Indian kukai January 2014

Indian kukai # 3 - call for entries has been posted.
This month the contest is being hosted by Kashinath Karmakar (Kash Poet) and yours truly and all you amazing poets are cordially invited.

Please check our blog (the link below) for the theme and further guidelines on how to participate.
http://www.indiankukai.blogspot.in/

Coming soon...

the third edition of Indian kukai  brought to you by the IN haiku group.

The kukai had gone international in the last edition with participation from 12 countries and we are hoping that all you haiku poets from around the world will continue to support us in our endeavor with your active participation in the coming editions too. The uniqueness of this Indian kukai is that it gives you 7 points to play with during the voting phase, as opposed to the usual 6 points allotted in other kukai contests. Liberating, isn't it?

Please follow our blog here and watch this space for the next announcement that is going to come in just a few days.

Photo:creative commons

if i could give a name to this wind wild poppies

Frogpond 36.3

peep-toes haiga

 Have to share with you these two beautiful haiga by Jayashree Maniyil from Australia, which she did
based on my haiku published in DailyHaiku on December 8.I loved both the versions. You pick your favourite.

November shiki kukai

 Another second place in The November Shiki kukai free format section. The winning entry in that section was this awesome ku by Vinay Ravindranath of our very own In haiku group:

ink puddle--

the words that

never were

And my runner-up ku :

this puddle

what my paper boat knows

of the sea 

Paresh Tiwari was in third place with this entry:

alley puddle--

 a paper boat  glides

over the stars

Incidentally, poets from India made a clean sweep of the top places in this free format section.

In the kigo section, I was in the fifth place with this ku :

morning chill-

the chimney smoke curls back

into itself

haiga: hoping

 A haiga I had done sometime ago and which just happened to match Neelam Dadhwal's prompt: "play" on IN haiku.

hoping 

to turn it around~

a nuthatch's world

Results of Indian Kukai #02

The results of the second edition of Indian kukai is out now.
Paresh Tiwari from India takes the top place with this absolute winner of an entry which gathered 37 points.

mustard fields--
a thimbleful of sun
in each blossom

Nd this entry by yours truly is placed second.

Margosa leaves

strumming the sunlight...

a poem I cannot write

There were many other beautiful entries from entrants all over the globe.You can view the full results here.

Results of Indian Kukai #02

a small stone

Crimson, scarlet or is it oxblood?
Over a bottle of shiraz, three women unsure
of the colour of the evening sun.

Indi Kukai

I am a bit late with this post. Indian Kukai, the kukai contest organised by the IN haiku group, has gone international starting this month.So all you amazing poets and readers of this blog, please submit your entries to Indi kukai to make this endeavor successful. Last date of submission is 17th November. Only 3 days to go.
Please click on the link below to find out all the details.

INDIAN KUKAI

The jinx continues (2)

orange peel-

the wrinkles and folds

I never noticed

 Shiki Kukai, free format section

September 2013

2nd place ( 18 points)

The jinx continues (1)

Milky way...

a billion reasons

to love him

Shiki kukai , Kigo section

September 2013,

2nd place (19 points)

The Indian kukai # 01

Our haiku group IN kukai held the first ever Indian kukai contest this month.

Kash poet and Vinay Ravindranath were the hosts for this inaugural edition and participation was limited to group members only.

Theme of the contest was "music', quality of the responses excellent and Nandini Nair took the first place with the following heart-warming haiku:

 my baby's heartbeat

against mine-

the rhythm for our lullaby

Nandini Nair

Arvinder Kaur secured the second place with this very pretty haiku:

distant echoes--

a murmuring brook 

in her anklets 

Arvinder Kaur
 

And I managed to get the the third place with this one:

misty moon--

I almost remember that song 

dad used to sing 

The other ones that deserve a special mention are these:

another winter night...

the lone watchman's

same whistle tune

RK Sameer 

and

 evening raga-

the prussian wing -tips

of a blue jay

Paresh Tiwari 

IN kukai has plans to go international with the Indian kukai very soon, probably by early next year. Watch this space for further details and announcements.

