Beach and shore

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Beach (biichi), Shore (nagisa)

***** Location: Worldwide
***** Season: All Summer and see below
***** Category: Earth and see below

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Explanation

To enjoy a summer holiday on the beach ... most of us have this experience.

There is another word, ISO 磯, to indicate a rocky sea shore, see below.

There is another word, HAMA 浜磯, to indicate a sandy beach, see below.

The word BEACH, just like that, is a topic for haiku.
But we have "spring beach", summer beach", "autumn beach" and "winter beach", see below.


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De dune en dune
le vent colporte
les soupirs des amants.

From dune to dune
the wind peddles
the sighs of lovers.

- Shared by Patrick Fetu -
Joys of Japan, 2012


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Let us look at the kigo about beach, shore, sea and waves.


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kigo for all summer


beach house, umi no ie 海の家
..... biichi hausu ビーチハウス
..... summer house, samaa hausu サマーハウス


beach for swimming, kaisui yokujoo 海水浴場
..... enjoying the tide, shio asobi 潮浴び（しおあび）

beach parasol, suna higasa 砂日傘
..... biichi parasoru ビーチパラソル, hama higasa 浜日傘（はまひがさ）


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playing in water, mizu asobi 水遊び
..... fighting games in the water, mizu ikusa 水戦（みずいくさ）、mizu gassen 水合戦（みずがっせん）、mizu jiai 水試合（みずじあい）
Sometimes done on the beach, sometimes in a small pool in the garden or a park.

mizudeppoo 水鉄砲 (みずでっぽう) water pistol


. ukiningyoo, uki-ningyoo 浮人形 (うきにんぎょう)
floating dolls 　


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surfing, saafin サーフィン
..... nami nori 波乗（なみのり）
surfboard, saafuboodo サーフボード
..... naminori ita 波乗板（なみのりいた）
surfer, saafuraidaa サーフライダー

suijoo suki 水上スキー (すいじょうすきー) waterski
Wasserski


nude beach, beach for naked bathing

summer beach, natsu no hama 夏の浜
summer sea, natsu no umi 夏の海, natsu umi 夏海
summer waves, natsu no nami 夏の波

..... natsu nami 夏濤（なつなみ）, natsu dotoo 夏怒濤（なつどとう）

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summer tide, natsu no shio 夏の湖
Each month the tide changes with the changing climate.

aobajio 青葉潮 (あおばじお) tide and green leaves
especially on the shores from Kagoshima via Izu toward Hokkaido, along the Pacific ocean
aoyamajio 青山潮（あおやまじお）tide and green mountains
katsuojio 鰹潮（かつおじお） tide which brings the katsuo bonito fish
kigo for early summer


akashio, aka-shio 赤潮 (あかしお) "red tide"
kusarejio くされ潮（くされじお）"rotten tide"
Too much plankton colors the tide and is dangerous for the fish population.
. . . CLICK here for Photos !


nigajio 苦潮 (にがしお) "bitter tide"
Almost the same as the red tide, but occuring along the estuaries of rivers, then the dirty river water forms a layer above the sea water and the fish and shells die from lack of oxygen.


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observance kigo for late summer

umibiraki, umi-biraki 海開き (うみびらき)
"opening the sea"
suieijoo kaishi 水泳場開始（すいえいじょうかいし）
opening of an ocean beach to swimmers, usually with a special Shinto purification ceremony to pray for the safety during the season.
Many beaches begin the official beach season with beach houses and life guards etc. from this day on, so it is awaited by many.
. . . CLICK here for Photos !
Umibiraki - English Reference



earth kigo for late summer

hot sand, nessa 熱砂 (ねっさ)
burning sand, yakesuna 灼け砂（やけすな）
sand is burning, suna yakuru 砂灼くる（すなやくる）

hiyake hama 日焼浜（ひやけはま）burning hot beach

kaisuiyoku 海水浴 swimming on the beach
shioabi, shio-abi 潮浴び（しおあび）playing in the tide water

takiabi, taki abi 滝浴び (たきあび) swimming in (the pool at the bottom of a) waterfall

suikyuu 水球 (すいきゅう) water ball
..... uotabooro ウォーターポロ
..... uotabooru ウォーターボール

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puuru プール pool, swimming pool
outside and in the open air.
They are most crowded during the summer holidays in Japan.
Most schools in Japan, even in rural regions and remote islands, have their own outside pool where kids can come during the summer holidays to enjoy the cool water.

NOTE
An indoors swimming pool could be considered a topic for haiku.
Private indoor our outdoor pools are not so common in Japan.


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humanity kigo for all summer



swimming, oyogi 泳ぎ (およぎ)

practise swimming, suiren 水練（すいれん）
enjoy swimming yuu ei 遊泳（ゆうえい)
Japanese way of swimming, nukite 抜手（ぬきて）
..... kata nukite 片抜手（かたぬきて)
swim with upright body, ritsu ei 立泳（りつえい）

swimming in front of an important person (competition)
..... gozen ei 御前泳（ごぜんえい）
reeling, hauling 手繰（たぐり）
floating on the water, ukimi 浮身（うきみ）
paddling like a dog, inukaki 犬掻き（いぬかき）
swimming on the back, hai ei 背泳（はいえい）
breast strokes, hira ei 平泳（へいえい）
butterfly style, batafurai バタフライ
crawling, kurooru クロール

floating support (ring or blownup vest or toy)
..... ukibukuro 浮袋（うきぶくろ）、

swimming in the river, kawa asobi 川浴（かわあび）
enjoying the water, mizu asobi 水浴（みずあび）

swimming long distance, en ei 遠泳（えんえい）
swimming competition, kyoo ei 競泳（きょうえい）

diving, mizu kuguri 水潜り（みずくぐり）
..... moguri 潜り（もぐり）
Refers to diving as a hobby.


kigo for late summer

daibingu ダイビング diving (in a swimming pool)
daibaa ダイバー、diver
tobikomidai 飛び込み台（とびこみだい）diving board, Sprungbrett
..... chooyakudai 跳躍台（ちょうやくだい）
..... tobikomi 飛び込み（とびこみ）jumping (into a pool)
takatobikomi 高飛び込み（たかとびこみ）high dive
tobi-ita tobikomi 飛板飛び込み（とびいたとびこみ）


