I still remember my first encounter with 俳句 (haiku). I was in first grade, attending an elementary school in the United States. Yes, at the age of 5, I wrote my first 俳句 (sadly, I didn’t keep a copy).
The entire objective of this lesson on Japanese poetry was actually to learn about how syllables are used in English. The goal was to produce three lines that matched the correct number of syllables in a 俳句: five, seven, five. It’s only now, more than 20 years later, that I’ve come to realize this doesn’t nearly begin to describe the depths of this historic art form.
Let’s try to plunge into those depths. First, take a look at possibly the most famous 俳句 of all time — written by the most famous 俳人 (haijin, haiku poet) of all time — 松尾芭蕉 (Matsuo Bashō, [1644-94]):