Carpe Diem Full Circle #2, Puddles

Dear haijin, visitors and travelers,

Today our second episode of this new feature at our Carpe Diem Haiku Kai Special weblog. I called it ''Full Circle'' and the goal is to write haiku with the twelve (12) words I will give. It's a kind of word-whirl and you have to use the words given in the clock-wise direction. So every word has to come in the line of it's place on the clock e.g. sunflower you have to use for line one (1) and rain storm for line two (2) and so on.

I will give you twelve (12) words (for every ''hour'') one word. The goal is to write haiku using the words as given in the clock wise way.

Here are the 12 (twelve) words for this new episode:

1. sunflower
2. rain storm
3. puddles
4. sea shore
5. shells
6. making love
7. garden
8. waterfall
9. stones
10. sunrise
11. peony
12. shadow

If you follow the words clock wise than you can compose four new haiku. This new feature is just for fun and I hope you will as much enjoy it as I did have fun and joy to create it.

Credits: Sunflower Reflection

Here is an example of a new haiku written with the first three words:

broken sunflower
torn apart through a rain storm -
puddles on the path

© Chèvrefeuille

This episode of "Full Circle" is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until August 31st at noon (CET). Have fun! Just enjoy this "Full Circle" haiku-composing.

Carpe Diem's "Let The Music Inspire You" #1, Introduction

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

I love to introduce a new Special feature here at Carpe Diem Haiku Kai Special, the place to be for Haiku-poets searching for inspiration ...
This new feature I have called "Carpe Diem's Let The Music Inspire You" and as the name already says: This new feature is about inspirational music to write haiku. As you maybe know from Carpe Diem Haiku Kai we have had earlier months with music-compositions for inspiration and last month we had music by BrunuhVille, a young Portugese composer, for inspiration.

For this first "Let The Music Inspire You" I have chosen a wonderful piece of music by Vivaldi, I think you all know "The Four Seasons" and I love to share the summer part here

Well .... I hope you did like this music and that it has inspired you to write a new haiku. Have fun, be inspired and share your haiku with us all here at Carpe Diem Haiku Kai Special.
This first episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until July 16th at noon.

Use that quote #6, Albert Einstein

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

It's my pleasure to create a new episode of Carpe Diem's "Use that Quote" for this episode I have chosen a quote by Albert Einstein.

Credits: Albert Einstein (1879-1955)

Albert Einstein was born at Ulm, in Württemberg, Germany, on March 14, 1879. Six weeks later the family moved to Munich, where he later on began his schooling at the Luitpold Gymnasium. Later, they moved to Italy and Albert continued his education at Aarau, Switzerland and in 1896 he entered the Swiss Federal Polytechnic School in Zurich to be trained as a teacher in physics and mathematics. In 1901, the year he gained his diploma, he acquired Swiss citizenship and, as he was unable to find a teaching post, he accepted a position as technical assistant in the Swiss Patent Office. In 1905 he obtained his doctor's degree.
During his stay at the Patent Office, and in his spare time, he produced much of his remarkable work and in 1908 he was appointed Privatdozent in Berne. In 1909 he became Professor Extraordinary at Zurich, in 1911 Professor of Theoretical Physics at Prague, returning to Zurich in the following year to fill a similar post. In 1914 he was appointed Director of the Kaiser Wilhelm Physical Institute and Professor in the University of Berlin. He became a German citizen in 1914 and remained in Berlin until 1933 when he renounced his citizenship for political reasons and emigrated to America to take the position of Professor of Theoretical Physics at Princeton*. He became a United States citizen in 1940 and retired from his post in 1945.
Einstein always appeared to have a clear view of the problems of physics and the determination to solve them. He had a strategy of his own and was able to visualize the main stages on the way to his goal. He regarded his major achievements as mere stepping-stones for the next advance.
In the 1920's, Einstein embarked on the construction of unified field theories, although he continued to work on the probabilistic interpretation of quantum theory, and he persevered with this work in America. He contributed to statistical mechanics by his development of the quantum theory of a monatomic gas and he has also accomplished valuable work in connection with atomic transition probabilities and relativistic cosmology.