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EARTH kigo for all winter

fuyu no umi 冬の海 (ふゆのうみ) sea in winter
..... fuyu-umi 冬海（ふゆうみ）winter sea


fuyu no nami 冬の波 (ふゆのなみ ) waves winter
..... fuyunami 冬浪（ふゆなみ） /冬濤（ふゆなみ）
kantoo 寒濤（かんとう）waves in the cold
..... kannami 寒波（かんなみ）


. kanchoo 寒潮 かんちょう "tide in the cold"
fuyu no shio 冬の潮（ふゆのしお）tide in winter
fuyujio 冬潮（ふゆじお）winter tide
.... fuyujio冬汐（ふゆじお）


fuyu no hama 冬の浜 (ふゆのはま) beach in winter
..... fuyuhama 冬浜（ふゆはま）
..... fuyunagisa, fuyu nagisa 冬渚（ふゆなぎさ）


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kigo for late winter



hyookai 氷海 (ひょうかい) frozen sea, frozen ocean
umi kooru 海凍る（うみこおる）sea is frozen
..... tookai 凍海（とうかい）
hyoogen 氷原（ひょうげん）"plain of ice"
..... kaihyoo 海氷（かいひょう）
The sea around Hokkaido freezes in winter.



nami no hana 波の花 (なみのはな) "flowers of the waves"

..... nami no hana 波の華（なみのはな）
Along the Sea of Japan, the winter waves carry a kind of froth that looks almost like blossoms.
. . . CLICK here for Photos !


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observance kigo for the New Year

hama ogami 浜拝 はまおがみ
Offering prayers at the beach
..... First Tide, wakashio 若潮 わかしお
..... wakashio mukae 若潮迎え（わかしおむかえ）
hatsu hama 初浜（はつはま）"first beach"

Selling new salt, waka shio uri 若塩売（わかしおうり）
..... waka shio iwai 若塩祝い（わかしおいわい）celebration of the first salt

January first
Men of the year (toshi otoko 年男) offer fresh salt water to the deities.
Especially famous in the fishing villages of Kyushu.



SAIJIKI – NEW YEAR OBSERVANCES


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ISO 磯 is a word used for a rocky beach or shore.

People enjoy coming to this place to look for small fish and seafood in the shallow ponds when the tide is low. Digging for shells is a joy for families with small children.

felsige Küste; Meeresküste; Meeresufer


SPRING

haru no iso 春の磯（はるのいそ） shore in spring


. Spring at the beach (haru no umi) 　
category earth kigo


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kigo for early spring

iso kamado 磯竃 (いそかまど) stove on the beach
for the fishermen and women to keep warm.
iso takibi 磯焚火（いそたきび）bonfire on the shore


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kigo for mid-spring



kanchoo 観潮 (かんちょう)
viewing the whirling current
kanchoosen 観潮船（かんちょうせん）boat for viewing the currents
uzushio 渦潮（うずしお）whirling, eddying current
The whirling currents along the Inland Sea are especially famous.
Naruto 鳴門 can now be crossed by a bridge with phantastic views of the currents.
. . . CLICK here for Photos !
Meeresstrudel, wirbelnde Flut


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kigo for late spring

isobiraki 磯開 (いそびらき)
opening the season on a rocky shore
From that day on, fishing from the shore or picking seaweed from the rocks was allowed.

iso no kuchi ake 磯の口開（いそのくちあけ）
..... iso no kuchi ake 磯の口明（いそのくちあけ）、浜の口開（はまのくちあけ）、
hama no kuchi ake 浜の口明（はまのくちあけ）
umiori, umi-ori 海下（うみおり） going down to the shore
hatsuiso, hatsu iso 初磯（はついそ） "first shore"
kuchiake matsuri 口明祭（くちあけまつり）
festival when opening the shore season


isoasobi, iso asobi 磯遊び (いそあそび)
playing on the shore
iso matsuri 磯祭（いそまつり）shore festival
hana chirashi 花散らし（はなちらし）"scattering blossoms"
Shore festivals in Western Japan, while the cherry blossoms are out and can be enjoyed while drinking on the shore. Often on the third day of the third month of the lunar calendar.
. . . CLICK here for Photos !
Haiku about hana chirashi
http://haiku.blog.livedoor.com/ichiran.php?kg=4325



isona tsumi 磯菜摘 (いそなつみ )
picking vegetables on the shore




shiohigari 汐干狩 (しおひがり)
hunting (for clams and seafood) on the shore
shiohi 汐干（しおひ）tideland, tidal flat, ebb tideland
shiohigata 汐干潟（しおひがた）tideland
shiohibune 汐干船（しおひぶね）boat for the tideland
shiohigai 汐干貝（しおひがい）clams in the tideland
shiohi iwa 汐干岩（しおひいわ）rock in the tideland
shiohi kago 汐干籠（しおひかご）basket (for the catch from) the tideland

Tide (shio, ushio, choo)
category earth kigo



Woman divers (ama 海女 (あま))
professional divers

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ensoku 遠足 (えんそく) excursion
(usually to the beach or shore)
Family or schoolchildren come to enjoy the sea.

aki no ensoku 秋の遠足（あきのえんそく） excursion in autumn
kigo for autumn

. ensoku 遠足 excursion, day trip in Edo .

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kigo for late summer

iso suzumi 磯涼み（いそすずみ）coolness on the shore


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kigo for all autumn

aki no umi 秋の海 (あきのうみ) autumn sea
aki no nami 秋の波（あきのなみ）waves in autumn
..... shuutoo 秋濤（しゅうとう）


aki no shio 秋の潮 (あきのしお) tide in autumn
..... akishio 秋 秋潮（あきしお）



aki no hama 秋の浜 (あきのはま) autumn beach

..... akinagisa 秋渚（あきなぎさ）
..... shuutei 秋汀（しゅうてい）
hama no aki 浜の秋（はまのあき）autumn at the beach


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kigo for early autumn


bonnami, bon nami 盆波 (ぼんなみ) waves at O-Bon

bonare, bon are 盆荒（ぼんあれ）stormy weather at O-Bon

Bon Festival, O-Bon お盆, Obon
The ancestors festival, now in mid-august.


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kigo for mid-autumn

hatsushio, hatsu shio 初潮 (はつしお) first (autumn) tide
hazukijio 葉月潮（はづきじお）tide of the eighth lunar month
..... mochi no shio 望の潮（もちのしお）
The tide at the full moon of autumn.



