The Leafy Cloud - Heavenly Haiku

This haiku is inspired by the wilderness environment, and particularly tropical jungles. I have been lucky enough to visit the jungle on two occasions, once in Thailand in 2010 and again in Belize in 2016.

Travelling in wilderness environments is an intensely spiritual experience for me. The vibrancy of life that permeates the jungle's atmosphere is something that remains with me to this day. I find it completely impossible not to lose myself in the majesty of the abundant animal life and the swaying leafy cloud of the canopy. To walk in the jungle is pure meditation, a true escape. An opportunity to drift away from the mental chatter and noise of the modern day world.

The haiku follows the model of the Mizu No Oto - Haiku Contest, 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.

The Mizu No Oto - Haiku Contest (linked above) contains a fantastic tutorial on the traditional aesthetics and technique of haiku, I recommend checking it out for a master class in that form of poetry.

In this haiku I have tried to adhere to the 2nd iteration of the toriawase stylistic model - toriawase with nibutsu shōgeki to the third ku.

To read more about the aesthetics of true haiku, and the difference between haiku and senryu, please check out my recent post Haiku Vs Senryu - The Aesthetics of Form.

The image used in this post is my own, taken when travelling in Koh Sok nation park in Thailand. If you have enjoyed this Haiku, please check out my other work on my homepage @raj808.