He died on April 18, 1955 at Princeton, New Jersey.

Here is Einstein's quote for your inspiration:

[...] "Only one who devotes himself to a cause with his whole strength and soul can be a true master. For this reason mastery demands all of a person." [...]

In this quote it's very clear, in my opinion, that you can only become a master if you do any- everything to become a master. In our case, my case, that's being always busy with haiku. If I do any- everything to become a master in haiku than I finally will become a haiku master ...

Credits: Matsuo Basho (1644-1694), my master

The goal is to write a haiku, senryu, tanka, kyoka or haibun inspired on the quote. I think this one isn't easy, but well ... it has to be challenging ...

devotees of Buddha
meditating and contemplating
to become master

© Chèvrefeuille

This episode op CD Use That Quote is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until June 30th at noon. Have fun, be inspired and share your inspired haiku with us all here at our Carpe Diem Haiku Kai Special.

Carpe Diem's Japanese Garden #2,

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

I have finally found some more time to bring Carpe Diem Haiku Kai Special back to life again. And I hope that you all will appreciate this weblog as much as I appreciate it while making it a success. A new episode of Carpe Diem's Japanese Garden is coming up.

Several months ago I introduced “Carpe Diem’s Japanese Garden”. This feature goes back to the roots of haiku and challenges you to go back to basic. The title of this feature is referring to the classic rules of haiku, but in this feature not all those classic rules have to be used, just a few of them.

Which rules you have to use here?

1. 5-7-5 syllables
2. A moment as short as the sound of a pebble thrown into water
3. A kigo
4. A deeper, spiritual meaning
5. And last, but not least, it must have a nature image

As the title already says ... it has to be something which can be seen in your garden, but in this case garden can be seen a bit broader, because you also may use an image from a park in your neighbourhood or e.g. a park such as Yellowstone Park.

Here is my new haiku for CD's Japanese Garden: 

gurgling valley stream
can't resist your lovely song -
shadow of a Carp

© Chèvrefeuille

It's up to you now to share your thoughts with us all here at Carpe Diem Haiku Kai Special. Have fun, be inspired and share.

This episode of Carpe Diem's Japanese Garden is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until June 18th at noon (cet).

Carpe Diem's Use that Quote #5 Confucius

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

It's a while ago, somewhere back in March 2014, that published a episode of Carpe Diem's Use That Quote, so I thought "Maybe I have to publish a new episode of CD Quote", so here it is a new CD Quote:

Today I love to share a quote by Confucius:

[...] Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated. [...]

Confucius (551 BC - 479 BC)

Confucius was a Chinese philosopher who lived from 551 BC to 479 BC. He is a wellknown philosopher and there are a lot of quotes by him, but his philosophy is also one of the spiritual roots of haiku. In the haiku by e.g. Basho we can see a lot of confucianism. Basho had studied the works of Confucius and in a part of his life he used Confucius' philosophy for quite a while.

To use this quote in a haiku, senryu, tanka, kyoka or haibun isn't easy, but I have to try it of course.

the circle of life
cherry blossoms bloom and fall
one by one

(c) Chèvrefeuille

Hm ... not a bad try I think ...

Credits: Cherry blossom petals falling

This episode of CD Use That Quote is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until May 30th at noon. Have fun, be inspired and share your haiku with us all here at Carpe Diem Haiku Kai Special.

Carpe Diem "Spiritual Ways" #2 Unconditional Love

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

As you follow my other weblog Carpe Diem Haiku Kai than you maybe know that we are on a pilgrimage along the 88 temples on the Island of Shikoku. It's a pilgrimage who every Buddhist needs to make once in his/her lifetime. This pilgrimage inspired me to create this all new feature, because one of the 'classic rules' of haiku is that there has to be a deeper meaning in it, mostly based on Buddhism, but all other spiritual ways of other religions can also be in it on a deeper layer.
Here ... however ... I will try to stay close to my own philosophy which is based on more than one religion or spiritual vision.

