These are my modern English translations of Takaha Shugyo haiku and tanka...
hatogata horarete ichiju haya mebuku
A single tree
with a heart carved into its trunk
blossoms prematurely
—Takaha Shugyo, loose translation by Michael R. Burch
dôkefuku nugazu tentômushi no shi yo
Still clad in its clown's costume—
the dead ladybird.
—Takaha Shugyo, loose translation by Michael R. Burch
ochitsubaki ware naraba kyuryu e otsu
Oh, fallen camellias,
if I were you,
I'd leap into the torrent!
—Takaha Shugyo, loose translation by Michael R. Burch
kari sugishi ato zenten o miseitari
Wild geese pass
leaving the emptiness of heaven
revealed
—Takaha Shugyo, loose translation by Michael R. Burch
kurumi waru kurumi no naka ni tsukawanu heya
Inside the cracked shell
of a walnut:
one empty room
—Takaha Shugyo, loose translation by Michael R. Burch
Michinoku no hoshiiri tsurara ware ni kure yo
Bring me an icicle
sparkling with the stars
of the deep north
—Takaha Shugyo, loose translation by Michael R. Burch
matenro yori shinryoku ga paseri hodo
Seen from the skyscraper
the trees' fresh greenery:
sprigs of parsley
—Takaha Shugyo, loose translation by Michael R. Burch
Our life here on earth:
to what shall we compare it?
It is not like a rowboat
departing at daybreak,
leaving no trace of us in its wake?
—Takaha Shugyo, loose translation by Michael R. Burch
Are the geese flying south?
The candle continues to flicker...
―Takaha Shugyo, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
Such gloom!
Inside the walnut's cracked shell:
one empty room
―Takaha Shugyo, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
Tree crickets chirping—
after I've judged
a thousand verses today!
―Takaha Shugyo, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
Crickets chirping discordantly—
how to judge
ten thousand verses?
―Takaha Shugyo, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
Original Haiku and Tanka
by Michael R. Burch
These are original haiku and tanka written by Michael R. Burch, along with haiku-like and tanka-like poems inspired by the poetic forms but not necessarily abiding by all the rules. These poems were inspired by Japanese masters of haiku and tanka such as Matsuo Basho, Yosa Buson, Fudaka Chiyo-ni, Ono no Komachi, Kobayashi Issa and Takaha Shugyo.
My Personal Favorites
Dark-bosomed clouds
pregnant with heavy thunder ...
the water breaks
―Michael R. Burch
The haiku above was my first serious haiku. It came to me in a flash, fully formed, under the influence of the Japanese masters, as I published a collection of my favorite haiku. At that point, I had not translated any haiku, but I went on to translate, or, more properly interpret, hundreds of haiku. Was my haiku the gift of the Muses, in reward for my efforts on their behalf? I would like to think so.
Am I really this old,
so many ghosts
beckoning?
—Michael R. Burch
Brittle autumn leaf,
how was I to know
you were my life?
—Michael R. Burch
Sleepyheads!
I recite my haiku
to the inattentive lilies.
—Michael R. Burch
Celebrate the New Year?
The cat is not impressed,
the dogs shiver.
—Michael R. Burch
Cats are seldom impressed by human accomplishments, while the canine members of our family have always hated fireworks and other unexpected loud noises.
Early robins
get the worms,
cats waiting to pounce.
—Michael R. Burch
Elderly sunflowers:
bees trimming their beards.
―Michael R. Burch
The ability
to disagree agreeably—
civility.
―Michael R. Burch
Fireflies
thinking to illuminate the darkness?
Poets!
―Michael R. Burch
The following haiku were written for the mothers and children of the Tail of Tears, the Holocaust, the Palestinian Nakba, Putin's invasion of Ukraine, school shootings, and so many other avoidable catastrophes. I agree with Gandhi, who said that if we want to live in a better world, we must start with the children.
Mightier than Atlas,
she shoulders the weight
of one fallen star.
―Michael R. Burch, "Childless"
My footprints
so faint in the snow?
Ah yes, you lifted me.
―Michael R. Burch
An emu feather
still falling?
So quickly you rushed to my rescue.
―Michael R. Burch
The sun warms
a solitary stone.
Let us abandon no one.
