tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Sat Oct 16 14:16:11 1999
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tlhingan "haiku"mey ;-) [KLBC]
Greetings to the Empire:
Inspired by a bit of ikebana (a Japanese flower arrangement with all sorts
of metaphorical overtones) I tried my hand at writing a haiku (17 syllable
poem) in tlhIngan Hol.
haikus tend to use simple pictures (often, but not necessarily from nature),
sometimes harmonious, sometimes contrasting to hint at their actual
message. One should try to actually imagine the pictures drawn to find out
the metaphor...
The strict form demands 3 sets of syllables in 5-7-5 arrangement, the freer
form, especially in non-Japaniese haikus does not follow this rule... Klingons
being disciplinarians, I decided to do it the hard way ;-)
I sketched the haiku in English free form:
upright grass
a breeze bows all
a fool stands before the wind
The intended meaning is that any plant is wise enough to be flexible in the
face of vastly superior forces (here of Nature), thus surviving and winning
in the end, so a wise Klingen ought to do the same.
Obviously, this is a homage to the tale told by Kahless to Gowron in TNG,
which I thought a worthy sentiment to transport {{:-)
tlhIngan Hol version, following 5-7-5 rule:
niteb Qam naHjej [a thistle stands alone]
SuSHommo' joq Hoch pormey [due to the light breeze every leaf flutters]
SuS ghobqu' qoH neH [only a fool battles the wind]
I found no word for grass, but wanted some plant in an exposed position,
seemingly unbending... therefore a single prickly Klingon plant.
Please criticize any mistakes I made... but remember the 5-7-5 restriction
changes must fit into. Each set of syllables (does not have to be a complete
sentence) must be selfcontaining, so sentences running across line breaks
are not permitted.
tlhIngan Hol seems to be nicely suited to haikus - the choice between
clipped and lengthy phrases along with all sorts of pre/suffixes helps
in adhering to the pattern.
Any thoughts on if "haiku"mey would be acceptable Klingon poetry?
Further reference:
http://www.faximum.com/aha.d/haidefjr.htm
Qapla'
taj'IH