Haiku (Overview)
"Renga (linked verse)" is one of the ways to enjoy the "tanka". Originally,
"renga" embraced a courtly style based on historical events quoted from the
classics. During the 16th Century, use of this style declined as "haikai"
increased in popularity. "Haikai" that tends to contain humor or jokes is
another way to enjoy "tanka", the first lines of 5, 7 and 5 syllables and
the later ones of 7 and 7 syllables are composed by different poets. The later
section composed of 7 and 7 syllables, is called the "tsukeku (linking verse, joined verse or added verse)".
In the case of both "renga" and "haikai", the first section of 5, 7 and 5
syllables is called the "hokku" which means "the starting verse" and it must
contain "kigo", a word that indicates "season". Eventually, the new style
"hokku" was to be recognized as an independent form of "haikai" and in the
Meiji era Masaoka Shiki (1867 - 1902) named it "haiku". Nowadays "Haiku" attracts
many adherents from all over the world.
Famous "haikai" or "haiku" poets of former days included Matsuo BashoMatsuo Basho (1644
- 1694) and Yosano Buson (1716 - 1783). Basho maintained a distance from the
"haikai" which for him tended to contain too much joking and play on words.
He assembled a new landscape for Japanese poetry by writing poems that created an atmosphere combining "sabi" (elegant simplicity), "shiori" (a deep sympathetic feeling for both nature and humanity), "hosomi" (understatement) and "karomi" (a light tone) to form a "Basho" style that focussed on the mood of "yugen" (spiritual profundity). This innovative style was designed to eloquently express the inner beauty of art and nature and to evoke an intense sense of "kanjaku" (serene desolation). He also composed many poems that were influenced by the ideas of the ancient Chinese philosopher Chuang Tze.Buson also composed many poems using sophisticated words and tried
to express a picturesque world that was quite different from the style of
Basho. The innovative content of modern "haiku" was contributed mostly by
Masaoka Shiki ("Shiki" literally means Japanese cuckoo) who criticized Basho
and also voiced the opinion that "haiku" composed by Buson was technically
more refined than that of Basho. He insisted on the importance of "shasei"
(sketching) to create expressive "haiku" in a concise style by the use of
visual descriptions. These ideas were to stimulate an interest in "haiku"
among his contemporaries.
