一葉散る咄ひとはちる風の上

one leaf falls
alas! another
with the wind
—Ransetsu

(hito ha chiru / totsu hito ha chiru / kaze no ue)

Another haiku from Ransetsu today. This one a short, succinct reflection on our transient world.

In haiku-code, "one leaf" can have the meaning of a Paulownia tree. Paulownia trees are much beloved in haiku because they hold 5, 7, and 5 buds, an uncanny connection to the poetic verse.

The first word of the second line—totsu—has a double meaning. It is an exclamation spoken by Zen Buddhists when enlightenment is achieved, and it is also the sound a paulownia leaf makes as it hits the ground upon falling. As usual the wordplay is difficult to translate, hence this note (-_^).

(print by Kiyoshi Awazu)

Don't miss the other great haiku in the Haiku of Japan series!

#1 - Traveling to the inn
#2 - Childless Woman
#3 - Old Dancing Butterfly
#4 - Seeing the Moon
#5 - Checking the Scarecrow
#6 - Skill of Insects
#7 - The Spider Lilies
#8 - A Thousand Green Mountains

David LaSpina is an American photographer and translator lost in Japan, trying to capture the beauty of this country one photo at a time and searching for the perfect haiku. He blogs here and at laspina.org.