Issue Two December 2015
Gogyoshi Monthly Issue Two December 2015
Declaration of Gogyoshi
What is Gogyoshi?
Gogyoshi is a poem written in five lines. Writing a poem in five lines is its only rule. The content of gogyohshi is free, its themes are chosen by the poet. There are other five-line poetries in the world, for example, gogyohka, tanka, cinquain, and limerick. These poetries have certain rules such as number of permitted syllables, line lengths, and rhyme. Gogyohshi has no such rules. It is the freest form of five-line poetry in the world. But gogyohshi doesn’t permit to be written in 4 or 6 lines, though gogyohka occasionally permits this. Gogyohshi is written only in five lines. If the poem is written in four lines, we should call it “Yongyohshi”meaning a poem written in four lines. If the poem is written in six lines, you should call it Rokugyohshi” meaning a poem … written in six lines. As for a title, some Japanese poets add it to gogyohshi and others don’t.I will always add a title to my Japanese and English gogyohshi because I can’t tell one gogyohshi from the other. If I add it to my many gogyohshi, I will be able to tell them apart. I will write a short title in all capital letters so that readers don’t misunderstand the title as one line of 6 lines poetry. Gogyohshi is for me 5 lines poetry with a short title. But it isn’t the same as cinquain because it has no syllabic restraints unlike cinquain. While Gogyohka is trademarked in Japan, gogyohshi is not so. Because Gogyohshi doesn’t belong to any special person but to everyone. Most Japanese gogyohka poets belong to gogyohka groups and follow the leaders of such groups. Most Gyohshi poets do not belong to any group and write as they please. In conclusion, among world five-line poetries, gogyohshi is closest to gogyohka in form. The primary differences between them lie in gogyohshi’s adherence to the rule of 5-line. Adding a title to them depends on the poet. A gogyohshi poet has no rule except writing a poem in five lines. This is my Declaration of Gogyoshi.
Reproduced with the permission of Taro Aizu
Geethanjali Rajan remembrance of many things past between us the vastness of oceans, sleet grey skies
the dazzle of her nose ring in the last light I plod through fields of fading memories
the hoot of a distant train my memories trundle along to childhood
shadows lengthen as dusk falls I take a deep breath to keep the darkness out of my heart
she holds my hand a little tighter recollecting the past as if I too would slip away
Marilyn Fleming a small rowboat huddled in the rushes osprey’s nest a bird’s eye view and yet—undercurrents
empty shells spilled out on the shore ebbing tide everything is different I can't find my way back
schizophrenic light welling out of nail holes in my thinking the eye of a violet sees right through me
after the plow arrowhead pokes through buried memories he picks up a flint stone chipping at her hairline
sharpening stone— a flurry of feathers wings clipped my own insignificance held fast with spit and bale wire
Ernesto P. Santiago only except when death becomes its permanent soul I refuse to paraphrase love where we bodily entwine our words with dreams
floating in the air like escaped balloons death and taxes what we live everyday the paradigm of life
methinks cautiously the alley cat is trailing the darkness of dark the pathway of nowhere the imprint of future
cry me a gentle cry for God's sake I am here to graciously tend your beloved tundra for an heir to grow
Steve Black holding out between meals our hikikomori avoiding eye contact with the world and his mother she blames me by text
in permanent marker i wrote her name upon my heart back to front in the bathroom mirror ahead of myself again
Suicide Watch i see the back of her in the hallway mirror i ask is there anything i can do she says not now
small hands don't lend themselves to scaling heights big or small piano lessons
Bitter Harvest the signed copies no one asked for matters unspoken in the spare bedroom
David Kelly twilight bats and swiftlets weave the frayed edges light and dark drifting further apart
springtide massaging new life into cold hands blossom buds bursting
tropical storm standing at the threshold of a tin shack laughing children play with the run off
resolution turning into the wind whatever the weather
before I heard them spoken your words alone
Poets in this issue : David J Kelly (@motto_sakura) lives and works in Dublin, Ireland, where he finds scientific and artistic inspiration in the natural world. He has had his Japanese short form poetry published in a number of print and online journals. Ernesto P. Santiago lives in Athens, Greece, where he enjoys exploring the poetic myth of his senses. Steve Black - Cutting a long story short for as long as he can remember. Resides in the shadow of London. Geethanjali Rajan teaches Japanese and English in the city of Chennai, India. Her writing can be found in various journals online and some, in print. She likes to write poetry in English using Japanese forms. Marilyn Fleming was born and raised on a farm in Wisconsin. She has a special interest in oriental forms of poetry. <marilynflemingpoet.wordpress.com>