'pon

alone 'pon frosty hills

and yet, hidden in dawn's melt—

so many

After the chilly event it came to mind that Matsuo's masterpiece could spin my original observation (up on the heights near where I live here in rainy England. This deserves a dedication. . . .

Summer grasses:

all that remains of great soldiers’

imperial dreams

Basho

Yep, up on the Wiltshire Downs, near my beloved historical village of Maiden Bradley, this item's opening haiku ('pon) of mine came, more or less, fully formed (with a tweak or two in the haiku office). This is what we call a diary entry from the moment's becoming. Others have called the method shasai (sketching from nature) and mistaken that for Imagist poetry. (This Imigism has become a great error of shallowness in global haiku, sadly.)

The next haiku is a direct inspiration and reference (honkodori) to the great man's classic. It's based in my local rural landscape. . . .

cumulus clouds

kings and their armies sweep over

the cornfield

NOTE The universal farmer's work endures ephemeral political changes which come to pass, whilst the earth abides. Quite pleased with this little summer haiku, for me at least, it touches the spot. (Although I still oscillate between singular and plural in L33. But, the cornfield it references keeps it singular, at least most of the time!]

"In Japanese poetry, honkadori is an allusion within a poem, to an older poem which would be generally recognized by its potential readers. Honkadori possesses qualities of yugen (mystery and depth), ushin (depth of feeling) in Japanese art. The concept emerged in the 12th century during the Kamakura period. . . ." Wikipedia

That particular cloud dreaming is experienced on many occasions where I live here in rainy England. At least the memory. However, when we go ginko (haiku walking) we empty our minds. This is to allow the view to speak to us in haiku moments' - which it always does, and gladly!

My own immediate take in the first haiku ('pon) was of all the wild creatures hidden in the 'melt' . Only later did it occur to me that the Neolithic remains beneath my feet... and, perchance their ghosts also, were in dawn's evaporate. I'd covered that haiku insight in this previous experiential piece. . . .

Cold Kitchen is possibly Celtic meaning Hill of the Wizard, or it's maybe a name given after the settlement here was abandoned (hence the cold kitchen). . . .

on Cold Kitchen Hill

the farmer ploughs up

invisible people

Again, in this haibun (haiku with text) we simply draw from the direct experience of a local upland haiku walk (ginko) and that includes information regarding the history of place. At this point we are into cultural reference (which is where honkodori is rooted, quite naturally (although in Nippon it has been refined to virtual rocket science, not just in haikai but in Japanese art and literature generally).

And so, this is the way we do it, and the method we recommend as primary to all haiku fans currently extant in the miracle of the our beautiful world. . . .

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18-01-12