September update

September has been hectic, but September has also been generous to me. At least poetry- wise. At the beginning of the month Lakeview International Journal Vol 1, No.2 ( http://issuu.com/lijla/docs/lijlaaugust2013)  ) came out with two of my haiku in it. Then there was the latest issue of A Hundred Gourds (http://www.ahundredgourds.com/ahg24/index24.html)  featuring thee of my haiku apart from a previously published one which was selected by Yoshiko McFarland as one of the ten that she translated into "earth language" by rendering it beautifully in her unique pictograph style.

Next , New Zealand poet Kirsten Cliff included one of my poems in her ongoing  Per Diem series on the theme of "dream speak" on the Haiku Foundation website.

My poem  was also published on Tinywords on September 6th (http://tinywords.com/2013/09/06/14107/  )

And to wrap it all up, I  got the third place in the European Kukai edition III. (See the beautiful e-diploma above.) I know, it's only a 3rd place. But it was my first try and there were 156 contestants in it, so cannot help feeling extremely happy about it.

I only hope the remaining part of the month also stays as kind to me as these three weeks were!

life

 I had vowed to take a break from poetry two days back, hence no post from me in the past two days.
But along comes this prompt today from Michele Harvey on NaHaiWriMo and these lines follow. I don't know if you can call them poetry or haiku, but here they are for whatever they are!

August 25, 2013
Prompt: life

life            hung out to dry on the clothes-line

life

waiting huddled

at the bottom

of the stairs

life

coming home doused

with the scent of grass

life

I try you out

in front of the mirror

life 

leaping a little

 higher

life...

no loitering

 here

life  as soon as I forget about you

life    even without you    life

life

...because

you asked

 

 

August 21, 2013
(Prompt: favorite insect)

antsantsants...

the long line

of my peeves

August 20, 2013

(Prompt:favorite mineral/rock/stone)

emerald spring-

a curl of fern

under the rock

Seventeenth small stone

some days
a wayward wind enters
this darkened alley...
rattling the blue windows, it asks:
do you still remember me?

August 19, 2013
(Prompt:favorite plant/flower)

wildflower patch why ask my name

August 18, 2013
(Prompt: favorite animal)

watching 

the meteor shower

my cat and I

August 16, 2013
(Prompt: intuition/clairvoyance)

sixth sense-

a sudden chill down my spine

on a sunny day

August 15, 2013
(Prompt:touch)

Braille-

the baby's fingers

read my face

August 13. 2013
Prompt: (smell/nose)

smell of brewing tea

I open

the first mail 

August 14,2013

(Prompt: taste/mouth)

cave mouth

the taste of

fear 

 August 11, 2013
the theme this week is "senses". And the prompt for today :eyes/sight

 a flicker

in the cat's eyes-

blue butterfly

August 12, 2013

Prompt:sound/hearing

malhar notes...

the distinct sound

of each raindrop

August 10,2013
(Prompt: smoke/smog)

city smog-

the honkings from

ghost cars

August 9,2013
(Prompt: hail/ice)

hailstorm...

all the sounds 

of our cold war

August 7, 2013
(Prompt:clouds)

overcast sky-

minnows in and out

of the clouds

August 6, 2013
(Prompt:storm)

brewing storm-

the packed suitcase

at the door

 

August 4
(Prompt:windy)

   autumn afternoon

dry leaves ahead

of the wind

August 5
(Prompt:dry/drought)

parched field the bleached white of a raven's bones

August 3, 2013
(Prompt:sunny)

spring sun...

each daffodil holding

its echo

August 2, 2013
(Prompt:snow)

  Sshhh...

softly

  the      snow

              on       the     sidewalk       

August 1, 2013

Michele Harvey is the prompter this month for NaHaiWriMo.
I'm not sure how long I'll be able to follow her prompts, maybe one week or 2 weeks . Let's see.
But meanwhile the theme of the week is 'weather with its many moods'.

(Prompt:rain)

scent of rain...

he says he doesn't

remember 

29th July, 2013
(Prompt:red)

placing the red dot

between the eyebrows-

her smile to herself

28th July, 2013
(prompt:drench)

rain-drenched crocus

a stray kitten

at my doorstep

27th July, 2013

(prompt::any water blossom/water lily)

rippling  pond    the stillness of waterlilies

My orphan poem

July shiki kukai results are out and my haiku is languishing there somewhere near the bottom. As expected.At least I was smart enough with the request for anonymity...so that saves me the embarrassment.There are many such poems of mine from many past kukais..all.lying unclaimed, disowned.Will I ever have the confidence to own up these orphaned poems of mine?

evening glow-

an orange rim to the notes

of rain

 26th July, 2013

(Prompt: ruby)

stopped in my tracks-

those ruby eyes

at traffic lights

25th July, 2013
( Prompt:shell)

 empty cicada shell       echoes from long ago

The interview by Ramesh Anand

Ramesh Anand, the noted haiku poet from India did an interview with me which went online on Muse India and Boloji poetry site on 23rd July, 2013.

