Kigo -- their use in Modern Japan and a proposition.

 An excerpt from the 4th edition of the Kojien, arguably the premiere dictionary of the Japanese language:

HAIKU -- A short poem with a fixed form of seventeen syllables of the structure 5-7-5.

Its form is derived from the hokku of renga and it conventionally includes seasonal and cutting words (kigo and kireji).

...[information about its history]... Some elements deny the necessity for a fixed form and/or the inclusion of a

seasonal reference.

Haiku in Japan have traditionally included a seasonal reference. Of course, there have been exceptions to this rule --

even by the father of haiku, Basho himself. However, such haiku, when they have worked, have been considered

somewhat of an oddity -- fortuitous experiments that by some miracle have managed to capture that kernel of spirit

that gives a haiku life. Even so, many are the haiku workshops (kukai) that I have attended where a kigo-less poem

has been chosen by more than one of the haiku poets present as their favourite of the session. During the ensuing

discussion it invariably comes to light that this poem lacks a season word and, nigh on 50% of the time, the discussion

then ends -- the offending haiku relegated to oblivion and forgotten. However, many also are the times that the

haiku is appraised by its other merits and, seasonless or not, it is kept and adds to the haiku literature. Why should

this be so?

In order to gain some understanding of the collective wisdom relating to kigo and their use in haiku in Japan

I have drawn upon various sources, both living and in print, and this is what I have learnt:

There are three major haiku poets' societies currently in existence in Japan.

 

These are:

The Modern Haiku Society (Gendai Haiku Kyokai) -- president KANEKO Tohta

The Haiku Poets' Society (Haijin Kyokai) -- president MATSUZAKI Tetsunosuke

The Japanese Traditional Haiku Society (Nihon Dento Haiku Kyokai) -- president INAHATA Teiko

Each of these societies boasts approximately 10,000 members. These members pay annual fees of upwards of one hundred

American dollars and usually need to be nominated by at least two current members of the Society as worthy of membership.

One needs to be fairly serious about haiku to meet these conditions and the numbers above can therefore be considered,

on the whole, to be of haiku poets rather than of haiku enthusiasts. An important distinction to make, I believe,

as it should reflect the number of active haiku makers who have actually thought to some extent beyond the dictionary

definition and the teachings of their Sensei as to what a haiku really is and should be.

The official line of all three of these haiku societies is that kigo are necessary to haiku. Both the Haiku Poets'

Society and the Japanese Traditional Haiku Society also believe that a fixed form is integral to haiku. Approximately

one hundred percent of the members of these two societies follow these teachings. Although the official policy of the

Modern Haiku Society is that kigo are necessary to haiku, close to ten percent of members do not embrace this philosophy.

The number not embracing a fixed 5-7-5 form is somewhat higher still. Therefore, regarding kigo, 1000 of the 30,000

(ca. 3.5%) haiku poets currently members of one of the three major Japanese haiku societies believe that kigo are

not necessarily integral to true haiku. Although vocal, they represent a minority to say the least.

As to the official policies of each of these major haiku societies regarding the use of kigo, these can be gauged by

their sponsorship of season word dictionaries (saijiki). In the last few years, the Modern Haiku Society has published

a season word dictionary that includes a section devoted to haiku that lack traditional kigo. They instated a new

category, that of "various others" (zo), and approximately 8400 new words/themes were added to this category. The

Japanese Traditional Haiku Society continues to revise and upgrade the "New Season Word Dictionary" (shinsaijiki)

first established by TAKAHAMA Kyoshi in 1934. No major changes in philosophy have become evident in the ensuing years.

The Haiku Poetsﾕ Society sponsors the "500 Basic Season Words" saijiki (kihon kigo 500 sen) edited by YAMAMOTO Kenkichi.

This saijiki pared the plethora of kigo and derivatives back to a manageable level, leading to invigoration due to the

condensation of emotional and mental associations around a smaller number of more powerful kigo.

I believe it can be safely said that the majority of haiku poets in Japan, and indeed haiku theorists (a career path

I believe is peculiar to Japan), believe that kigo are an essential facet of haiku. Even the installment of the

zo category in a saijiki points to the recognized necessity for some word, phrase or linkage that allows individual

haiku to resonate off and from each other. Granted, a haiku can be powerful and full of insight in its own right.

