In Japanese poetry, kigo (季語) is the word or phrase used to indicate the season and it is often included in haiku to locate the poem in a particular time of the year.
In these uncertain times of lockdown and pandemic, we want to open our website to members and friends to embrace the creative power of haiku and express the feelings and experiences we all are living in this peculiar "season".
Our hope is to create an ongoing piece of collaborative poetry that brings together the UK and Japan and will serve as a documenting account of our community experiences.
How to Contribute
- We invite poets, writers and people of any age and expertise to send us their haiku by email, tag us or use the hashtag #JShaikucorner on social media. The weekly deadline is on Fridays at 12:00 noon (BST).
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- Every Monday we will select one haiku among those received the previous week and post it as the haiku of the week on this page and on our social media with the name or alias of the author.
- Haiku sent must be original and belong to their authors as copyright holders. The Japan Society will not accept any responsibility for the content published. By sending their haiku, authors agree to its publication in our website and social media.
- The Japan Society will not use any haiku published or received for commercial purposes and will follow the Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions regarding the use of data and the website content.
Haiku of the Week
Week 14 (7 - 11 September 2020)
Lines of wind chimes tinkle
in a mountain temple
beginning of autumn
Asa Hanada
Week 13 (31 August - 4 September 2020)
Rush hour commuter
stopping to give rough sleeper
an orange
Ceci Chui
Week 12 (24 - 28 August 2020)
Rain blots on dry earth
A polka dot path to walk
The downpipe gurgles
Sue Henderson
Week 11 (17 - 21 August 2020)
Standing crooked yet tall
An audience of green and brown
The old trees of Kew
Simon Agar
Week 10 (10 - 14 August 2020)
a summer cloud says
I should be in distant lands
shutters disagree
Iona
Week 9 (3 - 7 August 2020)
little white petals
floating down the river of time
a midsummer's dream
Leia
Week 8 (27 - 31 July 2020)
Face muscles twitching
Smiling back at waving child
She sees only mask
Simon Agar
Week 7 (20 - 24 July 2020)
Complicated life
Trauma death sadness strife
We soldier on we fight
Louise Hooley
Week 6 (13 -17 July 2020)
listening to the rain
an old cat sleeps out
her last day
Paul Griffiths
Week 5 (6 -10 July 2020)
the new crescent moon
like a fish hook in the sky
snagging passing clouds
Michael Galley
Week 4 (29 June -3 July 2020)
in the open space
where the lavender pot was
scurry of beetles
Annie Bachini
Week 3 (22-26 June 2020)
June rains
child counts buses
through the foggy window
Ceci Chui
Week 2 (15-19 June 2020)
forest walk
every tree branch
reaches out for hug
Asa Hanada
Week 1 (8-12 June 2020)
A cold, blue silence.
The young apples touched with dew,
Mirror our damp cheeks
Gemma Bartram
Week 0 (1-5 June 2020)
Hope always rises
writing a shopping list
will there be flour?
Jenny White
How to Haiku: Beyond 5 7 5
Find more about how to write a haiku in our video with haiku poet Paul Conneally who introduces the key elements of haiku, illuminating some of the common pitfalls and misunderstandings of what haiku is about. Watch this short 6 minute piece to stimulate ideas, and see what benefits haiku can have for you and your loved ones.
More Selected Haiku
Week 13
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to the autumn winds Iona Mandal |
Learning to make peace… M. Y |
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Week 12
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Summer chooses blue Marion Plumb |
Snow on the gate Rachel William |
The thousands of ways Rachel Williams |
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Autumn leaves fall down Francesca Kearney |
The season changes Ninja Cyborg |
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Week 10
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brilliant orange Paul Griffiths |
Ripened harvest cut Sue Henderson |
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Week 9
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The sun-bleached months Chris Francis |
Splashes of colour Anon |
Tu me manques Anon |
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First day of marriage asa hanada |
a warm summers day Paul Conneally |
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Week 8
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the pages flip Paul Griffiths |
The twilight years now spent Trevor Skingle |
Films to watch this week. Anon |
Week 7
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cherry blossom gone Mike Barrett |
Blackberry bramble Katie Meek |
new neighbours Annie Bachini |
Week 6
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just enough breeze Annie Bachini |
Many empty chairs Doug Evans |
The morning chorus Nina Vinther |
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5886 miles and 8 hours apart... M.Y |
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Week 5
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first hot day Annie Bachini |
Green leaves come to view Simon Agar |
little yellow tarts Leia |
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In running water Michael Galley |
seasons slowly slide Michael Galley |
Under rain soaked eaves Origin Sake |
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first meeting M.Y |
strips of coloured paper anon |
Raindrops on hydrangea asa hanada |
Week 4
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Suddenly I saw Patricia Mooney |
Cushioned cocoon ends Angie Chan |
Hedgehog then a fox Heidi |
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Long days and quiet nights Joy |
Night-time blues linger Joy |
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Week 3
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人恋し小夜啼鳥の声澄みて A nightingale Yoko Dochi |
locked down for three months Annie Bachini |
Birds in my nowhere mind. Damon Rawnsley |
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夏のベリー Bean |
A murder of crows. DL |
Bonds of friendship bloom Gemma Bartram |
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Cherries, untasted. Vanessa |
Week 2
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yellow dahlia Annie Bachini |
Social distancing. Dominic Seymour |
Faces on a screen Gemma Bartram |
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Gliding silently. Chris Loughlan |
Oh scrawny carrot Chris Arning |
Our quiet rest. Simon Agar |
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hanami transcends hanami transforms Sue Henderson |
Week 1
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Summer light draws down Chris Francis |
Beauty is not seen Christoph Sills |
Rain sprinkles Thaisa Hopkins |
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as sunlight slants Alan Summers |
Another sunrise Jane Varnus |
I cannot see this. Chris Loughlan |
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the white butterfly Annie Bachini |
There is still one thing Rachna Chowla |
Carpet of bluebells Kate Lawrence |
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Shine on the same moon. Damon Rawnsley |
June, Mother’s birthday. Margaret Gordon |
散った花春無く私夏を待つ The fallen blossom Lizzie (Elizabeth) Parkes |
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the sweetness Ceci Chui |
bluebells Asa Hanada |
Autumnal dew Alicia S. Fernandez |
We would like to thank you to all participants for sharing their poems with us. Please keep sending your haiku every week so we all get together and strengthen the ties of our community through haiku.