Nara NaraYana

In this episode I love to share a bit of my philosophy with you all. This philosophy of my is very important in all that what I am doing e.g. in my work as an oncology nurse in a local hospital. My philosophy is:

 

First ... live out of unconditional love for all and everything on Earth
Second ... in everything and everyone there is God (or Spirit or what ever you call it yourself), which is based on the thought 'NaraNaraYana", a Hindu word which means something like "God in humankind, humankind in God".
And last but not least ... you have always look towards the other with respect and you have to accept that the other is different from you. In my work I always look at my patients with the thought "How would I like it if I was in that hospital bed?"

Unconditional Love

Well ... I hope this post inspires you to compose a 'spiritual' haiku. It inspired me to write the next haiku:

unconditional
love never makes exceptions -
the sun rises again

the sun rises again
every day without asking why
unconditional

(c) Chèvrefeuille

Not a strong set I think, but I think the message has become clear ... is it a spiritual one? Yes it is ... Now it's up to you ...

This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will remain open until March 2nd 11.59 AM (CET).

Carpe Diem's "only the first line" #3

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

I have another "only the first line" episode for you to work with. The goal of this feature is to write an all new haiku which starts with the given first line. It's a nice feature and it challenges you to think 'out of the box', because this feature doesn't work with one of the classic rules namely ... an experienced moment as short as the sound of a pebble thrown into water.

This week's haiku has to start with the following first line:

a shooting star

Ah ... an easy one I think, but ... we will see ... here is my attempt to write a new haiku starting with this first line:

a shooting star
cuts through the dark moonless night -
wish you were here

(c)Chèvrefeuille

Shooting Star

Now it's up to you to write a haiku starting with the given first line ... have fun, be inspired and share. This episode of Carpe Diem's "only the first line" is now open for your submissions and will remain open until February 3rd 11.59 AM (CET).

Carpe Diem's "Use That Quote"

 

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

I present to you our second episode of Carpe Diem's "Use that Quote" in which the goal is to write a haiku, senryu, tanka or kyoka inspired on a given quote. Today I have chosen a quote by Khalil Gibran a Lebanese writer and poet, but also a philosopher. He wrote a lot of novels about spirituality. Our quote from today's episode of Carpe Diem's "Use That Quote" is from his novel "The Prophet".
 

Selfportrait Khalil Gibran

I have read almost all his novels and I love his work a lot. He is the reason, why I once started to read Paulo Coelho's novels. Paulo's latest novel "Manuscript found in Accra" looks very similar with the novels of Khalil Gibran ... maybe they are related in mind.

Here is the quote for this episode:

"forget not that the Earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair"

And now it's the goal to use this quote for your inspiration to write a haiku, senryu, tanka or kyoka. I know that will not be easy, because I had some difficulties myself to write a haiku with this quote for inspiration, but I think I have succeeded. Here is my haiku inspired on the quote by Khalil Gibran.

with bare feet
dancing on Mother Earth's grounds
wind plays with my hair

(c) Chèvrefeuille

This episode of "Use That Quote" will stay on until February 6th 11.59 AM (CET) and I will try to post on that same day a new episode. For now have fun, be inspired and share your haiku with us all here at Carpe Diem Haiku Kai Special.

Carpe Diem's "Japanese Garden"

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

I love to introduce an all new feature here at Carpe Diem Haiku Kai Special and I think this new feature will give you all a joyful challenge.
This new feature, this new challenge, goes back to the roots of haiku and challenges you to go back to basic. It's very similar to our other special feature "Goes Back to Its Roots". The title of this new feature is referring to the classic rules of haiku, but in this new feature not all those classic rules have to be used, just a few of them.

Which rules you have to use here?

1. 5-7-5 syllables
2. A moment as short as the sound of a pebble thrown into water
3. A kigo
4. A deeper, spiritual meaning

5. And last, but not least, it must have a nature image

Almost the same as in our "Goes Back to Its Roots", but for all a little bit different I think. As the title already says ... it has to be something which can be seen in your garden, but in this case garden can be seen a bit broader, because you also may use an image from a park in your neighborhood or e.g. a park such as Yellowstone Park.