―Michael R. Burch
Born into the delicate autumn,
too late to mature,
pale petal ...
―Michael R. Burch
Soft as daffodils fall
all the lamentations
of life’s smallest victims,
departing unheard ...
―Michael R. Burch
As springs’ budding blossoms emerge
the raptors glide mercilessly.
―Michael R. Burch
The haiku above was written on 3-27-2023 after the Nashville Covenant school shooting. This is another haiku that came to me in a flash, fully formed.
"Slain" — an impossible word to comprehend.
The male lion murders cubs,
licks his lips, devours them.
―Michael R. Burch, "Incomprehensible"
I also wrote "Slain" in response to the Nashville Covenant school shooting.
The eagle sees farther
from its greater height—
our ancestors' wisdom
―Michael R. Burch
We should listen to the wisest of our ancestors on the subject of equality and justice, including Sappho (who wrote the first "make love, not war" poem over 2,500 years ago), Sitting Bull, Frederick Douglass, Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr., Nelson Mandela and Jimmy Carter.
Can eagles soar,
hooded?
—Michael R. Burch, "American Eagle"
Valentine Haiku and Tanka, for Beth
My lovely wife Beth, more formally known as Elizabeth Steed Harris Burch, embodies and exemplifies love and compassion.
Teach me to love:
to fly beyond sterile Mars
to percolating Venus.
―Michael R. Burch
You rise with the sun,
mysteriously warm,
also scattering sunbeams.
―Michael R. Burch
one pillow ...
our dreams
merge
―Michael R. Burch
She bathes in silver,
~~~~ afloat ~~~~
on her reflections...
—Michael R. Burch
Crushed grapes
surrender such sweetness!
A mother’s compassion.
―Michael R. Burch
Love is a surreal sweetness
in a world where trampled grapes
become wine.
―Michael R. Burch
The day’s eyes were blue
until you appeared
and they wept at your beauty.
―Michael R. Burch
The moon blushed
then fled behind a cloud:
her stolen kiss.
―Michael R. Burch
You astound me,
your name
unpronounceable on my lips.
―Michael R. Burch
You astound me;
your name on my lips
remains unpronounceable.
―Michael R. Burch
A leaf brushes my cheek:
a subtle lover’s
gentlest caress.
―Michael R. Burch
The plums were sweet,
icy and delicious.
To eat them all
was perhaps malicious.
But I vastly prefer your kisses!
―Michael R. Burch
How vaguely I knew you
though I held you close ...
your heart’s muffled thunder,
your breath the wind—
rising and falling.
―Michael R. Burch
Iffy Coronavirus Haiku
yet another iffy coronavirus haiku #1
by michael r. burch
plagued by the Plague
i plague the goldfish
with my verse
yet another iffy coronavirus haiku #2
by michael r. burch
sunflowers
hang their heads
embarrassed by their coronas
I wrote this poem after having a sunflower arrangement delivered to my mother, who is in an assisted living center and can’t have visitors due to the coronavirus pandemic. I have been informed the poem breaks haiku rules about personification, etc.
homework: yet another iffy coronavirus haiku #3
by michael r. burch
dim bulb overhead,
my silent companion:
still imitating the noonday sun?
yet another iffy coronavirus haiku #4
by michael r. burch
Spring fling—
children string flowers
into their face masks
yet another iffy coronavirus haiku #5
by michael r. burch
the Thought counts:
our lips and fingers
insulated by plexiglass ...
yet another iffy coronavirus haiku #6
by michael r. burch
masks, masks
everywhere
and not a straw to drink ...
Dark Cloud, Silver Lining
by Michael R. Burch
Every corona has a silver lining:
I’m too far away to hear your whining,
and despite my stormy demeanor,
my hands have never been cleaner!
New World Order (last in a series and perhaps of a species)
by Michael R. Burch
The days of the dandelions dawn ...
soon man will be gone:
fertilizer.
The Original Sin: Rhyming Haiku!
Haiku
should never rhyme:
it’s a crime!
―Michael R. Burch
The herons stand,
sentry-like, at attention ...
rigid observers of some unknown command.
―Michael R. Burch
Late
fall;
all
the golden leaves turn black underfoot:
soot
―Michael R. Burch
Dry leaf flung awry:
bright butterfly,
goodbye!
