Haiku, the Japanese form of poetry written in just three lines, can be miraculous in its power to articulate the profundity of the simplest moment—and for that reason haiku can be a useful tool for bringing us to a heightened awareness of our lives. Here, the poet Patricia Donegan shares her experience of the haiku form as a way of insight that anyone can use to slow down and uncover the beauty of ordinary moments. She presents 108 haiku poems—on themes such as honesty, transience, and compassion—and offers commentary on each as an impetus to meditation and as a key to unlocking the wonder in what we find right before us.
Haiku Mind
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Editorial Reviews
Review
“Haiku Mind contains the best—the most insightful—commentary on haiku since the great works of R. H. Blyth. If you want to know what haiku is about, what a haiku can do, why haiku are important, read this book. Patricia Donegan looks into the heart of haiku by exploring outstanding individual examples with a perceptive, aware, and sensitive eye. The literary essay has never known finer moments.”—Cor van den Heuvel, editor of The Haiku Anthology
About the Author
Patricia Donegan is a poet, translator, and promoter of haiku as an awareness practice. She was a faculty member of East-West poetics at Naropa University under Allen Ginsberg and Chögyam Trungpa; a student of Japanese haiku master Seishi Yamaguchi; and a Fulbright scholar to Japan. She is a meditation teacher, the poetry editor for Kyoto Journal, and a member of the Haiku Society of America. Her haiku works include Haiku Mind: 108 Poems to Cultivate Awareness and Open Your Heart, Chiyo-ni: Woman Haiku Master (co-translated with Yoshie Ishibashi), and Haiku: Asian Arts for Creative Kids. Her poetry collections include Without Warning, Bone Poems, and Hot Haiku.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
19 of 19 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
108 haiku, each a gem , followed by a short comment. The topics range from karma(a white lotus---/the monk decides/to cut it !) to justice(reflected/in the sword's blade/soft summer clouds), and each makes you think and reflect and , with luck, go 'Ah. I see." Good selections, both ancient and modern, as well as cultural, both Japanese and Western. A wonderful book.
17 of 18 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Haiku Mind contains the best--the most insightful--commentary on haiku since the great works of R. H. Blyth. If you want to know what haiku is about, what a haiku can do, why haiku are important, read this book. Patricia Donegan looks into the heart of haiku by exploring outstanding individual examples with a perceptive, aware, and sensitive eye. The literary essay has never known finer moments.
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Each of these 108 haiku is accompanied by a brief commentary that creates a context for the poem and explains how it works. The commentaries are insightful, although the titles for them (Pausing, Honesty, Sky-Mind) feel like editorial add-ons. I'm not quite as enthusiastic as the other reviewers, mainly because there's not enough about the language and structure of haiku here. But maybe my expectations are too literary. This is really a general audience book, which is in itself a laudable achievement. Give Haiku Mind book to everybody who doesn't understand why you spend all that time writing three-line poems that barely make sense: if they don't get it after reading the book, they never will.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
By Geraldine
Format:Hardcover
I am just reading this book and enjoying it immensely. I am a freelance writer and haiku poet myself.
The power and beauty of haiku poetry is explored in depth.The author's interpretation of every poem is explained in a beautiful,evocative way, throughout.
This is a wonderful book to relax with, at the end of a busy day or week. You don't have to be an expert or regular follower of haiku to enjoy this book. Would make a memorable gift too.
The power and beauty of haiku poetry is explored in depth.The author's interpretation of every poem is explained in a beautiful,evocative way, throughout.
This is a wonderful book to relax with, at the end of a busy day or week. You don't have to be an expert or regular follower of haiku to enjoy this book. Would make a memorable gift too.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
This is a book of twin jewels - both in the haiku and in the beautifully written commentaries which accompany them. Donegan has created a collection of meditative experiences that will continue to resonate with repeated readings.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
By MamaDog
Format:Hardcover
not only are the haikus selected poignant and beautiful, but the commentary is sweet and insightful. just a small sampling (some paraphrasing)...
"caught in our comfortable habitual thoughts, there is a gap, a crack long enough for the sound of a bird to penetrate us" (listening to nature, being in the present)
"pausing is the doorway to awakening"
"sky meditation puts us back to our natural state, as vast and open as the sky. all else is just thoughts and feelings, like clouds passing by"
"gratitude is necessary in a world yearning for peace"
"caught in our comfortable habitual thoughts, there is a gap, a crack long enough for the sound of a bird to penetrate us" (listening to nature, being in the present)
"pausing is the doorway to awakening"
"sky meditation puts us back to our natural state, as vast and open as the sky. all else is just thoughts and feelings, like clouds passing by"
"gratitude is necessary in a world yearning for peace"
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
A wonderful little collection/introduction to international haiku ~
April 29, 2012
Format:Paperback
This book contains mostly Japanese Haiku, well translated into English by Donegan. There are also many haiku from English speaking authors and a handful from other languages translated into English. Donegan is well versed in haiku and knowledgeable about the meanings behind the deceptively simple poems. She uses her knowledge of Zen and Buddhist philosophy to pen short evaluations of each haiku and give the reader insight into the poem and the author.