. 

Let me give it a try with the above photo which I took in the city-park just around the corner in my hometown. This park is ... an oasis in a busy part of my hometown. As I walk here I don't even feel that I am in the city. In spring this park is a peaceful place and in winter, as the pond is frozen, it's a joyful place to skate and meet other people from my neighborhood. In summer you can even swim here. And of course in autumn it's the place to be to search for chestnuts and colorful leaves. 

Here is my attempt to write a classical haiku inspired on the city-park just around the corner.

heart of the neighborhood
in every season of the year
the place to contemplate

A beauty I can say, how immodest, but it's what I feel as I read this haiku again and again. It's a strong one and I think it's in touch with the goal of this new feature. What do you think?

Well ... I hope you like this new feature and I hope it will become a feature that is loved by you all. It's up to you now to take up this new challenge and share your thoughts with us all here at Carpe Diem Haiku Kai Special. Have fun, be inspired and share.

This episode of CD "Japanese Garden" will stay open until January 28th 11.59 AM (CET) and I will try to publish a new episode of "Japanese Garden" later on that same day. !! This episode is now open for your submissions !!

Carpe Diem "Only the First Line" #2

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Our first episode of "Only the First Line" wasn't a big success, but maybe this second episode will be more inspiration for you all. The goal of this feature is to write a haiku with the given first line. That given first line must be used as the first line of your haiku.
This feature is very similar with our other Special feature "Make The Haiku Complete". So if you would read more than visit our first weblog "Carpe Diem Haiku Kai"

Here is the First Line which you have to use for your haiku. By the way ... you may write a classical or a non-classical haiku that's all up to you. The only thing you have to do is use the give line as your first line.

hunger moon

"Hunger Moon" is the name of the full moon of January as it is mentioned in Thomas's Old Farmers Almanac (founded in 1792). During this month the wolves once roamed the countryside, thus suggesting the name wolf moon. In cold and temperate climates of the Northern Hemisphere, it was difficult to find food during January, thus the name hunger moon.

hunger moon
the howling of wolves -
cry of a crow

(c) Chèvrefeuille

Wolves

This episode will stay on until January 26th 11.59 AM (CET) and I will post our new episode of "Only the First Line" that same day. This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions. Have fun, be inspired and share your haiku with us all here at Carpe Diem Haiku Kai Special.

Carpe Diem "Spiritual Ways" #1

 

Dear haijin, visitors and travelers,

It's my pleasure to introduce an all new Special feature on Carpe Diem Haiku Kai Special titled: "Carpe Diem Spiritual Ways".

As you (maybe) all know, haiku has a strong connection with Buddhism. A lot of haiku have a Buddhistic layer and for example Basho, Issa and Chiyo-Ni (a female haiku-poet) were Buddhist, Chiyo-Ni was a Buddhist monk.
A few years ago I wrote a short essay about haiku for Wonder Haiku Worlds in which I stated that haiku can be read (seen) as a 'Koan', the impossible question which can give Enlightenment. I think that (all) haiku can really be seen as such a koan, but that's just my idea, my vision.
If you're a loyal 'follower' of our Carpe Diem weblogs than you know that we are on a journey to Shikoku which started this month with all daily prompts about the Trans Siberian Railroad straight through the Soviet Union and the next two months we will go on a pilgrimage along the 88 shrines on the Island Shikoku and I will tell you more about the Buddhistic 'rules' of haiku.

OK ... back to this new Special feature. I have named it "Spiritual Ways" and the goal is to write a haiku, senryu, tanka or kyoka with a spiritual layer in it. With this new feature I hope to promote the Spiritual Way of haiku and to make you all aware of that 'classical rule'  in haiku. I know it will not be easy, but that's the challenge. As Iread my haiku than I have written a lot of haiku with that Spiritual Way hidden in it. Sometimes even clear in my haiku, but mostly hidden beneath the surface of the haiku.