―Michael R. Burch
A snake in the grass
lies, hissing
"Trespass!"
―Michael R. Burch
Honeysuckle
blesses my knuckle
with affectionate dew
―Michael R. Burch
My nose nuzzles
honeysuckle’s
sweet nothings
―Michael R. Burch
The day’s eyes were blue
until you appeared
and they wept at your beauty.
―Michael R. Burch
The moon in decline
like my lover’s heart
lies far beyond mine
―Michael R. Burch
My mother’s eyes
acknowledging my imperfection:
dejection
―Michael R. Burch
The sun sets
the moon fails to rise
we avoid each other’s eyes
―Michael R. Burch
bright leaf flung awry ~
butterfly, goodbye!
―Michael R. Burch
leaf flutters in flight ~
bright, O and endeavoring butterfly,
goodbye!
―Michael R. Burch
a soaring kite flits
into the heart of the sun?
Butterfly & Chrysanthemum
―Michael R. Burch
The whore with the pallid lips
lipsticks
into something more comfortable
―Michael R. Burch
I am a traveler
going nowhere—
but my how the gawking bystanders stare!
―Michael R. Burch
This is a poem composed of haiku-like stanzas:
DANDELION, ROAR!
by Michael R. Burch
Lift up your head
dandelion,
hear spring roar!
How will you tidy your hair
this near
summer?
Leave to each still night
your lightest affliction,
dandruff.
Soon you will free yourself:
one shake
of your white mane.
Now there are worlds
into which you appear
and disappear
seemingly at will
but invariably blown—
wildly, then still.
Gasp at the bright chill
glower
of winter.
Icicles splinter;
sleep still an hour,
till, resurrected in power,
you lift up your head,
dandelion.
Hear spring roar!
―Michael R. Burch
Variations on Fall
Farewells like
falling
leaves,
so many sad goodbyes.
―Michael R. Burch
Falling leaves
brittle hearts
whisper farewells
―Michael R. Burch
Autumn leaves
soft farewells
falling ...
falling ...
falling ...
―Michael R. Burch
Autumn leaves
Fall’s farewells
Whispered goodbyes
―Michael R. Burch
Variations on the Seasons
by Michael R. Burch
Mother earth
prepares her nurseries:
spring greening
The trees become
modest,
coy behind fans
*
Wobbly fawns
have become the fleetest athletes:
summer
*
Dry leaves
scuttling like crabs:
autumn
*
The sky
shivers:
snowfall
Each
translucent flake
lighter than eiderdown
the entire town entombed
but not in gloom,
bedazzled.
Variations on Night
Night—
ice and darkness
conspire against human warmth
―Michael R. Burch
Night and the Stars
conspire against me:
Immensity
―Michael R. Burch
in the ice-cold cathedral
prayer candles ablaze
flicker warmthlessly
―michael r. burch
Variations on the Arts
Paint peeling:
the novel's
novelty wears off ...
The autumn marigold's
former glory:
allegory.
Human arias?
The nightingale frowns, perplexed.
Tone deaf!
Where do cynics
finally retire?
Satire.
All the world’s
a stage
unless it’s a cage.
To write an epigram,
cram.
If you lack wit, scram.
Haiku
should never rhyme:
it’s a crime!
Video
dumped the boob tube
for YouTube.
Anyone
can rap:
just write rhythmic crap!
Variations on Lingerie
by Michael R. Burch
Were you just a delusion?
The black negligee you left
now merest illusion.
The clothesline
quivers,
ripe with unmentionables.
The clothesline quivers:
wind,
or ghosts?
Variations on Love and Wisdom
by Michael R. Burch
Wise old owls
stare myopically at the moon,
hooting as the hart escapes.
Myopic moon-hooting owls
hoot as the hart escapes
The myopic owl,
moon-intent, scowls;
my rabbit heart thunders ...
Peace, wise fowl!
Tanka
All the wild energies
of electric youth
captured in the monochromes
of an ancient photobooth
like zigzagging lightning.
―Michael R. Burch
A child waving ...
The train groans slowly away ...
Loneliness ...
Somewhere in the distance gusts
scatter the stray unharvested hay ...
―Michael R. Burch
The plums were sweet,
icy and delicious.
To eat them all
was perhaps malicious.
