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I like this thread. Allow me to introduce Tanka ~ a close cousin to haiku.
Tanka: (Closed Form)
Tanka is an older form than Haiku. It marks an occasion or moment. A Tanka is usually divided in 5 syllabic lines consisting of a 5,7,5,7,7 - 31 syllable pattern as the English form. The Japanese form is written in one straight sentence. Some American Tanka’s add many stanza’s to the poem.
For example
___________________________________________________________________________________
The Sick Muse
Last night, I bet on
a bottle and the harbor,
and walked barefoot in
the wet sand. I collected
some seashells and a syringe.
There was half a moon
and at least a dozen stars.
I pulled out the note-
book, but could only tear out
the pages. The words were dead.
I cursed the ocean
and the beauty of the scene.
The dark water surged,
and a sick muse washed ashore,
naked and tangled in kelp.
Her hands were wrinkled,
and her arms were full of holes,
but she had nice legs.
She eyed the syringe and said,
"Oh, do you play with needles?"
She offered to trade
a quick poem for a fix.
She said, "I have worked
with Burroughs and Kerouac,
and I'm not opposed to forms."
She had Japanese
characters tattooed on her
legs. I reached over
and traced one with my finger.
I said, "Make mine a Tanka."
She touched my forehead,
and I understood the moon
and the black water
and the strings of rusty red
lights on the offshore oil wells.
The silver goddess
dances on the ebony
waters, worrying
that the blood of the islands
will give teeth to the ocean.
Her words filled my head,
and she reached for the syringe.
I let her have it.
"I can't write this down," I said,
"It's not even happening.
Don't you see? It's all
as simple as this bottle,
this beach, and the need
to piss. Didn't you ever
get to work with Bukowski?"
She showed me her back
and stabbed herself in the arm.
She said, "Take it or
leave it, but don't try to blame
me. It came out of your head."
She crawled on all fours
into the water, and it
closed tight around her.
I got drunk and watched
the stars burn out. The night tried
to bury me in the sand.
~ V ~
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If at all possible, I'd love to see more. Sharing haikus is one of my all-time favorite things to do.
