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ing World War II. The depicts The World at Peace the sorrowful sound of cicadas reso- nating around the museum in place of through Haiku the voiceless war dead. 不器用に The Haiku International Association held its annual general meeting in 生きて八十路や in November. Sano Kentaro was there. 花茗荷 Bukiyo ni n November 24, 2012, the Shimbun Award, and the Times ikite yasoji ya 14th General Meeting and Award, in addition to selection of four hana myoga Lecture of the Haiku haiku in foreign languages. Hasegawa Harue (Kasugai O International Association Hoshino Tsunehiko, vice president City, Aichi Prefecture) (HIA) was held in Tokyo. Lars Vargö, of HIA (and professor emeritus at This haiku associates the detached the Ambassador of Sweden to Japan, Waseda University), spoke on reviewing feeling of the poet with pale yellow delivered a lecture and about 130 people the prizewinning haiku, and Kimura myoga (Japanese ginger) flowers. participated; among them were the win- Toshio, an HIA board member (and pro- ners of the Haiku Awards. fessor at Nihon University) commented Arima Akito, president of the HIA, on foreign-language haiku. chairperson for the Ten-i haiku poetry Arima commented that, “There group and one of Japan’s leading haiku were many interesting haiku, and many poets (Arima is a former president of the were ambitious and high in quality. University of Tokyo and former Minister There were also haiku that reflect the of Education), delivered the opening ad- mindset of foreign people, and these dress. “Our mission is for people around also received prizes.” the world to discuss the form of writing called haiku, and to promote peace throughout the world,” he said. “We want to make the world peaceful through grassroots exchanges among the Myoga (Japanese ginger) flowers world’s lovers of haiku, and through the cooperation of all of you, we want to Association of Haiku Poets Award more widely internationalize haiku.” About 700 haiku were sent in from 岬あれば Japan and other countries. Sixteen judg- 灯台があり

es selected two prizewinners and ten JOURNAL THE JAPAN 鳥渡る honorable mention recipients, from HIA Award winner Kamisaku Yoshiko Misaki areba which seven final winners were chosen. receives her certificate from Arima todai ga ari Winners were named in the Haiku Akito, the president of HIA. tori wataru International Association Award (two Kusano Junko (Setagaya haiku), the Association of Haiku Poets Prize-winning Haiku City, Tokyo Prefecture) Award, Gendai Haiku Association This haiku captures the landscape of Award, Association of Japanese Here are the award-winning haiku and Japan, which is surrounded by ocean, Classical Haiku Award, Nihon Keizai comments on them. in a pictorial structure.

Haiku International Association Award

蜩の 集 まって来る 無言館 Higurashi no atsumattekuru Mugon-kan Kamisaku Hitoko (Chiba City, Chiba Prefecture) THE JAPAN JOURNAL THE JAPAN Arima Akito, president of the Haiku Mugon-kan in Nagano Prefecture is a International Association, delivers his museum that collects paintings left by Birds fly close to the lighthouse on the opening address. art students who fought and died dur- cape of Inubosaki.

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Gendai Haiku Association Award the music of Edvard Grieg, a leading Scandinavian composer. 昼顔や 破船の舳 Foreign-language Haiku Award 沖を指す Hirugao ya Two blackbirds hasen no hesaki fighting for a breadcrumb— oki wo sasu sparrow is faster Tsuboi Saisei (Tama City, Tugomir Orak (Croatia) Tokyo Prefecture) This haiku depicts a situation that can Hirugao (Japanese bindweed), a sea- be described as good fishing in trou- sonal word (in haiku) for summer, is bled waters, and how the poet felt reminiscent of the ocean. This haiku about the comical scene. depicts an abandoned ship by the shore that seems to have begun sliding into the sea.

“Great Bridge, Sudden Shower at Atake” from Meisho Hyakkei by A blackbird untroubled Utagawa (1797–1858) Air plane and bird Bindweed in flower on the shoreline Nihon Keizai Shimbun Award different speeds but parallel Association of Japanese Classical Haiku 広重の Anusha Tennakoom (Japan) Award 絵が動き出す This haiku captures a feeling of mys- 大夕立 terious illusion when two completely 風向きを Hiroshige no different moving things were placed 少し気 にして e ga ugokidasu next to each other. 秋刀魚焼く oyudachi Kazamuki wo Yoshimura Reiko (Sanda unable to shut it out sukoshi kinishite City, Hyogo Prefecture) even when I close my eyes yaku sanma This haiku was composed when the full moon Ito Setsuko (Kawasaki City, poet encountered an evening shower Seren Fargo (U.S.) Kanagawa Prefecture) reminiscent of a ukiyo-e woodblock This haiku depicts an overwhelm- This is a so-called kitchen haiku, at print by the late- artist ing and absolute impression of the which many women excel, and re- Utagawa Hiroshige titled “Great full moon. flects the feelings of the poet who is Bridge, Sudden Shower at Atake.” concerned about the smoke from the early thaw grill when cooking sanma (saury), an Japan Times Award paw prints autumn specialty, that wafts in the to oblivion neighborhood. The word sukoshi (a フィヨルド に Scott Mason (U.S.) bit) adds to the poem’s effect. グリーグを聞く 白夜かな Fiyorudo ni Grieg wo kiku Byakuya kana Fujino Naoyuki (Tome City, Miyagi Prefecture) This haiku was composed while the writer was traveling in Norway and fell into the embrace of the region’s natural phenomena including the Sanma, the saury, the taste of autumn short Arctic nights, and listened to Paw-prints on the spring snow