You could read the interview here and  here.

Thank you, Ramesh, for giving me this platform to talk about something I am passionate about!

Trying to catch up in the last week of Gillena Cox's prompts on NaHaiWriMo, if I can!

23rd July, 2013
 (Prompt: swan:)

after the swan's flight the color of dusk

International kukai June 2013

mountain pass-

weaving in and out

of a hawk's cry

International kukai no 15, June 2013

1st place winner (46 points)
This was done in response to a photo prompt by Rita Odeh. You can see the photo by clicking on the link above.

Shiki Kukai June 2013

somewhere

within this seashell--

a stillborn moon

Shiki kukai June 2013,  free format section.

It received 14 points, placed maybe 7th or 8th. Somebody actually gave it a full 3 points! Which is
reward enough, as I had loved writing this one.

Shiki Kukai December 2012

As you might have guessed, I have written nothing much in the past few months and hence have to fall back upon my Shiki kukai entries in order to post in the blog.

 The one I have dug up today is from December, 2012.
The prompt was 'departing'.

time to go...

the dragonfly clings

to a dewdrop

It got only 7 points and the  reason I remember this is because somebody liked it enough to leave behind a lovely comment!

That means a lot!

Shiki kukai January 2013

calm water-

 a duck glides

over the morning star 



Going back a little to the beginning of this year, this one in January Shiki kukai , Kigo section received 18 points and was placed third. The prompt was: first calm.

Shiki kukai May 2013

all day rain-
pond carps nibble
at the ripples

It managed to garner 11 points and was at the sixth or seventh place. As usual!

RaedLeafPoetry - India Award contest

Hi there!
So I'm back again after a long trip and a longer break and boy, am i happy to be back here!

Hope you all have been well and missing me just a little, perhaps!

As for me..I've missed a lot on the poetry scene and when i found Alan Summers was giving the prompts this month at NaHaiWriMo, i leapt to grab the chance, though am finding it so difficult to get back in the groove... But I won't bother you with all that, instead let me tell you today about this poetry contest...RaedLeafPoetry - India Award contest that Linda L Ashok,(Or,Linda the Livewire, which describes her better ) the poet from Hyderabad, India and the author of the book Significance of the insignificant  is holding on the Red Leaf poetry site founded by her and which promises to be really exciting. She has already finalized the list of  jury which consists of some well-known names from India and abroad.

Apart from haiku and related short forms , she will be accepting poetry in other genres as well.
Please take a look at Linda's page on Facebook here or contact her directly for all the details to make this contest a success by participating and sending in your best poetry. 

I doodle, you ku, 2013 third week

What is a doodle-ku?

It is simply writing a poem to match a doodle or sketch  and is something similar to a haiga.

And what is a haiga?

To quote Michael Dylan Welch, "HAIGA is the art of combining brush painting, haiku, and calligraphy. A traditional haiga requires all three of these elements. Just as haiku succeeds by creating space and energy in the relationship of its two juxtaposed parts, haiga energizes viewers through the “leap” or even disjunction between the poem and the paint­ing (the painting is typically not an illustration of the poem).  Modern haiga sometimes replaces one of the three requirements, such as by using a photograph instead of a painting (also known as photo-haiga, or shahai in Japanese), or by typesetting words on a computer instead of using calligraphy. Some purists do not consider these variations to be authentic haiga, but they are increasingly popular as computer technology evolves. While traditional haiga will continue to require brush painting, haiku, and calligraphy, artists and poets have explored many additional combinations with pleasing re­sults, such as using collage and other mixed-media presentations."

The above was to answer the queries of the casual readers of this blog who are sometimes confused as to what is this doodle-ku all about? And the poems here will make better sense when read in conjunction with the doodles. So in order to see the accompanying doodles, please click here.

