Anthology of Contemporary Haiku (Japanese)

Below is the essay I wrote for the hardcover book of

Anthology of Contemporary Haiku.

This book is a compilation of about 230 haiku writers all over Japan. Each writer submit 20 haiku in the Japanese language.

This book goes into printing for 1000 copies only and cost JY2500 each.

As far as I know, there is no foreigner or non-Japanese person who have ever stepped into the Japanese haiku world, writing haiku in Japanese.

The photo of me wearing tudung, this will make me quite famous but hey, famous or not, I'm still a housewife ironing my husband's shirt everyday!!!

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The Essay:

Eventhough I have known haiku in the english version during the early introductory years, it did not impressed me much. Most of foreign written haiku are either too wordy or too brief. Most of the time, the season word are missing or the magical abstract touch and the inner core of the haiku itself is not there.

I was not satisfied with the knowledge of haiku that is written in the english textbook. The turning point came when I was faced with the challenge of getting to the basic of haiku. I want to know the original version. I want to know when haiku was started and who wrote the first haiku. That was the very basic of haiku. The main body which every haiku enthusiast should know before embarking on a journey of the haiku spirit.

With a heart full of bare knowledge and with a spirit of wings high in the sky, my feet carried me to the first haiku class in session. I did not know anyone in the class and coming from a foreign land, my knowledge of the Japanese kanji and writing was almost minimum. But this fear did not stop my thirst for that sweetness of haiku knowledge.

I challenged myself in a class of original haiku writers. Writers who are so knowleageable in haiku writing. At times I felt so helpless. This is the beginning of a hard climb for me and I am still climbing. Still struggling.
Imagine me, a person without any background of Japanese language since young, going all out to study a new language at this advance age, I have to admit that a few times I almost gave up in my frustrated attempt.

With much help from kind friends around me and understanding members in the haiku circle, I ploughed on. I fertilized the soil and build the knowledge ever so slowly. I planted the seeds of learning bit by bit.
I do not know the result yet but I hope the seed will grow into beautiful plant. This plant will one day, spread more seeds and build an empire of haiku writers in the Malay literary world.

End of Essay.

All this is written in Japanese.