P7+Samurai+Arts

Samurai Arts, Ikebana, Haiku, Landscape Paintings and Gardens

Gabby Cooper and Sean Simpson

Introduction

Samurai arts are all about the beauty of nature. The landscape and the form of art always vary. A haiku is a way of art introduced in a poem. It is written in silk screen calligraphy and the beauty is that what the Haiku is about is always different. Ikebana is a way of art involving beauty and sorrow for the dead and the pattern of flowers depends on the person. Many castles and fields had gardens and Zen gardens which many from of art were written about. So Samurai arts are about the beauty of things and new ways to see nature, Japanese people think that nature should be cherished and how you look at nature should be different than anyone else. The only thing in common is that you both worship nature. Art is a way of showing your feelings it is never wrong. It shows how you feel and with Samurai arts it shows how you feel about nature and its beauty.

What is a Haiku? A Haiku is very important to the samurai because it’s something a samurai needs to know how to write. The haiku is one of the most important forms of traditional poetry. A haiku is a type of formal poetry and its format is 5 7 5 syllables. Haiku’s are usually written on silk screen calligraphy. The haiku can be written about anything. Through the efforts of Masaoka Shiki the term Haiku was invented. This poem was supposed to be written, read, and understood as an independent poem. One of the most famous poets name was Basho. Basho began writing Haiku’s under the name Sobo. He adopted the name Basho when he moved into a hut with a banana tree.

How to write a Haiku? Haiku’s are very important pieces of poetry and they have specific ways to be written. A haiku is a type of formal poetry. The haiku usually involves nature paintings. It is usually written in meditation gardens. Haiku’s symbolize nature. Most haiku’s are about nature but they can be about anything. They respect nature for beauty and to respect the Kami with the poem. In bushes, trees, and rivers there are Kami everywhere. Kami’s are gods and goddesses that dwell in natural creations and protect the people from diseases, earthquakes, and fires.

Hokku A Hokku is a type of poem or a poetic form. It usually gets confused with a Haiku and a Haikai. A Haiku, Hokku and Haikai are all types of poems. A Haiku and a Hokku are similar but a Hokku is considered to be classified as a Haiku and the difference is very little. So that people don’t get confused a Hokku is a classical Haiku and a Hokku is considered to be a modern Haiku. A Hokku is a poem that sets the time for the rest of the poem chain; it always starts out the entire poem. A Hokku may be presented well when with a Haikai. A Haikai is a poem that many people will put a Hokku in. Also many composers of poems will not usually put a Hokku by itself without a Haikai or the rest of the poetic chain.

Landscape paintings and Gardens The landscape paintings and gardens are important for meditation in Japan. The seemingly random collections of rocks and moss form an outline of trees branches. An important type of garden was the sand and stone garden. They were developed in the Muromachi Era and represent Zen Spiritualism. It was used for monks to meditate. It is surrounded by a beautiful wall and is covered with sand and stone. Another garden is the rock garden. Hosokawa Katsumoto owned where the rock garden is built. When he died in 1973 he had 120 acres of land. This was reconstructed and then was made into the rock garden.

Ikebana Ikebana is form of Japanese art that is considered traditional. It was developed by Buddhist’s when they came from china to Japan. There are many schools in Japan that teach Ikebana in modern times while in ancient times Ikebana schools were less frequent because it wasn’t heard much of back then. In Japan there are many schools that teach different forms of Ikebana and how to perform the traditional Japanese are. Ikebana is an art that morns the dead. It is preformed with people putting flowers on the gravestones of the dead. Since there are many forms on how to perform this ritual there have been more set rules on the flowers used for the ritual and how to perform this ritual. The flowers used for the art have to have one standing firm flower stem with two flower stems, one on each side of the first form flower stem. The three stems represent Heaven, Man, and earth. Ikebana is a traditional Japanese art and it will be practiced for many years more.

Conclusion This topic was very important to the samurai culture in the Tokugawa Period. It was very important because it was something very important to samurai and it was something that was required to know. Every samurai was required to know how to write a Haiku. The most famous Haiku writers in ancient Japan were always Samurai. The Haiku’s were used to respect nature and to respect the Kami making them very important. The Kami were gods and goddesses that protected the people from diseases and fires so it was very important to respect the Kami. These Haiku’s were written on silk screen calligraphy and often involved nature paintings. An Ikebana was used to make offerings to the dead and is a traditional practice in Japan.

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Citations: Barlow Jeffery, Hyde William, “Sand and Stone” //Matsushita center for electronic learning.// Web. 18, Feb. 2010 [] Declan Murphy. “ Ryoanji” //Japan Travel Guide.// The Yamasa institute, Web. 18, Feb. 2010 []  Ikebana International, “ History” //Ikebana International.// I.I, 2005. WEB. February 9th 2010. []  Kei Grieg Toyomasu, "What is a Haiku?" //Haiku for people.// Toyomasu, 1955. WEB. January 10, 2001. []