Haiku & Tanka

by S. L. P. Van der Veer

Winter 2001

This issue we look at two Japanese verse forms, haiku and tanka. The first, I’m sure, is familiar to most of you. The second was a pleasant discovery as I delved for background information, most of which raised at least as many questions as it answered, but was worthwhile nonetheless.

Those of you with rhyming phobia will be glad to learn that these Japanese forms do not rhyme! As a syllabic verse form, it is the number of syllables per line that matter most.

Some very basic background before we begin: Tanka (pronounced TAH’N-KAH; meaning short poem/song) developed around 1,300 years ago as a subtle means of communication between lovers. Sent the morning after a rendezvous via messenger, it allowed ‘thank you’s to be said discreetly, worded carefully so the messenger would not know what was meant. Renga (RAY’N-GAH; linked poem or linked elegance, depending on which derivation you prefer) dates back about 800 years. There are a number of ‘standard’ lengths for renga, ranging from two stanzas up to five hundred (yes, 500. And you thought I was wordy), each having a name (ex: tan renga = 2 stanzas; kasen = 36 stanza) and adhering to a particular order of stanzas (i.e., the moon stanzas, the flower stanzas). Haiku (HI-COO) came about approximately 300 years ago when the poet Basho shortened the tanka verse. Renku (RAY’N-COO; linked verse) is a term coined in the 1740’s to cause confusion with renga. It has since become a term for inferior renga. Renshi (RAY’N-SHEE) is a recent variation of (kasen) renga in which the syllable count is eliminated.

Haiku

Our first form is haiku, consisting of three lines. Originally, the term referred to a verse taken from renga, but after the poet Shiki, it is now considered synonymous with hokku (starting verse; the first stanza of a renga). The first and third lines have five syllables, while the second has seven syllables. Traditionally, a season of the year is mentioned somewhere in the haiku, to set the tone for the poem. However, this may be merely the barest implication.

A blanket falling,

its ephemeral pieces

enough to silence.

 

          by S. L. P. Van der Veer

Tanka

Our second form is tanka, consisting of five lines. The first three follow the same guidelines as haiku; the last two are a couplet, each line made up of seven syllables. The idea is that the “pivotal image”, placed somewhere around the third line, would relate - or link - to both the upper two lines (on one subject) and the lower two lines (on another subject).

Nature’s pure mantle,

fragments of fleeting beauty,

dances to the earth.

The world is hushed, marveling,

and even we are speechless.

 

          by S. L. P. Van der Veer

For Additional Information

Anthology of Japanese Literature, from the Earliest Era to the Mid-Nineteenth Century. Edited by Donald Keene (1955).

The Haiku Handbook: How to Write, Share and Teach Haiku. William J. Higginson with Penny Harter (1985).

The Shin Kokinshu: the Thirteenth Century Anthology Edited by Imperial Edict. Transl. by H. H. Honda (1970).

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