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kigo for late autumn

takashio 高潮 (たかしお) high tide
flood tide, storm surge
kazetsunami, kaze tsunami 風津波（かぜつなみ） "tsunami made by the wind"




Moonlit Sea
Shoda Koho (1871-1946)

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Worldwide use


night swimmers
kigo for summer

night swimmers
an old woman offers
to hold my shoes

- Shared by Paul Conneally - WKD on facebook -


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Things found on the way


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HAIKU

Nude beach -
trying hard to speak
to their faces.

Zhanna P. Rader
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/simply_haiku/message/18817

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On the beach I sit
eyes cast over sand and surf
watching Sol's descent

Larry D. Shepherd
http://www.haikuworld.org/dogwood/11/iv.html



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短夜や足跡浅き由比が濱
mijikayo ya ashiato asaki Yuigahama

short night -
shallow footprints
at Yuigahama

Yosa Buson 与謝蕪村

. 由比ガ浜 Yuigahama Beach at Kamakura 　　





footprints on the beach -
so many haiku
already written


. . . check them out HERE . . .



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nude beach
only one crab
without a shell

Jacek Margolak (Poland)

source : Asahi Haikuist, August 2012


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Related words

***** . Waves in summer (natsu no nami)
more KIGO


***** Sand (suna) a topic for haiku

***** Surfing in Hawaii

***** Marine Day, Ocean Day, Sea Day (umi no hi) Japan

***** Beach Pea (hama-endoo, Japan)


. . . . SUMMER - the complete SAIJIKI


. . . . SAIJIKI ... category EARTH

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Beaver

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CANADA SAIJIKI

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Beaver (Castor canadensis)

***** Location: Canada, North America
***** Season: Various, see below
***** Category: Animal

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Explanation

Beaver, the national emblem of Canada

young beavers
kigo for spring
Young beavers leave the nest in spring when they are two-years-old, to make room for the next litter, and go off to build lodges and dams in new territory.


preparing lodges, building dams
kigo for autumn


"Full Beaver Moon" .. November
setting beaver traps
kigo for early winter

Native American Indians:
"This was the time to set beaver traps before the swamps froze, to ensure a supply of warm winter furs. Another interpretation suggests that the name Full Beaver Moon comes from the fact that the beavers are now actively preparing for winter. It is sometimes also referred to as the Frosty Moon."


hibernating, hole-up
kigo for winter

In winter, they mostly hole-up in their lodges with a winter-long store of food while the pond they have created with their dam may be mostly frozen over.

Larry Bole

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QUOTE



Where the beaver lives
The beaver lives near wooded streams. Beavers are found in most parts of Canada ( the north, the west and on the prairies). In the rest of North America the beaver's range extends from Alaska to the southern United States.

The beaver's home
The beaver builds a home (lodge) made of mud and branches. The inside of the beaver's home consists of one or more underwater passages, a feeding area and a dry area for the nest. Most lodges are about 5 metres wide and 2 metres high. There is a fresh air hole at the top (roof) of the lodge.

Appearance
The beaver is the largest rodent in North America. A full grown beaver can weigh from 16 to 32 kg. It can be from 60 to 80 cm. in length. Beavers has long sharp front teeth.

A beaver's tail is flat (about 30 cm. long) and covered with scales . The beaver uses the tail to steer when swimming or for balance when sitting on land . If an enemy is near, the beaver slaps its tail on the water to warn other beavers. The tail is not used to plaster mud on dams or lodges.

Food
Beavers eat the bark and leaves of trees. Their favorite tree is the aspen. Beavers also eat grasses, berries and waterplants.
In the winter the beaver family stays inside a lodge. There can be six or more in the lodge including parents, yearlings and kits. They do not hibernate. Enough food must be stored to last all winter. The beaver's food pile of twigs and branches is at the bottom of the pond close to the entrance to the lodge. During the winter the beaver dives down to get some food.

The young
Beavers mate for life. Early in the summer ( May or June ) the female has a litter of three or four kits. The newborn have fur, teeth and can see and walk. The babies remain inside for about a month. The yearlings act as babysitters for the new litter. During their second year, young beavers help their parents repair the dam and lodge and gather food for winter. Young beavers stay with their parents until they are two years old.

© J.Giannetta


More Beaver Information and LINKS
University of Michigan

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Just recently, a beaver was sighted swimming in the Bronx River within the city limits of New York City. It has built a beaver lodge on the bank of the river.

This is the first time a beaver in the wild has been seen in New York City in 200 years!
It has been named Jose, after U.S. Representative Jose Serrano, who over the last five years has secured US$14.6 million in federal funding to clean up the river and its environment. The Bronx River flows south into the Bronx from Westchester County to the north, and empties into the East River.

Starting in the nineteenth century, the Bronx River has been extremely polluted with industrial waste. The beaver is a positive sign of the river becoming clean again.

The official seal of the City of New York has, among other things, two beavers on it.
http://www.nyc.gov/html/dcas/html/features/greenbook_seal_flag.shtml

And here is a picture of a beaver depicted on a decorative tile on the wall of the subway station at Astor Place, which is on the western edge of the East Village area of Manhattan. Astor Place is named after John Jacob Astor, who made a fortune in the beaver fur trade, and was the first millionaire in the United States.


© http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Astor_Pl_station_2.jpg


"If I can make it there,
I'm gonna make it anywhere,
It's up to you,
New York, New York."

--from "New York, New York," popularized by Frank Sinatra

a beaver too
can make it here--
new york, new york

Larry Bole


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Worldwide use

North America

The state of Oregon has the nickname "The Beaver State," and the American beaver is the state animal.

The beaver is also the state animal of the state of New York.


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Things found on the way


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HAIKU

Freezing day...
above the beaver house
a puff of steam.

It is a very cold, calm day and it is something like -25C. We are walking out in the bush and come upon a frozen pond. At one end is a beaver dam and at the other end is a beaver house. There are beaver inside as we can see the steam from their breaths rise from a vent hole in their house. We assume it is warm and cozy inside.

...

Trickling dam...
a full pond yet beavers
remain unseen.

On a trip to Coyote Lake we saw beaver dams with their ponds full of water. However, we did not see any actual beavers around... maybe they were having an afternoon snooze in their beaver house.

