Styles and Techniques: Haiku

The haiku is one of the best known forms of poetry in existence. They are always in present-tense, and they usually consist of observations on nature or seasonal changes. They are exactly three lines long, with the following layout.

Line 1: Five Syllables

Line 2: Seven Syllables

Line 3: Five Syllables

So each verse has 17 syllables in all.

Here is an example of a haiku, written by the Japanese poet, Matsuo Basho. The following is probably the most famous of all haikus. Obviously, the English translation is not exactly 17 syllables long, but is to be expected: When words transition between Japanese and English, they do not always correspond.

古池 や

蛙 飛込む

水 の 音

furuike ya

kawazu tobikomu

mizu no oto

old pond...

a frog leaps in

water's sound

Haikus are beautiful and in economical spacing can pack perspective on nature and it's wonders. Anyone can write a good haiku.

clouds swim silently...

great white fish in the ocean

that is the spring sky

~ Adam B.