[For Seniors] Winter Haiku: Introducing Beautiful Masterpieces by Famous Haiku Poets

Winter chrysanthemums—what they wear is only their own light.Akiko Mizuhara

Here is a winter haiku composed by Akitoshi Mizuhara, who was also a medical doctor.

A disciple of Takahama Kyoshi, he is known as a representative haiku poet of the Hototogisu school.

This poem depicts a white chrysanthemum blooming in a winter garden where everything else has withered, clad only in its own radiant presence and standing there with a divine aura.

It beautifully conveys both the plant’s inherent beauty and its solitary dignity.

All of his seasonal poems are wonderful, so please take the time to appreciate them.

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Hirakawa Masako (Bōkarisuto: Sakata Mizumako)

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On the first Horse Day, sunlight falls on the seed sellersYosa Buson

Hatsuuma refers to the Day of the Horse that falls at the beginning of February, and because it marks the enshrinement of the Inari deity, it is known as a day when festivals are held at Inari shrines nationwide.

These festivals are meant to pray for abundant harvests and thriving business.

That’s why the seed sellers on this day may seem to be basking in bright sunshine.

Hatsuuma is also a seasonal word for spring, so it may convey the warm, lively atmosphere that awaits beyond the cold winter.

This is a well-known haiku that uses Hatsuuma, so please feel free to remember it.

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sasashina

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Anyway, leaving it all up to you, the year comes to an end.Kobayashi Issa

Kobayashi Issa, famous as one of the three great haiku poets of the Edo period, composed the haiku “Tomokaku mo anata makase no toshi no kure” at the end of a certain year.

Kobayashi Issa is also known as a devotee born into a Jōdo Shinshū household.

In this haiku, the “anata” (you) refers to Amida Buddha.

It conveys the sentiment: “This year had many hardships, but no matter what the year was like, Amida Buddha unfailingly extends a saving hand.

With peace of mind, let us move forward.”

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moko

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Cold moon—at the gateless temple the sky soars high.Yosa Buson

Yosa Buson was a haiku poet active in the Edo period.

Yosa Buson, Matsuo Bashō, and Kobayashi Issa are said to be the three most renowned haikai poets of the Edo era.

If you’re working with older adults who enjoy haiku, some may be familiar with Yosa Buson.

“Kangetsu ya / mon naki tera no / ten takashi” is a verse by Buson, who was also a painter; it feels like a painting or a sketch from life.

Its meaning is that on a cold night, high above the clear sky of a temple that has not even a small gate, the moon shines with piercing clarity.

When we simply say “moon,” it may evoke a gentle autumn atmosphere.

By saying “cold moon,” it conveys a moon that casts a keen light in the chilly night sky.

Try using seasonal words skillfully and let the sense of the seasons guide you as you compose haiku with older adults.

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Nakajima Junko

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Drift ice and the gate-waves of Soya— the storm won’t cease.Seishi Yamaguchi

This is a haiku by Seishi Yamaguchi, who spent his childhood in Karafuto, written as he recalls those early years.

The seasonal word in this poem is “drift ice,” ice that floats and drifts on the sea.

At first glance, you might think it’s a winter kigo.

However, drift ice arrives in spring, when the frozen seawater begins to melt little by little—so it actually signifies the arrival of spring in cold regions.

“Sōya” refers to the Sōya Strait, north of Hokkaido.

The poem contrasts the fierce, standing waves of the Sōya Strait with the drifting ice.

Though the signs of spring are approaching, February remains bitterly cold.

The haiku vividly captures the severity of midwinter and the relentless rough seas that show no sign of calming.

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moko

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By the scent of plum blossoms, I am drawn back—ah, the cold.Matsuo Bashō

Although “ume” (plum blossom) is famous as a spring kigo, in this verse the kigo is “ume ga ka,” which literally means the fragrance of plum blossoms.

Ume heralds spring, but it is an early-spring flower that begins to bloom as the season shifts from cold to warm.

Just because the ume has bloomed doesn’t mean spring has arrived at once.

You can sense how, even while feeling the signs of spring, the lingering winter chill makes one stop short and stand stock-still; through this, the poem conveys the gradual changing of the seasons.

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moko

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Behind the willow with the nightingale, before the thicketMatsuo Bashō

It’s a haiku that conjures up the image of a restless nightingale flitting behind the willows and popping out in front of the thicket.

The nightingale, also called the harbinger of spring, is often depicted as a quintessential symbol of the season—like “plum blossoms and nightingale.” So we tend to think of it as a graceful creature, but in reality it moves around quite a lot.

This haiku captures the nightingale just as it is, almost like a live commentary on the bird right before your eyes.

Just imagining it brings a gentle smile—what a lovely piece.

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sasashina

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