Haiku by Students at AIU (Part 2)

 

Professor Alexander Dolin teaches Japanese Literature and Civilization Studies at Akita International University(AIU). He also writes haiku.

Professor Alexander Dolin taught haiku to the students in his class of Japanese Literature and contributed their haiku to our website.

  

Ms. Yukari Sakamoto（阪本縁） kindly translated English haiku by Sidney Schaben into Japanese.

First of all, let me introduce Ms. Yukari Sakamoto and her haiku to you.

She is a graduate student at AIU and sometimes writes haiku in her academic career.

She won Honorable Mention at AIU HAIKU contest, Japanese Section for Students, by CRESI’s “Kokyo Yuwa” （「交響雄和」実行委員会）on October 11, 2009.

 

新緑の中を駆け抜け登校す 

Shinryoku no   naka o kakenuke  tookou su

 

I’m riding

through such fresh spring green

to school

 

Secondly, we post English haiku by Sidney Schaben and their Japanese translation by Ms. Yukari Sakamoto.

Haiku by Sidney Schaben (USA)

Sidney Schaben, a student at St. Cloud State University, wrote haiku on November 30, 2009, while studying about Japanese Literature at AIU.

 

When summer passes

The din of the cicada

No longer is heard

 

  夏過ぎて   蝉の鳴き声   遠のいて 

Natsu sugite    semi no nakigoe    toonoite

 

When the grass turns brown

And the ground begins to freeze

The world sleeps soundly

 

草枯れる  大地が凍る    冬籠る

   Kusa kareru   daichi ga kooru   fuyu komoru

 

Soon the trees will shed

And the absence of their leaves

Creates new music

 

木の葉落ち   裸の冬木     新たな息吹

Konoha ochi    hadaka no fuyugi  aratana ibuki

 

The flood waters come

And by the end of each day

The world is cleansed

秋出水     その日が終わり  世事浄化せり

Aki demizu      sono hi ga owari      seji jouka seri

 

When the sun and moon

Live together in the sky

The air grows colder

太陽と月   ともに浮かべば   冬近し

  Taiyou to tsuki    tomo ni ukabe ba     fuyu chikashi 

 

As the leaf falls down

It traces a mournful path

Soon it will be dead

舞い降りる  落ち葉行く路  地に帰る

 Mai oriru       ochiba yuku michi   chi ni kaeru

 

 

Haiku by Kim Pool lib (ROK)

Kim Pool lib, a student at Sogang University, wrote haiku on November 30, 2009, while studying about Japanese Literature at AIU.

秋が来た   何をするかな   雲の横

        Akia ga kita    nani o suru kana   kumo no yoko

 

Autumn has come

What am I going to do?

Beside the clouds

 

 

果てしない   自然の変化  今度は秋

  Hateshinai       sizen no henka   kondo wa aki

 

Endless

Change of season

This time is autumn

 

赤い山   一人で感じる  雲と鳥

    Akai yama   hitori de kanjiru   kumo to tori

 

Seasoning mountain

Feeling it by myself

Clouds and bird

 

 

Haiku by Eunji Sohn (ROK)

Eunji Sohn, a student at Seoul National University, wrote haiku on November 30, 2009, while studying about Japanese Literature at AIU.

赤い葉や　あなたを見たら　恥ずかしい

Akai ha ya   anata o  mitara      hazukashii

 

Oh, red leaves

I feel shy

when I see you

 

秋空は    どんな匂いが するのかな

Akizora wa      donna nioi ga    suru no kana

 

 What does autumn sky smell like?

 

秋溝は    落葉たちの  お風呂かな

Shukou wa  ochiba tachi no  o furo kana

 

 Is autumn ditch

the bath of fallen leaves，

maybe?

 

 

―　Hidenori Hiruta