Growing into the Light - Poetry Inspired by Nature

Giant redwoods rise

born of loam and leafy mould

from darkness to light.

This picture inspired strong impressions of what Japanese Haiku masters call Sabi (寂):

the sense of the inexorable passage of time, the beauty or serenity that accompanies the advance of age, when the life of the objects and its impermanence are highlighted through the verse.

Along with Yūgen (幽玄):

The sense of wonder and mystery; represented by the state of mind of the inexplicable fascination of things, the feeling of an 'other' universe that lies just beyond the vial.

Trees have always fascinated me. The thought of how they might perceive the world, if they even feel time in the way we do, and how it must feel to be born of the earth only to reach for the light.

This haiku tries to create an impression of that 'other' universe mentioned in the description of Yūgen.

The simple existence of a plant in perception - growing from darkness to light.

The haiku follows the Ekphrastic model of poetry, where a picture is used to prompt a haiku. In this case I have taken my prompt from the image used as a thumbnail and the memory it inspired.

To read more about the aesthetics of true haiku, and the difference between haiku and senryu, please check out my post:

[Haiku Vs Senryu - The Aesthetics of Form](https://steemit.com/writing/@raj808/poetry-101-haiku-vs-senryu-the-aesthetics-of-form)

Thanks for reading 🌿

All media used is CC license or my own.

If you have enjoyed this post you can check out my other work on my homepage @raj808.

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