© 2 Haiku by Vaughn Seward (aka "Masago")
http://masago-no-haiku.blogspot.com/


© PHOTO http://www.woodlandheights.ca/nature_sanctuary/


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even the little beaver
says shit on work
this spring day

Cor van den Heuvel, Simply Haiku 2005

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mosquitoes
the slap of a beaver tail
at twilight

--Alice Frampton
("The Heron's Nest," Vol. VII, No. 3: September, 2005)



snowmelt -
beaver dam swept
to the river's edge

--William Scott Galasso
("The Heron's Nest," Vol. IV, No. 8: August, 2002)



Winter moon;
a beaver lodge in the marsh,
mounded with snow

--Robert Spiess
["Haiku West," 6:1 (1972); "The Haiku Anthology,"
edited by Cor van den Heuvel (Norton, 1999)]



Quiet strokes
of night swimmer: the slap
of beaver tails . . .

--Virginia Brady Young
(Honorable Mention, 1979 Harold G. Henderson Memorial Award,
The Haiku Society of America)



rainstorm on the pond;
beaver pushing a poplar limb
to plug the dam

--Charles Dickson
(publication information unknown)



On my fishing log
A beaver's wet belly has
Left a brush stroke there

--Brian Kokensparger
("Dogwood Blossoms," Vol. 1, Issue 8, June, 1994)


Compiled by Larry Bole


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low water
marsh mud smell mingles
with wood smoke

bob / Hapy Haiku 2010



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Related words

***** BACK TO
Canada Saijiki

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Whipbird

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AUSTRALIAN SAIJIKI

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Whipbird

***** Location: Australia
***** Season: Non-seasonal Topic
***** Category: Animal

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Explanation

Whipbird ~ Psophodes olivaceus
Eastern Whipbird



The Eastern Whipbird (Psophodes olivaceus) inhabits the east coast of Australia from northern Queensland to Victoria.It is about 26 to 30 cm long. It is olive green with a black head and a white patch on its face.

The whip bird is usually shy, and is heard much more often than seen. Its long drawn out call - a long note, followed by a "whip crack" (which is the source of their name) and some follow on notes - is one of the most distinctive sounds of the eastern Australian wet temperate forest.

The call is usually a duet between the male and female, the male producing the long note and whip crack and female the following notes.

The breeding season is from July to December. The nest is placed on or near the ground and is made of sticks, bark and lined with grass. The clutch size is from 2 to 3 eggs. The female incubates the eggs which hatch in about 18 days. Both parents tend the young which fledge in about 12 days. There are sometimes two broods raised in a season.
© Wikipedia

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The initial long "whip" sound is the male calling. The short high-pitched two-note call at the very end is the female answering. These birds live mainly in rainforest areas; wetter eucalypt forests/woodlands; coastal scrubland; bracken; blackberries; lantana and overgrown gardens. They hop through the undergrowth probing rotten wood and throwing leaves aside looking for food (usually insects).
© http://home.iprimus.com.au/punkclown/Punkclown/Whipbird.htm

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Worldwide use


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Things found on the way


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HAIKU

dawn . . .
the cry of a whipbird
cuts through the mist

Richard Kay

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distant thunder
the whipbird's call
hangs in the air

Sue Mill, Brisbane, AU


open car window
whipbird's call lashes
my ear drum

Janice Bostok


crack
crack of a whipbird's call
the stillness

John Bird, AU

Compiled by Larry Bole


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Related words

***** BACK TO
The Australian Saijiki

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Spring Orchids (shunran)

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Spring Orchids (shunran)

***** Location: Japan
***** Season: Mid-Spring
***** Category: Plant

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Explanation

Spring-Orchid, shunran 春蘭 (しゅんらん)

shina shunran シナ春蘭（しなしゅんらん）
Chinese spring orchid (Cymbidium virescens)

hokuri ほくり、hokuro ほくろ、hakuri はくり、ekuri えくり



. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .CLICK on the photos !

hoosairan 報歳蘭（ほうさいらん）

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This flower in the wild shows its beauty best in the deep forests and the mountain wilderness of Japan and brings joy with its lovely smell. Its flower is rather small and inauspicious, until you bend down to see it properly. It brings the atmosphere of a fairy tale of old Chinese mountain sages to a valley with its smell.

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Cymbidium goeringii: Japanese name is SHUNRAN.
It grows under deciduous trees (Habitat: Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, Kyushu). It blooms in March-April and has only 1 flower per 1 flower stem.. The height is 10-25cm. There are many cultivars collected in the habitat. Japanese cultivars have poor fragrances compared with Chinese cultivars, but they have variety of flower colors. Plant type: evergreen, terrestrial.

©　Japanese Orchids

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Things found on the way


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HAIKU

春蘭の花　とりすつる　雲の中
shunran no hana torisutsuru kumo no naka

spring orchids -
I pick one up and it slips
in the clouds


Je cueille des fleurs d'orchis au printemps
Et les jette
Dans les nuages.

Iida Dakotsu 飯田蛇笏

He lived in the mountains of Koshu (Yamanashi) like a mountain ascetic.

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春蘭や雨をふくみてうすみどり　
shunran ya ame o fukumite usumidori

spring orchids -
within the rain
your light green　　　　

杉田久女 Sugita Hisajo
(Tr. Gabi Greve)

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春蘭は草の香嗅ぐや伏して咲き
shunran wa kusa no ko kagu ya fushite saki

spring orchids -
smelling with the weeds
blooming on the ground

hanayomi haiku
http://ameblo.jp/hanayomi/entry-10030476486.html

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spring orchid too large
shy, my heart hides under moon
this fragrant longing

©　Princess Haiku (with photo)



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Related words

MORE
. Spring Orchids .
Calanthe discolor
Glechoma hederacea grandis
Cephalanthera erecta
Cephalanthera falcata
Cypripedium japonicum
Epimedium grandiflorum
Arisaema serratum

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Reed Warbler (yoshikiri)

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Reed Warbler (yoshikiri)

***** Location: Japan
***** Season: All Summer
***** Category: Animal

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Explanation

This little bird of the nightingale family with a great voice comes with some kigo related to it.

reed warbler, yoshikiri　葦切
Acrocephalus species

Great reed warbler, ooyoshikiri 大葦切
..... Acrocephalus arundinaceus
Small reed warbler, koyoshikiri　小葦切

reed warbler : yoshi suzume 葭雀
bull-rush-plain warbler : ashihara suzume 葦原雀
reed-plain warbler : yoshihara suzume 葭原雀
reed nightingale, ashi uguisu 葦鶯　あしうぐいす

"Gyogyo Bird", gyoogyooshi 行々子, ぎょうぎょうし

"wheat singer" 麦熟らし, むぎうるらし
gyogyoshi
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© 2005 Nikon Corporation

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The Acrocephalus warblers are small, insectivorous passerine birds belonging to the genus Acrocephalus of the Old World warbler family Sylviidae. They are sometimes called marsh warblers or reed-warblers, but this invites confusion with Marsh Warbler and Reed Warbler proper, especially in North America where it is common to use lower case for bird species.

