Sutra chanting fills
the temple with monk's voices
-
myriad green leaves
-Kôko Katô
In the moonlight a toad
doesn't leave the pond
and
so cannot sleep
-Kôko Katô
Gradually growing
gratitude goes to my friend
on
the verandah
-Yoshiko Naito
Passing my station
I have left something
behind
this bright autumn day.
-Yoshiko Naito
After long absence
we're constantly friends
again
by the warm fireplace
-Yoshiko Naito
Mazuruka o hikikonashi ezu shottsuru-nabe ka
Mazuruka = folk song from Poland
hikikonashi ezu - can play well enough
shottsuru-nabe = name of a one-pot dish from Northern Japan
nabe = pot
- Kei Akao (Haruko Akao)
Tsuta sentjo Karenana to shite Araarashi
Entangled ivy
to die
change harshly
-Kazuko Arima
Toki no Tenshi ga ureta Kogarash Kotten
Ceramic angel
sold in cold wintry wind
antique
shop
-Kimiko Itami
Koto kuguru usumurasaki ni aki no kaze
The voice of autumn -
a lavender breeze
moves
through the koto strings
-Kôko Katô
Izumi no soko ni ippon no saji natsu owaru.
A spoon
at the bottom of the fountain -
summer has
gone
-Hasuko Iijima
KK
Hari hamono kagami hikagami netsusha koyu
hari = needle
hamono = cutlery
kagami = mirror
hikagami = behind the knee
hetsusha = heat
kogu = (mountain) pass or summit
- Shigeko Kohiyama
Karasu-ur karenan to shite shu o fukamu
gourd
dying
orange deepens
-Sunie Matsumoto
Tai shun ka tai kan ka ishi shizukanite
Waiting for spring
endure the cold
stone quiet
-Niyoko Kawasaki
(Hideko Nakajima)
Big bunch of grapes
so quickly my hands become
a
lake
-Toyoko Koono
Takijiyo Koono
Heavy fog
starts writing
a night diary
-Miyoko Ooba
First butterfly
flying carefully
over its
shadow
-Haruko Takigi
Fading away human being
violet clusters of
wisteria
calmly resume their relaxing
- Michi Shibuya
Gold in the sun
Silver in the shade -
Oh, pampas
grass
-Umeko Shimomura
KK
All are wounded
in the depth of the sea
like cherry
blossoms. O sea shells!
Kiyo Hinoki
hanabie no sugao ni chikashi Hotoke no hi.
Cold flowers
unpainted face
close to candlelight
- Yuki Inoue
Slowly and quietly
Mother's growing old
A relish of
vinegary chrysanthemum.
-Mizue Yamada
(eating chrysanthemum is believed good for longevity.)
Nigi Futae Kami no Renai shitamaeri
Rainbow double - gods also fall in love
-Kiyoko Tsuda
Nakihito wa umi ayumi koyo sakuradoki
You who ceased to be
Walk to me over the sea
Cherry
blossom time
-Chieko Watanabe
Usugini ya
Kito kanashimasu
Koi wo shite
My gauze dress wayward
Others might have been in
grief
Because of my love
-Masajo Suzuki
The season of changing clothes
For summer; I see a
bridge
not so far away
-Teijo Nakamura
KR
KK= translation by Kôko Katô
KR = Kennoth Rexroth with Ikuko Atsumi in Women Poets of Japan, New Directions Book, 1977.
Yoshiko Naito's haiku were borrowed from her book, Haiku One Year, 1998.
Page Copyright © Jane Reichhold 1998
Poems
Copyright © Designated Authors 1998.
Go to Table of Contents for Those Women Writing Haiku.