MITSUAKI KOJIMA

Shoichi Karoji wagered a bet on the weather. He won on Oct. 6, the night of the full autumn moon. And so did his colleagues at the Satsuma Sakura haiku club in Kagoshima who consider jugoya, the 15th night in the cycle of the eighth lunar moon, to be the most important night of the year. Charlie Smith and members of his North Carolina haiku club got rained out.

Moon-viewing
clear or will it rain?
I bet fair

Harvest moon
cloudy and rainy
like last year

On the night of the full moon, nicknamed the sweet potato moon, all things round take on special significance. Kiyoshi Fukuzawa penned a perfect circle to mark the date, and Britain-based poet Helen Buckingham juxtaposes a haiku about a tortoise and mulberries.

Autumn ...
one more day circled
my diary

Meandering tortoise
treading water
and mulberries

Dietmar Tauchner spent the special evening with old friends in Puchberg, Austria, while Lorne Henry enjoyed listening to birdcalls in Branxton, Australia.

Reunion
never having seen the moon
brighter

Moonlit night
the wagtail whistles
constantly

In Kyoto, Murasaki Sagano likely felt petrified in the moonlight when she heard of North Korea's nuclear bomb test.

Autumn earth
of disturbing news
perfect moon

Some poets believe the full moon is too perfect, however, and prefer the kurimeigetsu, the bright chestnut moon that shines more demurely on jusanya, the 13th night of the ninth lunar month. The ninth full moon of the year is named atonotsuki, the later moon. Look for it on Nov. 3 this year, an auspicious occurrence because that is also Bunka-no-hi, Culture Day, the holiday for celebrating culture. Satoru Kanematsu will be looking for signs of Pluto.

Starry sky
one fewer planet
this autumn

Whereas round dumplings and fruits are offered in prayer to the jugoya to ensure a bountiful rice harvest, chestnuts and oval beans are offered in prayer and eaten under the glow of the jusanya. Keiko Fukunaga fondly remembers a loved one's favorite autumn menu. Kiyoshi Fukuzawa does, too.

Chestnut rice
peeling hard shell off
his favorite

Glass of beer
left on the gravestone
summer remains

Haikuists of course can wax poetry about the different phases of the moon every night of the month. Yoriko Tashiro is a member of the 16th Moon Haiku club, a name coined for members who are perhaps a bit past their prime. The shape of the 16th moon is described by Michael Corr in Nagoya.

Nightly news
cluster amaryllis
Iraq War

Lost behind
tower moon comes back
right side chopped

Want to try composing haiku ?

Back numbers

The next issue of the Asahi Haikuist Network appears Nov. 4. Readers are invited to send haiku about colored leaves, and club meetings to David McMurray at the International Herald Tribune/Asahi Shimbun, 5-3-2 Tsukiji, Chuo-ku, Tokyo 104-8011, by fax to 03-5541-8539, or by e-mail to is@asahi.com.