SONGBIRDS SEDOKA JOURNAL 2023

           SEE THE SUBMISSIONS GUIDELINES BELOW THIS ARTICLE          

Sedōka is an authentic but uncommon Japanese poetry genre from the 8th century. Its style of composition was created by a venerated Japanese court poet, who was known as Japan’s first great literary figure, Kakinomoto no Hitomaro. This is one of his question-response dialogue Sedōka with English translation published in the Man’yōshū: 

If the thunder rolls for a while

And the sky is clouded, bringing rain,

Then you will stay beside me?

Even when no thunder sounds

And no rain falls, if you but ask me,

Then I will stay beside you.

Kakinomoto no Hitomaro, Japan 

The Sedōka has not been in widespread use for centuries now. Perhaps this may be because it’s a sophisticated concept to grasp, and best suited for esoteric poets. Thus, with the following article, comes a challenge to expand your writing skills and include this genre by submitting to the United Haiku and Tanka Society’s Sedōka Songbirds Journal online, the first of its kind to publish this genre exclusively.  

A Sedōka consists of 2 tercets (three line verses) as a question-response exchange between lovers, a question-answer learning tool between mentor and student, or it can also be two 3-line reflective verses by one poet that juxtapose. This form consists of an image in the top tercet, usually drawn from nature, followed by 3 lower lines that enhance the meaning and share the author’s deeper perspective. Another form of Sedōka is one where the head, or (line 1) in the upper verse is repeated in (line 1) of the lower verse. In every style, each 3-line verse should be able to stand alone.

Structurally, a tercet can be either like Western haiku, consisting of 5/7/5, or like a tanka count of 5/7/7 in English syllables, or nowadays composed as condensed versions in appreciation of the shorter Japanese on (sound unit). This way, it still represents and respects both cultures while maintaining a song-like melody, for instance, a 4/6/4 or a 3/5/3 haiku format, or a 4/6/6 or a 3/5/5 tanka format. As to what themes Sedōka uses, natural imagery and concepts of romantic, spiritual, or reflective musings appear most often.

My first Sedōka example is a reflective form, English language tanka showing the style of 5/7/7: 

a red sky at night

the prophesy of my dream

as deep-rem sleep befell me

shepherd and sailor

I awoke to the delight

of a biblical sunrise

an'ya, USA

Here is another similar version of this Sedōka which is shortened to a 4/6/6 tanka style to compensate for English language syllables versus Japanese sound units:

red sky at night

the prophesy of dreams–

sleep befell me

shepherd, sailor

I woke to the delight...

a biblical sunrise

No matter which style this Sedōka uses, it takes on the same meaning. The upper verse sets up the image and a prediction per that old saying “a red sky at night”, which originated first for a shepherd in the Bible and later was applied to predicting the weather for sailors. The lower verse deepens the top verse, and the reader is free to share the poet’s perspective.

This next Sedōka example is a question-response between two lovers, a condensed haiku style of a 3/5/3 structure, which still keeps the songful rhythm: 

why is it

so long you’ve been lost

in a fog

patience love

spring sun shall show what

you wait for…

Here is another similar version of my question-response Sedōka that shows how to use the 5/7/7 English language tanka style by simply elaborating on the theme:

why is it so long

since you’ve been lost in a fog

when will all come clear again

be patient my love

the spring sun shall soon reveal

what you are waiting for…

In both versions of this Sedōka, the upper verse simply poses a question of waiting for something or someone, and hints at the season. The lower verse provides an obscure yet elaborate answer by a lover. In this case, only the reader can interpret or imagine what the first person has been waiting for; we know only that whatever the answer is, it shall be revealed by the spring sun.

This third example is the Sedōka style in a tanka format of 5/7/7 where the head (first line) question is repeated with an answer:

where would my love dwell

if ever she existed

for me in this universe

my love would dwell where

waves caress the ocean rocks 

and a mermaid calls my name

an’ya,USA

Here is a final example of a question-answer Sedōka also, but it’s between mentor and student and uses a condensed tanka style of 4/6/6 English syllables:

O my mentor

how does one learn answers

to the questions he seeks

wisdom is but

stars in a bucket pulled

from the depths of one's well

an'ya, USA

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Submissions for our new Wing of the United Haiku and Tanka Society’s Premier Edition of Songbirds Sedōka Journal are open from 1 November 2023 until 1 December 2023. (midnight) GMT.

Take the Challenge and Become a Sedōka Songbird  

Submission Guidelines 

1. Please send your work in the body of an email only, with no attachments, and be sure to include your country, name, and email address. 

2. Only works that have never been previously published will be considered. 

3. Works submitted elsewhere simultaneously will not be considered.

4. Submit up to 5 Sedōka that follow closely the explanation of this genre above. 

5. Works must be submitted in English using the suggested format for Sedōka per the examples above.

6. Poets should be open to considering constructive suggestions and workshopping.

7. Works that will not be considered, please do not submit mainstream short-form poems, and be sure to read the article above in depth. 

Response Time: Within 2 weeks of submitting, and if you don’t hear back by then, please resend. Submit your work with the subject heading of SONGBIRDS SEDOKA SUBMISSIONS to an’ya via:

theunitedhaikuandtankasociety@gmail.com or  tankaanya@gmail.com

Copyright Policy: All rights revert back to authors upon publication, although credits for having been first published in Songbirds Sedōka Journal, are required.

