haikaiTALKS: a saturday gathering! 19th October

haikaiTALKS: MONO NO AWARE | a saturday gathering_under the banyan tree

host: Lev Hart 19th October 2024

haikaiTALKS: a saturday gathering_under the banyan tree

MONO NO AWARE - 2

Your host for haikaiTALKS Lev Hart

<> <>

Mono No Aware 2

Kanji Dev’s haiku has mono no aware, “the touchingness of things”:

              the woodpecker keeps hammering hunger moon

               (HAIKUsutradhar, 20/04/24)

The image, “hunger moon,” as we saw in “Names of the Full Moon,” is a seasonal reference to Winter. In the context of “hunger moon,” the woodpecker’s hammering suggests a plight that would be absent in any other season. The situation becomes clear in a breathtaking image, “hammering hunger.” This image suggests traditional themes linked to Winter, like hardship and death. The winter season, with its allusions, combines with the immediacy of “hammering hunger” to evoke feelings like concern, compassion, empathy, and fellow-feeling. The woodpecker’s perseverance evokes admiration and hope.

Your mission, should you decide to accept it, is to write two haiku with mono no aware, evoking empathy through nature imagery. Strive for originality, avoiding shopworn images. Remember the kigo, or seasonal reference. Traditional haiku is all about the juxtaposition of the season with the moment.

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

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

The Yuki Teikei Haiku Season Word List:

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

indian subcontinent SAIJIKI:

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

The World Kigo Database:

https://wkdkigodatabase03.blogspot.com/

The Five Hundred Essential Japanese Season Words:

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

**

Thank you for doing this for us, Lev.

Members,

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

This is an exciting phase for haikaiTALKS! Have fun! Keep writing and commenting! _kala