in exploring haiku that bring a lightness to our step, a smile in our hearts, and perhaps tickles us enough to make us snort or even guffaw.
Wishing everyone a peaceful and happy 2026.
Mohua Maulik
We wish our poet-friends here a creatively fulfilling 2026. May the year bring you all joy and to the world, lasting peace. Thank you for your curation, Mohua. We are sure the poems will add to the celebrations.
Team Triveni Spotlight
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humor is full of wisdom! and delivers its message with a smile--thank you for the ku and for these insights--
This is so good Lakshmi. The face can reveal so much. I love how she is reading his face like a newspaper.
Thank you to each one of you!
The words just dropped in and I'm honoured to have in our haikuKATHA as well as a brilliant commentary by Shloka!!
Brilliant senryu, Lakshmi
Such a fun senryu by Lakshmi which really tickled my funny bone. Congratulations Lakshmi on winning the Editor's Choice award, which i am copy pasting here:
Editors' Choice Commentary by Shloka Shankar
face reading …
nothing new to say
about my husband
— Lakshmi Iyer
A person’s face can give so much away and becomes a sort of portal into taking a
peek at the inside workings of their mind. This is more so in married couples. In
this rather tongue-in-cheek senryu, which gave me a good chuckle upon first
reading it, I instantly pictured my own middle-aged parents.
The poem highlights the film of familiarity that settles on any marriage over a
period of time, leave alone several decades.…