Cold Sake

ice cold alcohol
burns and tingles lips and tongue
hot summer kiss

Kim M. Russell, 2017

Image found on bbc.com

My response to Carpe Diem #1215 cold sake (hiyazake)

This month we are exploring the kigo for summer and today Chèvrefeuille has chosen a classical kigo: hiyazake or cold sake. He explains that sake is a rice wine which is mostly served warm but in the summer it is served cold. He also shared the following examples of haiku with this kigo. The first are by Santoka Taneda, whose haiku have a free form and don’t follow the 5-7-5 syllable rule.

If I sell my rags
And buy some sake
Will there still be loneliness?

So drunk
I slept
with the crickets!

Beneath The River of Heaven
The drunkard dances all night.

sound of waves
far off close by
how much longer to live

© Santoka, (tr. Burton Watson)

 samukeredo sake mo ari  yu mo aru tokoro

it is cold, but
we have sake
and the hot spring

© Shiki (1867-1902)