I met a man, Stan.
His nature is Afghani.
Yes! Afghani-stan.
———
World is vast and wide.
So much out there to explore.
Right now, let’s eat lunch.
———
The rule for today.
Touch my tail, I shred your hand.
New rule tomorrow.
These are just a few examples of a haiku. “A Haiku is a traditional style of Japanese poetry. They consist of 3 lines. The first and last lines in a Haiku have 5 syllables and the middle line has 7 syllables.”1 “Unlike other poems, haikus usually don’t rhyme. Haiku (pronounced high-koo) is a type of short-form poetry that originated in Japan. Although the name haiku dates only to the nineteenth century, the form has existed for hundreds of years.”2
As a kid in English class, we had to learn this stuff. Why did we have to learn something that 99.9% of us will NEVER use?!? Maybe it’s because I’m a guy but I just don’t get into poetry. I know – some of the greatest poets in the world have been men but not THIS guy! At least the haiku doesn’t have to rhyme or make sense. Therefore, creating one was pretty easy. All you had to do was stay within the syllabic parameters and the teacher couldn’t give you anything but an “A”.
And you can make the haiku funny. There is nothing worse than sappy, syrupy poetry – to me. I like funny. That last haiku I shared is for all you cat lovers. Their rules are changing all the time. What was normal today will not be the same tomorrow. Will they shred your hand? Absolutely. So, that cat haiku gives almost a humorous twist to a cat’s sarcastic personality.
In the Bible, we have four books that are entirely poetic: Psalms, Proverbs, the Song of Solomon, and Lamentations. Large portions of Job and Ecclesiastes are also poetic. Reading them, we don’t see poetry, at least not by English standards.
“In Hebrew poetry, rhyme is not important; meter and the sound of the words are important, but these qualities are mostly lost to the English reader in translation. Hebrew poetry also uses figurative language. But the dominant feature of Hebrew poetry is parallelism.
“Parallelism in Hebrew poetry is an instance of two thoughts side by side that bear some relation to one another. Often, the parallelism is synonymous: the same idea will be stated in different ways; that is, instead of rhyming sounds, the lines have rhyming thoughts. Sometimes, the parallelism is antithetical: two opposite thoughts will be contrasted. Other times, the two parallel thoughts will be in a cause-and-effect relationship or some other logical sequence. The primary concern for interpretation is that, if one line of the poetry is unclear, the second line may help clarify the meaning.”3
This parallelism is seen clearly in the first Psalm. Psalms 1:1-6 says, “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. (2) But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. (3) And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. (4) The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away. (5) Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. (6) For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.” You can clearly see the parallel thoughts running throughout this Psalm.
Someone has wisely said, “Figuratively speaking, God’s prophets spoke through megaphones while God’s poets often spoke in whispers.”4 These soft whispers fall gently on our ear but penetrate our hearts, causing us to pause and think. Many segments of the Psalms end with the word selah. This is a musical notation that tells us to stop for a moment and really think about what has been said. Let it seep deep into every crevice of our being.
To end your day, try writing your own haiku. Remember the syllable pattern is 5-7-5. It doesn’t have to rhyme or even make sense. Better yet though, read some of God’s poetry. It doesn’t rhyme but it always makes sense! And it’s so much better than any other form of poetry whether it be English, British, or Japanese!
1https://leslistes.net/top-40-funny-haiku-poems/
2https://www.grammarly.com/blog/how-to-write-haiku/
3https://www.gotquestions.org/poetry-in-the-Bible.html
4https://www.gotquestions.org/poetic-books-of-the-Bible.html
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