These are rather drab brownish warblers usually associated with marshes or other wetlands. Some are streaked, others plain. Almost all are migratory.

Many species have a flat head profile, which gives rise to the group's scientific name. Species breeding in temperate regions are strongly migratory.
Read more in the WIKIPEDIA !


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Things found on the way

Birdsong / in Japan


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HAIKU

昼飯を犬がとるとや行々子
hirumeshi o inu ga toru to ya gyoogyooshi

the lunch
was taken by the dog !
reed warbler's song


行々子大河はしんと流れけり
gyoogyooshi taiga wa shin to nagarekeri

reed warbler -
the great river flows by
quietly

Kobayashi Issa

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行々し下手盗人をはやすらん
gyoogyooshi heta-nusubito o hayasuran

reed warblers
assail a failed thief
with loud music

Kobayashi Issa


Transladion and Comment by Chris Drake

This hokku is placed at the end of a haibun dated 4/6 1810 that describes a happening Issa seems to have heard about in a village to the east of Edo.
In the haibun a stranger of about 40 walks through the village, snatches an old robe that has been washed and is now lying drying on a fence running along the back side of one house, and then tries to leave the village with it stuffed inside one of his baggy sleeves. Villagers working in the fields see the clumsy would-be thief do it, chase after him, and catch him. They tie him up tightly using bamboo poles as if he were a dangerous criminal and parade him through the village. Along the way the villagers hang various heavy things from his arms and neck and taunt him, and then they accompany him playing gongs, bells, and drums, while others sing ritual songs usually sung to banish the god of plagues. This continues until the failed thief is finally released at the edge of the village.
Issa says the villagers forgot what had actually happened, exaggerated the magnitude of what the man had done, and turned his capture and punishment into a form of entertainment and enjoyment for themselves.

Given this context, the first line, gyougyoushi, a nickname for the reed warbler (which is said to cry gyou-gyou-gyou-gyou), also seems to mean another gyougyoushi (仰々し) meaning "extravagant, exaggerated, over the top, pompous," as suggested by the editors of the Koten Hai-Bungaku Taikei (Classical Haikai Library) 15:488, since what the villagers do to the man is precisely that.

It's the beginning of the fourth month (about May), and the reed warblers have just returned from wintering in southern lands, so the reeds near rivers and ponds have suddenly become noisy again with the rather long, loud, and insistent cries of the reed warblers. In this hokku, Issa seems to be imagining the villagers bringing the tied, heavily burdened man to the river or stream that marks the border of the village and releasing/expelling him there. Here on the village border the loud music of the villagers is replaced by another form of loud "music" -- the rasping cries of reed warblers in the reeds.
Perhaps Issa is suggesting that at this point it's hard to separate the humans from the birds.


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行々子四方の原っぱ独り占め
gyoogyooshi shihoo no harappa hitorijime

this reed warbler
claims all the wild fields
for himself

source :　aqualakerose



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能なしの眠ぶたし我を行々子
nōnashi no nemutashi ware o gyōgyōshi
. noonashi no nemutashi ware o gyoogyooshi .

1691, Saga Nikki 嵯峨日記 Saga Diary
. Matsuo Basho 松尾芭蕉 - Archives of the WKD .


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More famous Japanese haiku


トロッコの過ぎて静やよし雀・・・・・・・・高浜虚子

葭切のをちの鋭（と）声や朝ぐもり・・・・・・・・水原秋桜子

揚げ泥の香もふるさとよ行々子・・・・・・・・・木下夕爾

月やさし葭切葭に寝しづまり・・・・・・・・松本たかし

葭雀二人にされてゐたりけり・・・・・・・・石田波郷

葭切や蔵書のみなる教師の死・・・・・・・・大野林火

葭切も眠れぬ声か月明し・・・・・・・・相生垣瓜人

葭切の鳴き曇らしてゆく空よ・・・・・・・・波多野爽波

葭切や未来永劫ここは沼・・・・・・・・三橋鷹女


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Related words


***** cutting reed, ashi kari 蘆刈 (あしかり)
kigo for late autumn

..... kari ashi 刈蘆 (かりあし)



more kigo
. yoshi / ashi 葦、芦、蘆、葭 reed grass
Phragmites australis


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***** Sparrow (suzume) 　Japan


***** Nightingale, bush warbler (uguisu) Japan

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Rice cakes New Year (kagami mochi)

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Rice Cakes for the New Year (kagami mochi)

***** Location: Japan
***** Season: New Year
***** Category: Humanity

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Explanation

These rice cakes play an important role during the New Year celebrations in Japan. There are a few kigo with them.



"Honorable Mirror" , revered mirror, o kagami　御鏡
..... 餅鏡　もちいかがみ
armor-plate rice cak., gusoku mochi　具足餅
armor rice cake, yoroi mochi 鎧餅

decoration rice cakes, kazari mochi　飾り餅

rice cakes for strengthening the teeth
hagatame no mochi 歯固の餅　はがためのもち
..... hishi hanabira mochi, 菱葩餅

Click HERE to see some Photos !


. yoroi　鎧 armour, armor of a samurai .


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observance kigo for the New Year

Gusoku biraki 具足開 "opening the armour"
gusoku kagamimochi 具足鏡餅
gusoku kagami wari 具足鏡割
gusoku iwai 具足祝
busoku kagamibiraki 武具鏡開

This was celebrated in the samurai homes on the 12th day of the first lunar month.
Since it later became identical with the death anniversary of the third shogun Tokugawa Iemitsu, it was relocated to January 11.