But I vastly prefer your kisses!
―Michael R. Burch
How vaguely I knew you
though I held you close ...
your heart’s muffled thunder,
your breath the wind—
rising and falling.
―Michael R. Burch
Ascendance Transcendence
by Michael R. Burch
Breaching the summit
I reach
the horizon’s last rays.
Untitled
sheer green stockings
queer green beer
St. Patrick's Day!
―michael r. burch
cicadas chirping everywhere
singing to beat the band—
surround sound
―michael r. burch
Regal, upright,
clad in royal purple:
Zinnia
―michael r. burch
although meant for market
a pail full of strawberries
invites indulgence
―michael r. burch
late November;
skeptics scoff
but the geese no longer migrate
―michael r. burch
as the butterfly hunts nectar
the generous iris
continues to bloom
―michael r. burch
Her sky-high promises:
midday moon
—Michael R. Burch
The north wind’s refrain,
a southbound train ...
Invitation?
—Michael R. Burch
The north wind’s refrain,
the receding strain
of a southbound train ...
Invitation?
—Michael R. Burch
The evening grass
accumulates dew,
roots in corpses.
—Michael R. Burch
Midwinter
church bells
seem more cacophonous...
—Michael R. Burch
Coyotes yip at wolves,
their offspring endangered:
politics
—Michael R. Burch
The sky tries to assume
your eyes’ azure
but can’t quite pull it off.
—Michael R. Burch
The sky tries to assume
your eyes’ arresting blue
but can’t quite pull it off.
—Michael R. Burch
Two bullheaded frogs
croaking belligerently:
election season.
—Michael R. Burch
An enterprising cricket
serenades the sunrise:
soloist.
—Michael R. Burch
A single cricket
serenades the sunrise:
solo violinist.
—Michael R. Burch
The Ultimate Haiku Against God
by Michael R. Burch
Because you made a world
where nothing matters,
our hearts lie in tatters.
Other Haiku Translations
As the monks sip their morning tea,
chrysanthemums quietly blossom.
—Matsuo Basho, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
The fragrance of plum blossoms
on a foggy path:
the sun rising.
—Matsuo Basho, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
The sea darkens ...
yet still faintly white
the wild duck protests.
—Matsuo Basho, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
Pear tree blossoms
whitened by moonlight:
a young woman reading a letter.
—Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
Outlined in the moonlight ...
who is that standing
among the pear trees?
—Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
Your coolness:
the sound of the bell
departing the bell.
—Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
As the moon flies west
the flowers' shadows
creep eastward.
—Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
By such pale moonlight
even the wisteria's fragrance
seems distant.
—Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
Leaves
like crows’ shadows
flirt with a lonely moon.
Kaga no Chiyo, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
Let me die
covered with flowers
and never again wake to this earthly dream!
—Ochi Etsujin, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
To reveal how your heart flowers,
sway like the summer grove.
—Tagami Kikusha-Ni, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
In the thicket's shade
a solitary woman sings the rice-planting song.
Kobayashi Issa, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
Unaware of these degenerate times,
cherry blossoms abound!
Kobayashi Issa, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
These silent summer nights
even the stars
seem to whisper.
Kobayashi Issa, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
The enormous firefly
weaves its way, this way and that,
as it passes by.
Kobayashi Issa, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
Composed like the Thinker, he sits
contemplating the mountains:
the sagacious frog!
Kobayashi Issa, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
A fallen blossom
returning to its bough?
No, a butterfly!
Arakida Moritake, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
Illuminated by the harvest moon
smoke is caught creeping
across the water ...
Hattori Ransetsu, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
Fanning its tail flamboyantly
with every excuse of a breeze,
the peacock!
Masaoki Shiki, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
Waves row through the mists
of the endless sea.
Masaoki Shiki, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
I hurl a firefly into the darkness
and sense the enormity of night.
—Kyoshi Takahama, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
As girls gather rice sprouts
reflections of the rain ripple
on the backs of their hats.
—Kyoshi Takahama, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
An Original Poem
Love is either wholly folly,
or fully holy.
—Michael R. Burch
Keywords/Tags: Takaha Shugyo, haiku, translation, translations, English, modern English, nature, camellias, ladybug, geese, walnut, tree, rowboat
Reviews
No reviews yet.