【Poem Reading Tuesday】all the time I pray to Buddha by Kobayashi

[all the time I pray to Buddha]
by Kobayashi Issa
Translated by Robert Hass

All the time I pray to Buddha
I keep on
    killing mosquitoes.

Source: The Essential Haiku: Versions of Basho Buson and Issa (The Ecco Press, 1994)

About the author
Kobayashi Issa | Poetry Foundation

About Haiku
Haiku (or hokku) | Poetry Foundation
10 Vivid Haikus to Leave you Breathless - Read Poetry
Haiku | Academy of American Poets
The History and Artistry of Haiku | FSI (stanford.edu)

【活动说明】
欣赏了诗歌之后，欢迎大家在跟帖里对诗歌进行点评，分享读后感。本活动主要是为大家提供一个阅读英文诗歌的窗口，以赏诗为主，不要求写诗。如果大家偶尔灵感闪现，有感而发地想要写写诗的话，大家可以尝试用相同的或者相关的诗歌标题，写出不一样的英文诗，在赏诗写诗的过程中自娱自乐。写出来的英文诗如果愿意分享的话，欢迎以主帖或者跟帖的方式分享。谢谢大家的关注和支持！

Let's get some learning from the fun and get some fun from the learning!

更多我的博客文章>>> 《游子的云 Wanderer's Clouds》 【Poem Reading Tuesday】all the time I pray to Buddha by Kobayashi 《Dragon 龙》 【Poem Reading Tuesday】I look at the world by Langston Hughes 《Valentine's Day without a Valentine》《没有情人的情人节》

Happy Tuesday! 欢迎大家在跟帖里对诗歌进行点评，分享读后感。

Buddha teaches us not to take away the life of any living

being. However, the author still kills mosquitoes while he is praying. What kind of meaning does the author convey by saying this?

多谢小西的分享！看了链接里Kobayashi（小林一茶）和Haiku（俳句）的介绍，涨知识啦。。。

Happy Tuesday! 谢谢小西主持周二英文诗歌活动，辛苦了！

短小精悍，讽刺诗，意味深长～～

欢迎来美坛玩～～

谢谢盈盈，my pleasure :)

The missing detail: what did he pray for?

Good question. This Haiku is a profound reflection on the

contradiction between the speaker's spiritual devotion and

their mundane actions.

请注意，在文学作品中的 speaker 例如 我（I）并不代表就是作者本人，而可能是用第一人称的方式来泛指任何人。

这首应该不算Haiku吧？Three lines but not follow 5-7-5 syllables.

盈盈好久不见！给你一个Big hug!

谢谢小鱼儿雅临点评留言鼓励。我也和你一起涨知识了。我很喜欢日本俳句，短小精悍，但是不太了解其规则，也从来没有写过。

这首是Haiku，Haiku有不同的类型和要求。

同感，令人深思，回味无穷。

Good question. Here just means the general belief in Buddha,

nothing specific.

我即兴写了三句，不是Haiku的格式，觉得有异曲同工的味道，分享给大家，详见里面：

Some people
Do bad things from Monday to Saturday
Go to church to confess on Sunday

有些人
周一到周六做坏事
周日到教堂忏悔

 

what did he pray for is the most interesting one。。。

punch lines

He might pray for the way leads all the killed  mosquitoes to heaven :D

 

ChatGPT 的诗歌分析，供大家参考，详见里面：

ChatGPT Poem Analysis:

This haiku by Kobayashi Issa is a profound reflection on the contradiction between the speaker's spiritual devotion and their mundane actions. Here's a breakdown of the analysis:

Spiritual Devotion: The speaker expresses their continuous prayers to Buddha, indicating a deep spiritual connection or religious practice. This line sets the tone for the poem, highlighting a sense of reverence or piety.

Contradiction: Despite their devout prayers, the speaker acknowledges the simultaneous act of killing mosquitoes. This presents a stark contrast between their spiritual aspirations and the mundane, even violent, actions they perform in daily life.

Irony: The juxtaposition of praying to Buddha and killing mosquitoes creates irony. Mosquitoes are commonly seen as pests or nuisances, yet the act of killing them conflicts with the principles of compassion and non-violence often associated with Buddhist teachings.

Human Imperfection: The haiku captures the human condition of imperfection and the struggle to reconcile conflicting aspects of oneself. It suggests that even in moments of devotion or prayer, individuals may still engage in actions that contradict their beliefs or values.

Overall, this haiku invites reflection on the complexities of human nature, the tension between spirituality and practicality, and the constant struggle to align one's actions with their beliefs.

 

 

Bear hugs ，小鱼常来玩。：）

Me too, but only when they bit me. 蚊不犯我，我不犯蚊；蚊若犯我，我必犯蚊。 ;-)

哈哈哈，言之有理。蚊若犯我，我仍不犯蚊，就达到Buddha的境界了 ：）

I wrote many Haiku earlier, but now, I'd forgotten'em all.

This is my new Haiku. 读过一个日本养老院发起的Haiku活动。 一个97岁的老头写得一首： 我喜欢比我年龄大的女孩， 但如今， 再也找不到了。

灭蚊是消灭坏虫，no problem：）

like "Turning the other cheek"? Thx but No. hahaha

Hahaha, your choice, your freedom :)

哈哈哈！谢谢分享。

在大自然里，好坏都是人定的。说不定，在蚊子看来，人是最坏的，哈哈哈！

谢谢分享。知道日本俳句，但从没写过，今天来学写两首

我很喜欢日本俳句，短小精悍，但是不太了解其规则，也从来没有写过。期待Go兄的作品。

非常谢谢小西每次精心准备的诗歌题材，受益匪浅！

You're welcome! 一起玩，一起学 ：）