伊勢海老のかゞ見開きや具足櫃
Iseebi no kagamibiraki ya gusokubitsu

cutting the ricecakes
and taking off the lobsters -
armour in the chest

Morikawa Kyoriku (Kyoroku) 森川許六



SAIJIKI – NEW YEAR OBSERVANCES

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lobster-decoration, kazari-ebi, kazariebi
飾海老 (かざりえび)
decoration with a lobster
ebi kazaru 海老飾る（えびかざる）
Ise-ebi kazaru 伊勢海老飾る（いせえびかざる）
Kamakura-ebi kazaru 鎌倉海老飾る（かまくらえびかざる）

The samurai of Kamakura saw an auspicious connection with their armour (yoroi) and the back shell of the lobster.
They get the red color from the first sun at Futamigaura, in Ise, where the Gods reside.
First named by Kaibara Ekiken (1603-1714), because most catch comes from the Ise area.

. WASHOKU - Food Decorations .


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Quote from the Wikipedia
Kagami mochi (鏡餅, Kagami mochi), literally mirror rice cake, is a traditional Japanese New Year decoration. It usually consists of two round mochi (rice cakes), the smaller placed atop the larger, and a mikan (a Japanese bitter orange) with an attached leaf on top.



Further to this, it may have a sheet of konbu and a skewer of dried persimmons under the mochi. It sits on a stand called a sanpō (三宝 sanpoo over a sheet called a shihōbeni (四方紅, shihoobeni), which is supposed to ward off fires from the house for the following years.

Sheets of folded paper called gohei (御幣) folded into lightning shapes similar to those seen on sumo wrestler's belts are also attached.

The kagami mochi first appeared in the Muromachi period (14th-16th century). The name kagami ("mirror") is said to have originated from its resemblance to an old-fashioned kind of round bronze mirror, which also had a religious significance.
The reason for it is not clear. Explanations include mochi being a food for sunny days,the 'spirit' of the rice plant being found in the mochi, and the mochi being a food which gives strength (chikara mochi　力餅).

The two mochi discs are variously said to symbolize the going and coming years, the human heart, "yin" and "yang", or the moon and the sun. The "daidai 橙、代々", whose name means "generations", is said to symbolize the continuation of a family from generation to generation.

Traditionally the kagami mochi was placed in various locations throughout the house.
Nowadays it is usually placed in a household Shinto altar, kamidana　神棚. It has also been placed in the tokonoma　床の間, a small decorated alcove in the main room of the home.

Contemporary kagami mochi are often pre-moulded into the shape of stacked discs and sold in plastic packages in the supermarket. A mikan or a plastic imitation daidai are often substituted for the original daidai.
Fern (shida　歯朶)is also used for the decoration.

Variations in the shape of kagami mochi are also seen.In some regions, three layered kagami mochi are also used. The three layered kagami mochi are placed on the Buddhist house altar, butsudan 仏壇or on the kamidana. There is also a variant decoration called an okudokazari placed in the centre of the kitchen or by the window which has three layers of mochi.

It is traditionally broken and eaten in a Shinto ritual called kagamibiraki, kagami biraki (mirror opening 鏡開) on the second Saturday or Sunday of January. This is an important ritual in Japanese martial arts dojos.
It was first adopted into Japanese martial arts when Jigoro Kano, the founder of judo, adopted it in 1884, and since then the practice has spread to aikido, karate and jujutsu studios.
When the mochi are cut in small pieces at kagami biraki, they are very hard and put into vegetable soup (zooni) or sween bean past broth (o shiruko お汁粉) for better digesting them.
Mochi themselves are neutral in taste and can be adjusted to any kind of tasty preparation.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kagami_mochi



. kamidana 神棚　"shelf for the Shinto Gods" .

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All about Mochi, in Japanese

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Quote:
..... even the poor cooked pure boiled rice and pounded rice cake from pure glutinous rice for important meals. Pounded rice cakes (mochi), prepared by pounding steamed glutinous rice with a mortar and pestle, have been indispensable food items for Japanese ceremonial feasts. People thought that the essence — the sacred power of rice — was made purer by pounding, and mochi was believed to contain the "spirit of rice."

Naturally this was and is the most celebrated form of rice and therefore the most appropriate food for feasts. Thus, New Year’s day, the principal annual feast in Japan, sees mochi always consumed as a ceremonial food.

Read more:
Food of Japan, by Naomichi Ishige !!!!!

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Worldwide use


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Things found on the way

An Offering to the Mountain God

Fiste Shrine visit -
to our Mountain God
nobody comes

Gabi Greve 2004


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Daruma san on a kagamimochi






Photos from Ishino san


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HAIKU

誰が聟ぞ歯朶に餅負ふ丑の年
taga muko zo shida ni mochi ou ushi no toshi

Whose bridegroom is he?
Driving an ox with ferned rice cake.
The year of the Ox!

Tr. Oseko

MORE - discussion about this hokku by
. Matsuo Basho 松尾芭蕉 - Archives of the WKD .


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かざり餅仏の膝をちょとかりる
kazari mochi hotoke no hiza o choto kariru

rice cake offerings--
on Buddha's lap
for just a little while

Issa

In this haiku, as Shinji Ogawa explains, someone "borrows" Buddha's lap to place the cakes upon...　for a while.
I suppose that Issa left the cakes as offerings to the Buddha for about as long as he could stand it (just "a little while"), then ate them.

© Tr. David Lanoue



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Related words

***** Pounding rice (mochi tsuki, mochitsuki) More details on this subject.

***** Fern (shida) Japan Farnkraut

***** New Year (shinnen, shin nen)

***** New Year's Soup (zooni)


*********** NEW YEAR FOOD SAIJIKI


***** . Roundness and Spirituality .

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Fire (kaji)

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Fire (kaji)

***** Location: Japan
***** Season: All winter in Japan
***** Category: Humanity

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Explanation

Fires are a problem at any time. Some seasons are more prone to fires. In Japan, we have most fires in winter, when people use heating devices and the air is dry.

During the Edo period, when people lived closely in wooden homes and used open fire for cooking, fires were especially terrible.
Fire and fighting are the flowers of Edo (kaji to kenka wa Edo no hana) is an old proverb of these dangerous times.

In other places of the world, regular wildfires come at different seasons, see below.

Let us look at some kigo related to this word.



