KARACHI: To mark the enthronement of Emperor Naruhito and the advent of the new era ‘Reiwa’ in Japan, the Pak-Japan Cultural Association held its 34th Urdu haiku mushaira at the Manzar Akbar Hall of the Arts Council on Saturday evening.

A big number of poetry lovers turned up to hear how contemporary Urdu poets are treating the three-line traditional Japanese poem, and they were not disappointed. The first one to present a haiku was Sohail Ahmed Siddiqui. His three lines set the tone for the programme:

Darya biphra hai

Dil ki barf jo pighli tau

Parbat roya hai

(The river is choppy As the ice in my heart melts The mountain sheds tears)

Barkha aur sahaab

Kaisey dhoondein bearish mein

Gumgashta mehtaab

(Clouds and grey skies How can I find in the rain My lost moon)

Wazahat Abbasi’s poem:

Ta’aer urta hai

Par sukrein aur phailein tau

Koi thaamta hai

(A bird flies When it spreads and folds wings Someone holds it tight)

Dr Nuzhat Abbasi’s lines:

Par jata hai maand

Sard abdheri raaton mein

Kis ne dekha chaand

(It gets dull In cold bleak nights Who has seen the moon?)

Saher Ali recited the following haikus:

Karwa hota hai

Phir bhi munh peh sach kehna

Achha hota hai

(Though it’s bitter Truth told to someone’s face Is always worth its while)

Zaheer Zarf’s effort:

Shaaed ji jaatey

Hum gar taeri aankhon ke

Aansu pi jaatey

(I could have lived If I had absorbed Tears that trickled down your eyes)

Amna Alam recited:

Waqt peh ker lo kaam

Suraj ki kirnein logo

Deti hai paigham

(Do your work on time This is the message of The sun’s rays)

Zaibun nisa Zaiby read out:

Chirya hai maghmoom

Saanp shajar per aata hai

Us ko hai maloom

(The thrush is sad It knows The snake can reach the tree)

Shehzad Niaz’s lines:

Pat jhar ka tha saaz

Tujh se chhup ker milney ka

Rakh na saka jo raaz

(The music of autumn Could not keep the secret Of our romantic liaison)

Rubina Tehseen trickled the audience’s funny bones with:

Main Mona Lisa

Lag hi jaaey ga ab tau

Japan ka visa

(I’m Mona Lisa Now it’s certain I’ll get visa for Japan)

Another of her haikus was:

Chaandni raat to hai

Neend se bojhal hai aakhein

Koi baat to hai

(The night is moonlit Eyes are heavy with sleeplessness Something’s up)

The names of other participating poets on the list were: Aftab Muztar, Shahabuddin Shahab, Parveen Nazir Soomro, Syed Mashood Hasan Rizvi, Sarwat Sultana Sarwat, Jamal Naqvi, Sarwer Javed, Manzar Ayubi, among others.

Earlier, Sadia Rashid, Moinunddin Haider and Deputy Consul General of Japan in Karachi Katsunori Ashida (who also recited his haikus) addressed the audience.

Published in Dawn, October 7th, 2019