Saturday, November 23, 2013

Some autumn haiku

The first winter storm has settled down over Tucson for the past two days--temperatures in the low 50s--grey, gloomy overcast skies--rain, rain, rain.  .  .

Perhaps that explains the temper of these haiku.



         Deepen, drop, and die
Many-hued chrysanthemums .  .  .
         One black earth for all
                    -- Ryusui --




                                           Chilling autumn rain .  .  .
                                    The moon, too bright for showers,
                                              Slips from their fingers
                                                          -- Tokuku --



                                                                                  
      Rainy-month, dripping
On and on as I lie abed .  .  .
          Ah, old man's memories!
                             -- Buson --





                                         Gray moor, unmarred
                                By any path .  .  . a single branch .  .  .
                                         A bird .  .  . November
                                                           -- Anon --




                On one riverbank
Sunbeams slanting down .  .  . but on
         The other .  .  . raindrops
                                  -- Buson --



When the sun comes out again, if ever, I'll post more cheerful haiku.




All haiku come from
A Little Treasury of Haiku
Avenel Books,  NY
translated by Peter Beilenson

4 comments:

  1. Thank you for posting these. Although now I need to put on a sweater, lol.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Cheryl,

    The storm has moved east, so the sun is shining, and I will post some haiku that are a bit more cheerful. However, all things considered, you will still probably need that sweater.

    ReplyDelete
  3. They exactly match the weather we're having here in NJ. Tomorrow is supposed to be windy, wet and nasty. We'll see. I look forward to sunnier haiku. :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Yvette,

    The sun is now shining in Tucson, so I will see what I can find.

    ReplyDelete