Katen, the God of Fire
© www.tctv.ne.jp/tobifudo/butuzo/12ten/katen.html

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fire, kaji　火事
big fire, taika　大火
small fire, boka　小火

fire close by, kinka　近火
fire far away, tooka 遠火

fire during the day, hiru kaji 昼火事
fire at night, yoru kaji 夜火事

mountain fire, forest fire, wildfire, bushfire
..... yamakaji　山火事

traces of a fire, kaji ato　火事跡

watching out for fires, hi no miban　火の見番
watchtower for a fire, hi no yagura 火の櫓　やぐら
mound for the fire bell, hanshoo dai 半鐘台

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on the lookout for fire, hi no ban　火の番
watching out for a fire, hi no yoojin 火の用心

hut for the night watch, banya 番屋
..... hi no ban koya　火の番小屋
night watch, yoban 夜番
..... yokei, yakei 夜警 （やけい）
making the night rounds, yomawari　夜回り
kantaku 寒柝（かんたく wooden clappers of the watchman

visiting someone after a fire damage, kaji mimai　火事見舞
..... usually with a gift of money


Look at some photos from big fires !

. hi no yoojin 火の用心 fire prevention goods .


fire brigade, fire brigade car, shooboosha 消防車

machibikeshi, machi hikeshi 町火消し
kaji shoozoku 火事装束（かじしょうぞく)protective colths for the firebrigade
protective hood for fire, kaji zukin 火事頭巾



© 鳶頭政五郎覚書 Edo Fire Museum With MORE photos !

protective coat, kaji baori 火事羽織
..... PHOTOS !



. kawabaori 皮羽織 leather haori coat .

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猫の江戸火消し neko no edobikeshi
cats were popular images for firefighters.
Click on the image to see more !



source and more :　ameblo.jp/edo-sanpo

tobishoku, tobi-shoku 鳶職 construction workers
who also helped in the fire brigade
鳶 tobi、鳶口 tobiguchi、鳶の者

They had the tools to tear a home down during a fire to prevent the spread of the flames.
They also worked to harden the ground before setting up a building, helping the
jigyooshi 地形師　"ground-preparing" worker .

. tobi, tonbi 鳶 Tombi, Black Kite, Milan noir .



. shokunin 職人 craftsmen, artisans in Edo .


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kigo for the New Year

hatsu kaji 初火事 (はつかじ) first fire

The first fire of the new year is often seen as a bringer of bad luck, if it happens during the first three days of the New Year.

. SAIJIKI - THE NEW YEAR

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observance kigo for mid-winter


. ohotaki, o ho taki 御火焚 (おほたき) "making a bonfire"
..... ohitaki, o hi taki おひたき

In many temples and shrines and workplaces or restaurants that use fire, this custom is observed in the middle of November. It used to mark the end of autumn and beginning of the winter season, with prayers to protect the region from fires.



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Worldwide use

Australia


Bushfires, hell on earth
kigo for summer and other seasons



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Philippines

Fires engulf properties in Manila here and there because of the hot days... ironically, march is fire prevention month.

quiet night...
fire at the far corner
of the street

noontime...
billows of thick smoke
from the razing mall

raging fire...
just what three firefighters
make do

- Shared by Bos Tsip
Joys of Japan, March 2012


. PHILIPPINES SAIJIKI .


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Southern California

Bushfire, wildfire, Santa Ana Winds
kigo for autumn

dry sumac
waiting for a brush fire
patient seeds

chaparral vistas
shimmer in the hot wind
ready tinder

Billie Dee, 2006



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Things found on the way

Ban Dainagon Ekotoba
(Scroll of the Courtier Ban Dainagon)



(伴大納言絵詞) The Tale of Great Minister Ban, is an emakimono (handscroll painting) depicting the events of the Ōtemmon Conspiracy, an event of Japan's early Heian period. The painting, attributed to Tokiwa Mitsunaga of the Tosa school, is over 20m long and about 31.5cm tall.

The full-color painting depicts the events of March 866, in which Ban Dainagon, also known as Tomo no Yoshio, set fire to the Ōtemon 大手門 gate of Kyoto. He then blamed one of his political rivals, Minister of the left Minamoto no Makoto for the fire. However, the true culprit was soon discovered, and Tomo no Yoshio was banished to Izu province.
© http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ban_Dainagon_Ekotoba

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. The Kitchen Deities of Japan .
Kamagami 釜神 The Hearth Deity
hi otoko 火男 "man of the fire"
Aragamisama, Koojinsama, Koojin sama 荒神様
Dokujin, dokoojin 土公神


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Homusubi no mikoto 火産霊命 Deity of Fire
and the shrines called Atago jinja 愛宕神社
. The Atago shrines of Japan .



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HAIKU

fire and love -
quite a hot topic
for a cold night

Gabi Greve
Read about O-Shichi in the Edo period 八百屋お七の物語


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. Kobayashi Issa 小林一茶 in Edo .

焼にけりさしてとがなき藪蚊迄
yake ni keri sashite toga naki yabu ka made

everything has burned
even the blameless
thicket mosquitoes
Tr. David Lanoue

Lanoue's comment:
This haiku has the prescript, "Shitaya fire." Shitaya was a district in Edo (today's Tokyo), near the place where Issa was living at the time.

According to R. H. Blyth, "thicket mosquito" (yabu ka) refers to a species of "striped mosquitoes"; Haiku (Tokyo: Hokuseido, 1949-1952; rpt. 1981-1982/reset paperback edition) 3.805. Robin D. Gill notes that the scientific name for these large striped, bloodthirsty mosquitoes is Stegomyia fasciata, according to Kenkyûsha's Japanese-English Dictionary.

Issa's sympathy extends even to the pesky mosquitoes.

Chokugaku kaji 勅額火事 9th day, 10th month 1698
Also called 元禄江戸大火 or 中堂火事
It started from Kyobashi and by a southern wind spread fast. Soon it came down from Surugadai to Shitaya 下谷、Kanda Myojin Shita 神田明神下 and 湯島天神下 Yushima Tenjin Shita.
Then to 下谷池之端 Shitaya Ikenohata and on to Asakusa. It was stopped by a great rain after 22 hours. More than 3000 dead.
- - - More in the WIKIPEDIA !


. taika 江戸の大火 Edo no Taika "Great Fires of Edo" .

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New Year's Day 1809.
People say the fire broke out at around six this evening in the Sanai district. At the time a strong wind was blowing, and smoke from the fire spread in all directions as it burned everything in its path. In a single moment it destroyed all the latticed shutters and floor mats people had cleaned and renovated over the previous three days, and it burned even the many New Year's pines and bamboos and other decorations people had put up to pray for a thousand years of good fortune and happiness. Those people lost their homes to fire, while I lost my home to another person, but surely we are all in the same situation.