There are 108 selections (an auspicious number in Buddhism and Taoism) and each has a place in this book. There are selections ranging from Basho to Kerouac to modern Japanese masters. I believe that all of the haiku in this book were penned by authors that have now passed away, even those written in the 20th century.
The real delight is reading each of these haiku then reading the following short essay and the subsequent couple of lines about the author. Sometimes the message conveyed by haiku is fleeting or mysterious, but Donegan does well to enlighten the reader being neither too precise nor too vague. Each of these haiku is meant to be read and pondered over, preferably in a quiet and contemplative space, perhaps with tea. I also found many to be delightful to read then ponder, then discuss among other haiku fans. The one thing I felt would have made a great addition would have been the Japanese original haiku included (for those Japanese penned haiku) with a Romaji translation (the phonetic Japanese pronunciation) so that the reader could read the Japanese sounds. Much like the collections of poetry from Neruda and Baudelaire. But it's a small and trivial point since the well done translations evoke great emotion.... Read more ›
There are 108 selections (an auspicious number in Buddhism and Taoism) and each has a place in this book. There are selections ranging from Basho to Kerouac to modern Japanese masters. I believe that all of the haiku in this book were penned by authors that have now passed away, even those written in the 20th century.
The real delight is reading each of these haiku then reading the following short essay and the subsequent couple of lines about the author. Sometimes the message conveyed by haiku is fleeting or mysterious, but Donegan does well to enlighten the reader being neither too precise nor too vague. Each of these haiku is meant to be read and pondered over, preferably in a quiet and contemplative space, perhaps with tea. I also found many to be delightful to read then ponder, then discuss among other haiku fans. The one thing I felt would have made a great addition would have been the Japanese original haiku included (for those Japanese penned haiku) with a Romaji translation (the phonetic Japanese pronunciation) so that the reader could read the Japanese sounds. Much like the collections of poetry from Neruda and Baudelaire. But it's a small and trivial point since the well done translations evoke great emotion.... Read more ›
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
By Just
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
This is a great little book. The haiku are diverse in subject matter and age. The information about the poets is sufficiently detailed. The collection is light but inspiring.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Does what it says
This is an excellent compilation of haiku because it includes both sexes (rare) and a range of historical periods. Read more
Published 8 days ago by PAG
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great book.
This is not just another Haiku book. What I enjoy about this book is that the author presents a haiku and then an analysis or story. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Amy Ketchum
5.0 out of 5 stars
Read and Be Opened
Donegan has re-energized my interest in the haiku. It's been a few years since I was drawn back into the simplicity, but wisdom of haiku poems, but Donegan has brought be back. Read more
Published 7 months ago by William B. Baun
3.0 out of 5 stars
Starts Strong, Finishes Weak
This is a well-intentioned book that starts off as though it might be interesting and stimulating, but seems to run out of gas as it goes along. Read more
Published 21 months ago by Karl W. Nehring
5.0 out of 5 stars
Haiku Body
Pissing
like
A race horse
A frog
jumps in
Dies
Kuayin
(c)2011
like
A race horse
A frog
jumps in
Dies
Kuayin
(c)2011
Published on June 10, 2011 by KUAYIN
5.0 out of 5 stars
haiku mind
An excellent selection of haiku from a wide variety of writers, ancient and modern, with sensitive translations tuned to the modern ear. Read more
Published on February 4, 2011 by bklynbky
5.0 out of 5 stars
BREATH IN AND MEDITATE
THIS BOOK IS A LITTLE MOMENT OF MEDITATIVE THOUGHT WHENEVER THE WORLD SEEMS TOO COMPLICATED. FEW WORDS SUMMING UP A WHOLE PICTURE. MARVELLOUS FOR THE RUSHED AND TIRED MIND.
Published on June 25, 2010 by Patricia Ann Sinclair
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great Little read
Really loving this book. Something nice to read in the morning to start you're day off right!
Published on June 10, 2010 by C.Pure
1.0 out of 5 stars
Unbelievable Beauty
Donegon's selection of haiku and her haibun-like comments are absolutely fabulous.
high and low
violetgreen swallows
low and high
high and low
violetgreen swallows
low and high
Published on June 4, 2010 by George Stratton