24 The Japan Journal JANUARY 2013 The Japan Journal JANUARY 2013 25 The haiku depicts the mysteriousness Year. (See “Shinkokinshu: A n Falkman, president of the Swedish of beings, as the poet sees footprints Anthology for Our Times,” August Haiku Association and special adviser of small animals gradually disappear 2005, The Japan Journal) to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and as the snow melts. Vargö also mentioned another poet Shimizu Tetsuo selected this col- commonality in that both Japan and lection of 100 haiku each from Sweden Japanologist Lars Vargö Sweden enjoyed periods without war, and Japan. Among them is a haiku by during which nationally renowned Tomas Tranströmer, winner of 2011 Following the comments on award- poets emerged and laid the foundations Nobel Prize in Literature. winning haiku, Lars Vargö, the ambas- of the society of poetry that has lasted Below is the famous haiku sador of Sweden to Japan, delivered a to this day. There was no war during found in The Sorrow Gondola, his lecture titled “Poems, Songs, Haiku and Japan’s Edo period (1603–1867), and magnum opus. Poesy [poetry].” Matsuo Basho emerged in the process Vargö is a scholar of Japan and also of formation of the Bushido philosophy The power lines known as a haiku composer. He has and spirit to establish the world of sev- stretched across the kingdom of frost edited and published haiku magazines enteen-syllable verses, which has been north of all music and books in Sweden. He studied passed down to the present. In Sweden, Chinese while attending Stockholm peace has been sustained since 1814, Finally, Vargö mentioned the two University and wanted to study in and nationally famous poets have outstanding haiku poets who emerged in China, but since the Great Cultural emerged in this time who are different Sweden in 2010. The poets use lower- Revolution was underway in China at case characters only, without any colons that time, changed the focus of his stud- or hyphens. Vargö closed his lecture by ies to Japan. In 1973 he was offered a stating, “Poets who can be described as scholarship from the Ministry of true haiku poets have emerged, and they Education (now the Ministry of will improve haiku in Sweden.” Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Vargö’s lecture, delivered in fluent Technology), studied the ancient history Japanese, revealed the situations sur- of Japan at University, and earned rounding haiku and other matters in a doctorate after returning to Sweden his country and common points with with a thesis on seventh-century Japan Japan, and exemplified the interna- titled “The Process of Formation of tional exchange through haiku that

the Ancient Japanese Nation and its JOURNAL THE JAPAN Arima mentioned. Socioeconomic Circumstances.” Lars Vargö delivers his lecture. Arima enthusiastically stated, “The In his lecture, Vargö discussed how Association celebrates its fifteenth anni- both Japan and Sweden are located at from religious poets. Many, Vargö versary next year. We are considering an edge of a continent, and how people said, have been influenced by haiku making an overseas haiku tour com- and culture flowed into them. He went poetry. One example is Harry posed of our members. And we hope on to mention many commonalities be- Martinson (1904–1978), who won the to hold a large-scale meeting next year, tween the countries and noted that Nobel Prize in Literature in 1974. inviting haiku poets from Europe, the among the many things brought in Martinson studied Chinese poetry and United States and China.” from the continent, poesy (poetry) was haiku while traveling around the world The sky was clear over Ichigaya in extremely important and rulers were when he was young, which led to the Tokyo, where the meeting was held, required to understand and appreciate three-verse haiku that characterize and trees along the outer moat of the it in addition to possessing military his works. Many outstanding haiku Imperial Palace had begun to show prowess. Japan, in fact, was strongly were also found in the diary of Dag their colors. influenced by Chinese poetry while Hammarskjöld (1905–1961), who Japanese poems were highly appreciat- served as the second Secretary-General SANO Kentaro is a freelance writer. ed during the , mainly in of the United Nations and died in a the imperial court. Poetry was at the plane accident while performing his core of the ruling body or government. duties. A collection of his haiku was The fact that as many as twenty-one published in 1963 under the title imperial-commissioned anthologies of Vägmärken (Markings). poetry were edited mainly during the Many of Sweden’s short poems are Heian period is evidence of this point, three-versed, reflecting the influence of and the tradition continues to this day haiku. There are many haiku lovers in as exemplified by Utakai hajime (New the country, and an increasing number Year poetry reading) in which the im- of occasions enable exchanges involving perial family composes waka poems haiku. A symbol of these exchanges is THE JAPAN JOURNAL THE JAPAN with the people and celebrates the New Snow in April, published in 2000. Kaj A leafy quarter of Tokyo in autumn

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