What seems to be missing from this
node about a
traditional Japanese form of
expression is some haiku actually written in Japanese. As pointed out by
Perianwyr and
WyldWynd, Japanese haiku are vastly different from English haiku - the following examples are from
Basho,
Buson and
Issa.
ume ga ka ni
notto hinoderu.
yamaji kana
scent of plum blossoms
on the misty mountain path.
a big rising sun
kono aki wa
nande toshiyoru
kumo ni tori
why this fall (autumn)
I feel old
bird beyond the clouds
harusame ya
koiso no kogai
nururuhodo
spring rain -
small shells on a small beach
glittering
hiikimeni
mitesae samushi
kageboshi
looks cold -
to say the most
my shadow
Samples taken from the International Haiku Kim-dom at http://mikan.cc.matsuyama-u.ac.jp/~shiki/kim/kim.html
And one of my own, if only to provide contrast between good haiku and bad haiku (I'm taking liberties with Japanese grammar here...)
kono yoru ni
hito no kokoro wa
itsumo aku
in this darkness,
the hearts of men are
forever evil.
Now everyone who actually speaks Japanese can line up and kick my ass