This week on The Poetry Peacast, we drift into a river-inspired collection of haiku and senryu from our March video prompt. While Patricia is (technically) in Zürich, today’s episode is carried by the warm currents of South Africa, where the original footage was filmed during a memorable family trip.

The poems featured here have been carefully edited and curated by Johnny Moran—thank you, Johnny—and capture a range of voices responding to water, movement, and the quiet details that make haiku and senryu so powerful.

Congratulations to the poets whose work is included in this episode. Their poems will also appear in the upcoming issue of the 1:26 poetry journal.

In this episode:

• A showcase of original haiku and senryu
• Poetry inspired by rivers, travel, and observation
• Reflections on the March Poetry Pea video prompt
• Community voices from poets around the world

If you enjoy the podcast, you can support us by becoming a member, buying us a coffee, or making a donation via PayPal—all through our website. You can also help by sharing the podcast with your poetry friends and on social media.

And yes—there’s a brief (and heartfelt) nod to Crystal Palace’s latest semi-final. Fingers firmly crossed.

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Featured Poets

March Video Prompt

Herb Tate

Neena Singh

David Cox

Jennifer L. Blanck

Mona Bedi

Jacob Blumner

Lakshmi Iyer India

Melissa Dennison

Ralph Matthews

Joshua gage

Christopher Seep

Vaishnavi Ramaswamy

Alicia Samson

Rohan Buettel

Tony Williams

Bonus poetry

Robert Kingston, PPJ Autumn 2021

Mark Gilbert, PPJ Autumn 2021

Anne Morrigan, PPJ 2:23

MartinLucas from Freewheeling

Brett Brady, PPJ 2021

John Hawkhead, PPJ Autumn 2020

Edward Cody Huddleston, Autumn 2020

In this episode of the Poetry Pea Podcast, we continue our exploration of lyrical poetry with a journey into the work of the Japanese haiku masters. From Bashō and Buson to Issa and Shiki, and their contemporaries, we listen to classic haiku in translation and consider how sound, rhythm and imagery carry emotional resonance across centuries.

Following last week’s episode on the eighteenth-century female poet, Chyio-ni, today we turn to the male masters and their friends and contemporaries. These poems span stillness, seasonal awareness, humour, melancholy and the fleeting beauty at the heart of haiku. Expect frogs, evening breezes, cherry blossom, mountain mist and the famous old pond — along with the rarely heard response verse from its original renku.

All poems are read in English translation, allowing the musicality and lyricism of classical Japanese haiku to shine through for modern listeners. If you love haiku, Japanese poetry, short-form poetry, or want inspiration for your own writing, this episode offers a rich selection from some of the greatest poets in the tradition.

Don’t forget to add your poem to this month’s Poetry Pea video prompt in the comments on the channel, and support the podcast if you can.

Links to the poems mentioned are in the show notes.

In this episode of Poetry Pea, I explore the haiku of Chiyo-ni, the 18th-century Japanese poet and Buddhist nun whose lyrical voice is often overlooked when we talk about the great haiku masters. While Bashō, Buson, Shiki and Issa are regularly discussed, Chiyo-ni’s work often takes a back seat.

Prompted by recent conversations about the perceived lack of lyrical poetry in modern haiku, I look at what “lyrical” might mean in the context of haiku. For me, lyrical poetry creates an emotional connection without sentimentality, often supported by musicality, rhythm and the spoken quality of the words. Through a selection of Chiyo-ni’s poems, presented in English translation, I explore how her work achieves this balance with delicacy and restraint.

You’ll hear a range of Chiyo-ni’s haiku, including the well-known morning glory poem, alongside lesser-known pieces that reveal her attentiveness to nature, human feeling and fleeting moments. I also discuss the challenges of translation and how different versions of the same poem can alter tone, rhythm and emotional impact.

I’m also inviting you to take part:

• What does “lyrical” mean to you in haiku?

• Do you think lyrical poetry is missing from contemporary English-language haiku?

• Send me your favourite lyrical haiku (with citations) for possible inclusion in a future episode.

If you enjoy the podcast, please consider supporting Poetry Pea with a membership, a coffee, or sharing it with your poetry friends.

You can also join the mailing list to stay updated with future episodes.

Show notes