And now to the third week of  I doodle, you ku. I am surprised that I've come this far and here's what I wrote:

 March 15

 the headphones left behind

...listening to the sounds 

of silence

March 16

missing the mark

today this freedom

to flower 

somewhere, 

anywhere

 

March 17

ten years later-

still too big for me

to fill up

 

March 18

firefly this sudden longing to see you

March 19

splash...

the bucket brimming

with shards of moon

March 20   

the way

you strum me...

wind through the bamboo

March 21

unplugged-

tv viewing

at the old age home 

 

I doodle, you ku, 2013 - second week

We are through with the second week of I doodle, you ku and Aubrie's doodles are getting better and better while I am just managing to hang on. This is what i wrote for the 2nd week of IDYK. To see the accompanying doodles for each day, go here.

March 8

etched in milk the footprints of night

milk moon-

the silence

of your steps

March 9

this wordlessness

stuck at my throat-

new moon

March 10

loneliness-

the loon's call rippling

the sky 

March 11

a conversation

between the butterfly and beetle-

spring breeze 

March 12

too early

to worry about death a storm-

I board up the windows

nevertheless,

just in case...

March 13

reaching for the snowflakes

the bare arm

of the scare crow

spring snow

on her bare arm

 a blue moth 

March 14

on the other side

of the barbed wire fence-

spring

I doodle, you ku 2013--first week

I promised (not to myself though) to stay off poetry for a while and focus on more pressing things like aadhar card, ATM card, repairs around the house, going on urgent shopping trips and last but not the least, sorting out a friend's love life. But when Aubrie Cox was back again on Yay words with her I doodle, you ku , 2013 , I knew I couldn't keep my word. Especially after listening to all  those woeful tales of a tormented soul and trying to play love guru,(which included taking a stroll at nine in the night up and down the street where the object of her affection is holed up), i I felt i could do with some counseling myself. So I plunge headlong into Aubrie's awesome doodles which never fail to brighten me up and though I know that this would mean a terrible rush by the end of the month ; for now I have made up my mind to enjoy myself without worrying about the future.Yes, that's the right attitude! And here's the first week's harvest! To see the accompanying doodles, please go here

March 1

sound

of wing flutter-

the blind cat's sigh

March 2

between the dark woods

and the dying fire-

our little white tent

March 3

your gaze

another wave reaches

the shore 

March 4

left on the table

last night and what I didn't

want to hear 

March 5

the railway track disappearing into the train's whistle

or,

the railway track the length of the train's whistle

March 6

not enough light

to read your mind-

chinese lanterns 

March 7

migrating bird-

two or three feathers left

on the window sill

NaHaiWriMo house week...day 23, 24, 26, 27 & 28

I lost quite a bit of momentum in NaHaiWriMo postings when I left to attend the Haiku India meet at Pune and though I had intended to catch up after coming back, couldn't quite succeed in doing it.

The theme of the final week was "house" and here are the few that I managed to slip in.


February 23 - Prompt - BEDROOM

waking up

in the old double-bed

the space between us

February  24 - Prompt - BATHROOM

cold shower-

a dolphin's leap

on the bathroom wall 

February26 - Prompt - CLOSET

child's closet-

following the ant trail

to the hidden chocolates

February 27 - Prompt - GARAGE

spring dusk-

the heat in the backseat

of the garaged car

February  28 - Prompt - KITCHEN

morning glories

through the kitchen window

Dad's off-key song 



 
 

NaHaiWriMo color week day 15,16, 17,18, 20

February 15 - Prompt - ORANGE

Submitted  to a journal



  February 16 - Prompt - RED

taillights 

disappearing-

last bus

February 17 - Prompt - BLACK

 courtroom trial-

the incessant cawing

of crows

February 18 - Prompt - GREEN

grasshopper

by grasshopper-

the garden greening 

February 20 - Prompt - WHITE

fragrance of starlight mogra flowers in her hair

NaHaiWriMo outdoor week - day 14

February 14 - Prompt - HARBOUR

crescent moon-

a dinghy glides in 

between docked ships

 

NaHaiWriMo outdoor week - day 13

February 13 - Prompt - SHADE TREE

mahua tree in bloom-

on the Gond woman's cheeks

the rising colors 

NaHaiWriMO outdoor week - day 12

February 12 - Prompt - RIVER

anchored boat

the river

lapping

lapping

 