However, it is often the case that a given haiku is enriched by the associations with other insightful haiku brought

to it through the kigo they share. With such a short poetical form, the insights that can be gained through a single

poem are limited. Haiku poets in Japan invariably consider that which has gone before them when crafting a haiku.

Whether this be to allude to a previous haiku through the choice of language and so to benefit from this resonance

or to distance their creation from such associations. The very act of omission is noted, of course, by the educated

haiku reader and the intention of the poet thereby grasped -- in effect the omission of a specific kigo-related phrase

becomes a kigo in itself. In Japan, the kigo as a concept is considered integral to haiku. The vast majority of poets

define the kigo as a seasonal word or reference but experimentation has started, in the form of zo, on other

interpretations.

In practice, the use of kigo in haiku does not strictly follow that suggested by the direct translation "seasonal word",

at least in the haiku groups I have attended. In renga or renku the exact placement of a kigo within the seasonal cycle

is of extreme importance in order for the renga to progress orderly through the seasons. However, in haiku this is not

necessarily the case. Of far more importance than in which week of March or April the cherry blossoms bloom is the

associations and allusions that come with the phrase "cherry blossoms". This emphasis on the kigo as a theme word rather

than a season word per se was no doubt instrumental in the formation of zo "various others" as a season word category.

My personal opinion on what a kigo is or should be differs to a certain degree from both the Traditional and the Modern

schools of thought. 

As background, I believe that haiku are manifestations of our search for universal Truths.

What place do kigo have in our search for insights into the world in which we live? A quick peruse through any number

of recently published saijiki (season word dictionaries) reveals a plethora of relatively recent additions to the list

of season words. These include such man-made objects as "swimming pool", "refrigerator" and "beer" -- all listed under

the Summer heading. Granted there is a certain summer-ness to each of these words, but what is more important for a word

to qualify as a kigo -- its ability to be accurately placed within the seasonal cycle or the wealth of associations,

images and allusions that it conjures up? Given the use of kigo in practice, I tend to think the latter. So, what about

the inclusion of words such as "nail", "tomb", "cross" or "clock" in the kigo list? Personally, I believe that these

words are just as poor kigo as the summer season words listed above.

The reason is this. Each of these objects, be it a tomb, a nail or a swimming pool, is man-made, artificial, and only

exists for the purpose for which it was made. How can one search for a universal Truth in an object that does not exist

of its own accord? A universal Truth can only be found in an object or entity that exists of, by, and for, itself.

The human ego is a totally artificial construct -- it is shaped by the environment in which we grow up. How can any kind

of universal Truth be found in an object that has been constructed by such a construct? It can not!

If one is to search for universal Truths with one's haiku it is necessary to search within Nature and the natural world.

"Refrigerator" is a season word. However, it is not a natural entity and as such, no Truth may be found in it.

(I hasten to add that when this "refrigerator" interacts with a natural entity there is every possibility that a Truth

may thereby be found.)

I do not believe that season words are necessary to haiku. What is necessary is a word or phrase that indicates a

natural entity, something that exists of, by, and for, itself. It is necessary to be concrete and exact in the choice

of these words. As an example, "tree" is an abstract concept devised by the human ego to indicate any number of natural

entities. To find a universal Truth in such a "tree" is a task nigh on impossible. Even to search for a universal Truth

in an "oak" or a "maple" is a daunting task. How much closer can we come in our search for Truths if we speak to

"an oak sapling", "a winter maple" or "a stunted cedar"?

Seasonal words or themes are not necessary for the realization of a true haiku. What is necessary is a concrete word

or phrase that indicates a natural entity. With each true haiku that is formed from this entity, a new facet of its

existence is brought to light. This resonates with and from the other facets of the entity's existence uncovered by haiku

poets who have gone before and leads us one step closer in our search for the universal Truths that define this entity

and its place in the grand scheme. Perhaps through such searching we can even begin to discover our own place within

this greater scheme.

by Dhugal J. Lindsay