Classic Haiku

Sparrows

Playing hide-and-seek

Among the tea blossoms.

—Kobayashi Issa

Haiku, the traditional Japanese verse form composed of seventeen syllables, can express a dramatic scene or philosophical idea in a single line of verse. In this collection, haiku poet Yuzuru Miura has selected and translated poems by past masters such as Basho and Buson, as well as haiku by contemporary poets. Fireflies, pheasants, a summer shower, winter snow, camellias—all the favorite haiku subjects are included among the one hundred poems of this impressive anthology. Classic Haiku evokes the peace and serenity of the Japanese way of life.