(This photo is from our trip to Ashtamudi, Kerala backwaters )

NaHaiWriMo outdoor week - day 11

Prompt - February 11 - WOODS

woodland brook-

if silence were

green 

NaHaiWriMo outdoor week - day 10

Prompt - February 10 - GARDEN

dew on the grass-

the cat circles

the first crocus 

 

 

Purple crocuses by M.Stephanie Kellerman

NaHaiWriMo outdoor week - day 9

Prompt : February 9 - GLACIER

between the sky

and glacier-

the ragged edges

of silence 

 

NaHaiWriMo outdoor week - day 8

The second week at NaHaiWriMo, Michael Dylan Welch tells us, is going to be the outdoor week.

The prompt that begins this week is: HIKING

hikers' moon -

out of darkness

a tea shop's lights 

(image credit: Karen Winters)

NaHaiWriMo food week - day 7

Prompt - February 7 - MILK

daydreaming the smell of burnt milk

(image credit:The bowl of milk by Berthe Morisot )

NaHaiWriMo food week - day 5

 Prompt - February 5 - VEGETABLES

teenage love-

slicing one green tomato

in two

NaHaiwriMo food week - day 4

 Prompt -  February 4 - SPICE/SPICES

turmeric moon-

on every page of Ma's cook book

a smear of gold

NaHaiWriMo food week - day 3

Prompt - February 3 - CHEESE

extra cheese topping-

the waitress

in a high-slit skirt

NaHaiWriMo food week - days 1 & 2

February NaHaiWriMo has begun again on Facebook, with the administrator, Michael Dylan Welch as the prompter  for the month, as has been the custom every year...and the theme of the first week is "food".

Prompt for 1st February -  PASTA
and my response :

                                                                          

        
Fettuccine with friends-
the strands of our conversation
smeared with sauce
                             

                 

Prompt  -  2nd February -EGG/EGGS

cupping 

the blue egg in my palms

warmth of moonlight  

He doodles you ku - (9th to 31st January)

 Before I start the post, welcome to all my four new followers! And also to the new visitors from not only neighbouring countries like China, Pakistan and Bangladesh, but also from countries like Montenegro, St Kitts and Nevis,South Korea, Lithuania and Belarus among others. I am so glad to have you visit my blog, but don't have the faintest clue as to who you are, so why don't you leave a word the next time you visit? I'd really love to hear from you once in a while and that goes for all my other regular visitors as well. Just a small comment to let me know you've been here! Not every time, but how about just once in a while? And I hope you've been enjoying my recent posts and the small stones.

Well then -  I had not been very regular with my doodleku(s), that's why i hadn't posted them here on the blog after the first week.But now that the month has drawn to an end, here's my harvest of ku...the responses to HM Yuan's doodles on Yay Words.

 Day 9

watching

my breath

the flame steadies

Day 10

last star--

the light going out

in her eyes 

Day 11

caught in the brambles-

the things I thought

I had forgotten

Day 12

from puddle to puddle my walk over the moon

 

Day 13

stoned window pane fighting the unseen

Day 14

new coolness-

slipping my hand 

through his 

Day 15

circling each other-

we search for

the right word 

Day 16

snowfall

or starry night

as long

as we have

each other 

Day 17

finger-painted clouds-

the weight of

all those lies 

Day   19

evening ennui-
finally, letting down
my hair 

or,

evening

letting down

my hair

Day 20

behind the lily pads-

a hint

of the moon 

Day 21

periwinkle-

my reply

in your mailbox 

 Day 22

her tiny hands

in mine-

moonlit path 

Day 23

night boating-

my oars stir

the milky way

daydreaming...

th boat settles 

n its reflection

Day 24

in the hibiscus

the hum

of honey bees 

Day 25

those eyes...

how do you read

the summer storm? 

Day 26

keeping one eye closed starry night

ice crystals

on the telescope lens-

sound of stars

Day 27

lost key-
the locked gate
to Neverland 

Day 28

stone curlew...

the butterfly takes

a closer look

five minutes at the bus stop-

a brief fling

with the wayward wind

Day 29

barred windows-

as if it could stop

the moon

Day 31

in his wake

my tattered dreams-

The Balloon man gone

You could see the accompanying doodles with all the ku here by clicking on that specific date.