Haiku definitions

In 2007 the Australian Haiku Society appointed the haiku poet John Bird to conduct a survey of “haiku definitions” as used by haiku poets in Australia. John recently asked Andrew for his definition of haiku. Andrew offered two definitions, both of which were posted on the Australian Haiku Society’s website, HaikuOz, on 31 March 2009:

(1) “Haiku are poems modelled on the seventeen-syllable three-line poems of the ancient Japanese. Being poems, haiku are a form of literature and may employ literary techniques and may be judged by literary standards. Generally speaking, haiku stir emotion and stimulate reflection in the reader through simple precise objective depictions of things in nature.”

(2)
“Haiku are pebbles
poets lob into the pond
of our emotions.”

© Andrew Lansdown

This second “definition” is a haiku taken from Andrew’s poetry collection, Waking and Always, which was republished last year by Picaro Press.

Read more haiku definitions on the Australian Haiku Society’s website at: http://www.haikuoz.org/