UHTS Samurai Contest 2023 - RESULTS

 As the Samurai Haibun contest convenor, I wish to thank all entrants trusting me with their

Haibun. I was delighted to receive a diverse collection of entries from across the globe,

including the following countries, American Samoa, Australia, Canada, Germany, Hungary,

India, Iran, Italy, Netherlands, Palestine, Portugal, Romania, Spain, United Kingdom, USA

A special thank you to friends on social media who distributed our competition flyer via

Facebook pages and posted our competition details on their personal Web pages. It has

been a pleasure to work with an’ya as well as with the contest judges, Neal and Elaine.

Marilyn Humbert, Australia

UHTS Samurai Haibun Contest 2023

Judges Report and Winners

103 haibun! What a challenge to judge those that combined the best prose and best haiku that

complemented each other. It calls on one performer to “record” both parts of a duet. We

independently chose our top fifteen and there was an overlap of eight haibun. We then recited

these to get a sense of the sound of the haibun and settled on the top four which we then

ranked as the best compositions. Here are our choices, not based on cleverness of form, but

on an orchestration of human thought and emotion linked to the mystery of Life!

Elaine and Neal Whitman, USA

First Place

Judges Commentary

As professional educators, often we were asked if teaching can taught. Our reply was,“Yes,

but only to teachers!” Likewise, we wonder if only writers can be taught how to write. This

haibun hints that anyone who wants to write can be be taught to write. Some haibun are

effective when the prose uses short phrases that add an element of urgency which moves the

reader along. This is the case here. Also, good haibun make good teachers and we

experienced this haibun as a master teacher of how the haiku associates with the prose

without repetition. What “sealed the deal” for us for was the image of the blank page in the

haiku. Everyone who attempts to write prose or poetry in any form knows how daunting it is

to hover over a blank page and get started. It prompted us to say, “Oh, I see! There is more

here than meets the eye.” Thank you for the writing tips. We plan to use your advice in our

own work.

Advice to Writers

Bob Lucky, Portugal

You will need some tools — pencil and paper, a typewriter, a computer, an amanuensis.

It’s hard to know what you have to say until you say it.

After you get it all down, throw out the parts that don’t say anything or repeat what’s

already been said (unless you’ve said it better).

Save the other bits.

Someday you might discover what you want to say or realize you didn’t mean a thing

you said, but at least you’ll have said what you had to say.

hungry moon

the magnetism

of a blank page

------

Second Place

Judges Commentary

A good title captures the reader’s attention, but its excellence cannot be evaluated until you

come to the end and can judge its aptness. This was particularly true of this haibun. The

purity of tone in this haibun resonated with both of us instantly. The writer’s ability to convey

the passage of time in a minimum of words was remarkable. The baby, seemingly effortlessly,

emerges as a treble in the boy’s choir. The gleam in his eye becomes starlight. There is

something near-magical about this haibun, yet its vision is deeply rooted in the reality of

choral music.

Thresholds in Octaves

Diana Webb, UK

Sing to him they said. So we did. We sang of how beautiful he was over and over. His lids

hadn't opened nor his chords vibrated. And we kept on singing.

baby's first whimper

notes of the bluebird

gleam in his eye

Many years later he's in the choir. Reflected back the glint of a star.

boy treble

how long before

a new dawn breaks

------

Third Place

Judges Commentary

Right from the start, the author draws us into the experience: in particular, the power of the

elk. We, too, “feel the energy.” This haibun works because the prose is evocative and brings

us to a specific location, and because the haiku heightens our sensations. We liked the

specificity of the prose and the mystery of the ethereal haiku. All in all, a great combination

of prose and poetry.

Wapiti

Sally Quon, Canada

Across the lake we could see the elk, at least two hundred of them; most were in the water,

some were on the bank, and a few were in the meadow beyond.  Two bucks began to fight in

the meadow, and within moments, the water had cleared, elk bounding onto the shore and

beyond. 

Even from our vantage point on the far side of the lake, I could feel the energy, wild and

sexual.

 

In the evening, we drove down the dusty lane to a large meadow. The elk had begun to gather

near the tree line at dusk. The bugle of the bull elk sounded like a woman screaming –

haunting and ethereal. It was a call to battle, and we watched as the elk fought, two by two,

until there was a winner. The winner then chose a female to be added to his harem. Pearly

clouds of dust rose from the hooved feet of the elk, drifting across the meadow, and though

darkness fell over the valley, the clash of antlers continued until dawn.

 

after the battle

through early morning mist

the vanishing elk

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Honourable Mention

Judges Commentary

This haibun creatively paired ekphrastic prose with a nature haiku. These were unified with

raw language congruent with the subject matter. We were not familiar with the sculpture, but

the specific language made us see it.  Also, we felt as if we witnessed the aerial combat.

Overall, a powerful piece of writing that evokes a place and mood.

SWUNG INTO PLACE BY CONSTRUCTION CRANES

Alice Wanderer, Australia

Bruce Armstrong’s Sentinel is a five-meter-tall sculpture of a white-bellied sea eagle on a

plinth. It stands on a slope overlooking the pier. Roughly cut out of hardwood with a

chainsaw and painted white, it looks like a body can feel from the inside.  Only the massive

beak, protruding directly from the top of the skull, and the two black dots for eyes are

representative. Its beak points north, in the direction of its cousin sculpture, the 23-metre-tall,

wedge-tailed eagle on Wurundjeri Way in Melbourne’s Docklands.

These raptors – both with wingspans greater than my height – evolved to divide the hunting

grounds of land and sea between them. But as development is shrinking habitat, they battle

over nesting spaces.

the clash

as they lock talons in midair

two hammering hearts