Lonely Flower

Let's give it a try to write, compose, a few haiku written with a spiritual layer. First I love to share a few oldies which I wrote in the years laying behind us.

lonely flower
my companion for a night -
I bow my head

(c) Chèvrefeuille

In this haiku the deeper layer is the 'loneliness' and the 'selflessness' of a Buddhistic monk. I wrote this haiku as I was wandering through a big parc outside of the city where I live. I remember that it was a nice sunny late autumn day and I was completely alone in that parc. My thoughts went to a moment back in time in which I felt completely alone. It was not long after that my only brother died of lungcancer (1995). As my thoughts went on a run with me I saw a lonely flower between the bare branches. It was a, as we call it here in The Netherlands, a 'Hondsroos'  ('dog rose'). I plucked it and took it with me. As I arrived at my home there was nobody at home and I was completely alone, I had only that 'dog rose' and that comforted me.

Another one in which the 'Spiritual Way' was more clear I wrote in response to a photo of praying hands.

strong hands praying
at the corner of the street -
God be with you

(c) Chèvrefeuille

Praying Hands

As you can read in both haiku there's a kind of spirituality in it and that's the goal of this new Special feature "Spiritual Ways" ... let me share another haiku for this new feature.

deep silence
only whispered prayers -
the scent of incense

(c) Chèvrefeuille 

I hope you did like this new Special feature and that it will give you joy and inspiration to write, compose your haiku, senryu, tanka or kyoka with a "Spiritual Way".
This Special feature will be open for your submissions until January 28th 11.59 AM (CET) and I will (try to) publish a new episode of "Spiritual Ways" that same day. !! This episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions !!

Carpe Diem's "Sweet Memories" #2, "A Lonely Flower"

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

It's a New Year and in this time of year (and before) most of us will have moments in which they are thinking back to nice times or sad times ... We all have Memories. As we are on board of the Trans Siberian Railroad on a trip straight through the Soviet Union ... we are in touch with the memories of Paulo Coelho for example, but during that journey I have also read wonderful haiku based on Sweet (and sad) Memories.
Memories are part of our life and sometimes those memories have brought nice haiku in the past, but they can also bring new haiku right now. Every haiku you have written during your lifetime has a memory build in it.
This special feature is meant to be for those haiku, senryu, tanka or kyoka which bring (Sweet) Memories to you. Here you can share a haiku written around such a memory.

For this episode of "Sweet Memories" I have chosen to share my first English haiku ever which I wrote somewhere back in 2005. That haiku I published on Wonder Haiku Worlds and it brought me (finally) what I once dreamed for, becoming Internationally known as a haiku-poet. That first haiku was translated in a lot of other languages and was published in a world wide anthology "Spasms of Light" in 2011.

a lonely flower
my companion
for one night

(c) Chèvrefeuille, 2005

Really a nice haiku and I than couldn't think that it would bring fame.

For this feature you don't get a prompt, you may share what you want ... of course that has to be a haiku, senryu, tanka or kyoka (smiles), the only thing is that the haiku you share has a story, a memory. Just feel free to share your memories caught in haiku.

This episode of "Sweet Memories" will be open for your submissions until January 28th 11.59 AM (CET) and I will try to publish a new episode of 'sweet memories' on that same day. !! This episode is NOW OPEN !!

Carpe Diem's "Kamishibai" #8 ...my neighborhood ...

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

It's time for an all new episode of our Special feature on writing Haibun. This is our new episode of Carpe Diem's Kamishibai. Kamishibai (meaning 'storyteller') is a Special feature in which the goal is to write a haibun. A haibun is a short story or travelogue in which haiku are included. It's a classical poetry form which was performed for example by Matsuo Basho. Basho made ten (10) journeys through Japan and noted his adventures in a haibun. His most known haibun is called: "Oki No Hosomichi", "The Narrow Road to the Deep North", a great haibun about you can read more on our first weblog "Carpe Diem Haiku Kai".

The task for this episode of "Carpe Diem's Kamishibai" is to write a haibun about your neighborhood, must be easy ...