元日や我のみならぬ巣なし鳥
ganjitsu ya ware nomi naranu su-nashi-dori

New Year's Day --
so many of us birds
without a nest
Tr. Chris Drake

The previous year Issa went on a long trip to his hometown to negotiate about moving into half of the house his father left behind. He also visited several other places, apparently not returning to Edo until the end of the year. When he got back, however, Issa found that his landlord, in his absence, had rented the house he was still renting to someone else. Suddenly homeless, Issa had to depend on his haikai friend and patron, Natsume Seibi, a very rich rice broker who didn't like the business he had inherited and retired early to a house in northeast Edo. Issa spent the end of 1808 and the beginning of 1809 with Seibi in his retirement house, where he wrote this hokku. The fire broke out in the busy Nihombashi business district in downtown Edo, but Issa's rented house that he couldn't return to and Seibi's house were both on the northeast edge of Tokyo, some distance away. Probably Issa watched the fire in the distance from the banks of the Sumida River, and he must have been grieving for all the newly homeless people.

The birds mentioned are definitely plural and numerous. They are also mostly human beings who are like birds, not actual birds, though a few literal birds may also have lost nests in the fire. Makoto Ueda, a very reliable translator, evokes many human birds by translating, "New Year's Day -- / I am not the only / bird without a nest" (Dew on the Grass 64). Issa is not saying that a single bird is visiting him, since many thousands of people have lost their nests / homes because of the fire. Issa's haibun introduction to the hokku, which Ueda translates and which deserves to be always translated along with the hokku, explains this situation.

The expression ware nomi naranu ... in the second line means "not only I...," referring to Issa, but it can also refer to each person who lost her or his home in the fire. This ability of the first-person pronoun to refer both to the writer and, as indirect discourse, to all the people who lost their homes, gives a sense of communal loss to the hokku. It was a big fire, so the suffering is also big. I tried to convey this undertone of communal loss by using "us" as a kind of collective "I," since I think this is how Issa feels his hokku.

Chris Drake

. Kobayashi Issa 小林一茶 in Edo .


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焼にけりされども花はちりすまし
yake ni keri saredomo hana wa chirisumashi

Burnt to ashes,
But the cherry blossoms
Had all fallen.

Tachibana Hokushi
Tr. Blyth

Blyth's comment:
In the 3rd year of Genroku, 1690, Hokushi's house in Kanazawa was burnt down, and he sent this haiku to Basho. Haiku, like Caesar's wife, must not only be devoid of pose, but be above the suspicion of it. We must avoid even the appearance of evil, and avoid the appearance of avoiding it. Above all, art and life must have no "but."


My house burned down
But anyway, it was after
The flower petals had already fallen.
trans. Alex Kerr,
from "The Classic Tradition of Haiku," edited by Faubion Bowers

Bowers' comment:
When Hokushi's house burned down a second time, Shikoo sent him an "imitative" poem:

yakeni keri saredomo sakura sakanu uchi

You are burnt out, but luckily
Before the cherry-flowers bloom
Tr. Asataroo Miyamori (1869-1952)


And here are Robin Gill's translations of Hokushi's haiku (Gill adds Hokushi's headnote: kanoe-uma no toshi ie o yakarete):

my year of the horse

my hut in ashes:
so what! the cherry blossoms
had all scattered


homeless but happy

burnt down
but my cherry was done
blossoming

An excerpt from Gill's comment:
This well-known 'ku' complements another well-known poem where the thief left the precious thing, the moon, on the window sill. Hokushi's attitude so impressed Basho that he wrote: "If the ancients wrote great songs at the cost of their own lives, your exchange of this great poem (for having your house burnt down) should leave your spirit without regret."
Is it not a testament to Japan's best side that a man could gain great respect for loving his tree more than his house? Still, I can't help wondering how many people today would trade their house (or spouse) for a poem, even knowing ahead of time it would be appreciated for centuries.


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焼けし野の所々やすみれ草
yakeshi no no tokorodokoro ya sumiregusa

violets have grown
among the ruins
of my burned house

Arii Shokyu-ni
Tr. Patricia Donegan


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蔵焼けて 障るものなき 月見哉
kura yakete sawaru mono naki tsukimi kana

my storehouse burned down -
now there is nothing to prevent
the moon viewing
Tr. Gabi Greve

Mizuta Masahide 水田 正秀
Read a discussion of this translation


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... when Basho's first "Basho Hut (Bashoo An 芭蕉庵" burned down, on January 25, 1683, he apparently didn't write a haiku about it.

Ueda writes:
On January 25, 1683, the Basho Hut burned to the ground in a fire that destroyed a large part of Edo. According to Kikaku's account, Basho "barely managed to survive in the smoke, after submerging himself in the water [Sumida River] and covering his head with a rush mat."



Meireki Fire in Edo, （1657）
(江戸東京博物館蔵）

. taika 江戸の大火 Edo no Taika "Great Fires of Edo" .
- Introduction -


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Related words

***** The God of Fire (katen　火天, kajin 火神 )

***** Firework Display (hanabi)

***** Bonfire, burning fallen leaves (takibi)

***** Camp, camping (kyanpu), tent (tento) camp fire
Japan, North America

***** Storehouse, warehouse (kura, dozoo) built to withstand a fire !

***** Ash, ashes (hai) and related kigo
and sumi-temae carcoal layout of the tea ceremony


. hi no yoojin 火の用心 fire prevention Daruma .


Thanks to Larry Bole for compiling most haiku information of this page!

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Edo Ichiban Gumi 一番組





Edo Megumi. Me-gumi　め組

Tokugawa Yoshimune - Disguised as Tokuda Shinnosuke—Shin-san
to his friends—the third son of a hatamoto, the shogun roams freely about his capital, using the Megumi fire company as his base. The captain of the company knows his identity, but others are unaware that he is the shogun.
Yoshimune-as-Shinnosuke is portrayed as the nearly invincible samurai warrior who seldom loses a fight no matter how many enemies opposing him there are.
- see wikipedia Abarenbō Shōgun (暴れん坊将軍)


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Edo Regumi. Re-gumi　れ組




koma-inu at Suwa Jinja 諏訪神社 Tokyo

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hikeshi Daruma 火消だるま Daruma the fireman


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