My neighborhood in autumn

At least one evening in the week I walk through my neighborhood, just for fun. I love looking through windows at the people in their homes and in this time of year (around the december holidays) it's really a joy to do that, but in all seasons it's a joy. Here is my (short) haibun "my neighborhood".

It's almost around 10 PM (CET) as I walk through my neighborhood. It's a bit cold, a bright star-spotted sky and the almost full moon are leading me on my path. It's a few days before Christmas and in a lot of homes the Christmastree already has been decorated. As I walk on I rest a while looking through the window of one of my neighbor's. They are decorating the Christmastree and I can hear Christmas-songs through the open window of their kitchen. The windows are partly steamed. I hear the laughter of the young kids and the soft bark of a little dog.
As I look closer I can see that the female neighbor is pregnant ... and as I can see ... almost ready to give birth. She enjoys the look of her children as they are decorating the Christmas tree. Than a flash of pain goes over her face. She sits down and her husband looks at her. I can't hear what he's saying, but it seems that he's worried. His wife nods ... they leave the Christmas tree for what it is and ...
Not much later I hear that they are leaving ... she is in labour.

Christmas decorations

Several days later as I walk again through my neighborhood. I stop at the same house. I hear the sound of a new born and as I look closer I can see that this family is standing together around the Christmas tree ... singing Christmas songs. On her arms she holds a little boy. As I walk on ... it starts to snow. "This is how it's meant to be", I think.

really it's Christmas
a little child is born -
snow is falling 


I hope you did like this haibun, it's not of this time, but I had to share it with you all. Now it's up to you. Write a haibun about "your neighborhood" and share it with us all. This "Kamishibai" episode is NOW OPEN for your submissions and will be open until February 12th 11.59 AM (CET).

Carpe Diem's "Use that Quote"

Good day dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

I am inspired today and have created another challenging special feature. I present to you Carpe Diem's "Use that Quote" in which the goal is to write a haiku, senryu, tanka or kyoka inspired on a given quote. And for today I have chosen a quote by Martin Luther King, the man who was assinated (as JFK was) in 1968. King had a dream ... he dreamed about being the first 'black' president of the US ... as we all know he didn't fullfill that dream, but his dream became true as Obama became president of the US.

Martin Luther King

His (King's) one-liner became one of most wellknown one-liners ever. I think you all know already which one-liner I mean. Yes ... that one.
Here it is to inspire you to write a haiku:

'I have a dream' - Martin Luther King

Here is my inspired haiku on this quote:

walking on pink clouds
dreaming about the first cherry blossom
today I saw the first

(C) Chèvrefeuille

First Cherry Blossom

Now it is up to you. Write a haiku inspired on the quote by Martin Luther King. Have fun, be inspired and share your haiku with us.
This episode of "Use That Quote" is now open for your submissions and will stay open until January 23th 11.59 AM (CET) and I will (try to) post a new episode later on that day.

Carpe Diem Haiga Festival #1

Dear Haijin, visitors and travelers,

Welcome at the first episode of a new  special feature on Carpe
Diem Haiku Kai Special. This feature is an awesome one, because in this feature it's all about Haiga.
Haiga is a nice kind of art and poetry it's a photo, painting or other kind of image with a haiku, senryu, tanka or kyoka included. The picture and the poem are making eachother stronger or making eachother clearer.
I have created a few haiga in the past years and I liked doing it ... so I hope you all appreciate this new feature and I will (try to) publish an every week episode of Haiga Festival.

For this new feature the only task is to share a Haiga with us. Maybe you have a special memory going with it ... or maybe your haiga is just that beautiful to share. This feature will not have a given prompt ... it's just free ... feel free to share your haiga which you like.

I love to share a haiga which I made not that long ago, and maybe you can remember it, because I shared it on Carpe Diem Haiku Kai and here it is:

This episode of Haiga Festival will stay open until January 16th 11.59 AM (CET) and I will (try to) post a new episode of this new feature that same date. NOW OPEN for your submissions!