The Unofficial Tudor Awards: Lilac Cup (Haiku)

Lilac Cup

I usually select my unofficial haiku awards after the final round, but

this time I have selected 11 haiku
a little earlier than usual.

I am not yet well-versed enough in haiku to truly be giving out awards, but as for my selection criteria,

I chose haiku that made me go

“Hmm?” and piqued my curiosity while reading them,

and I used this haiku list to ensure I didn't know who the authors were.

I didn't overthink it,
and chose them purely based on my intuition.

Furthermore, since I went to the trouble, I thought I would like to include a Tudor Award prize, but...

I have absolutely no artistic talent,
so I will borrow the power of the currently popular AI,

and present illustrations created by the AI
to match the content of the haiku I selected.

The image generation AI I used is

“Bing Image Creator”

It is equipped with an advanced version of “DALL-E,” an image generation model developed by OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT.

It only supports English for now, but you can have the AI create images just by typing in English text strings (prompts).

I am still a complete amateur at entering prompts, so for example,

“Sleeping cat”
→ “sleeping cat”

I can only give simple instructions like this,
but even so, like this

a cat image is generated by the AI,
but the cat's face is a bit too big here, so

to get more of a full-body image,

→ “full body of a sleeping cat”

when I input something like this,

it becomes an image of a
“sleeping cat” that shows a bit more of the whole body. Furthermore,

if

“Draw a sleeping cat in anime style”
→ “Draw a sleeping cat in anime style”

when I input this prompt,

it draws it in an anime style like this.

And for example, this haiku that I submitted

White fluff of the dandelion, here too, asbestos

To visualize this image, I tried using the phrase

“Person blowing dandelion fluff and asbestos”
→“Person blowing dandelion fluff and asbestos”
(I left the English translation to translation software 💦)

When I had an AI generate an image with an English phrase like that,

it somehow created an image that looked the part.

Then, I tried making the prompt a little simpler,

“Dandelion fluff next to asbestos”
→“Dandelion fluff and asbestos”

and tried generating an image with that,

In this manner,

the images for the Tudor Award perks were created by giving instructions to an AI based on the content of everyone's haiku.

※If someone were better at using prompts, they could output images exactly as intended, but 💦 I struggled quite a bit to make these, so the images might be a little silly, but please forgive me for that.

My introduction has become quite long.

Without further ado, here are the 11 haiku for the Tudor Award!

Rose buds, rolling konpeito on my tongue

This haiku is impressive for its description of “rolling on the tongue” and the curious combination of konpeito (star-shaped sugar candy) and rose buds.

While gazing at the cute rose buds, which seem ill-suited for the thorny branches,

I wonder if I, too, should shed my thorns and become more rounded.

While pondering such thoughts and confirming the prickly sensation of the konpeito, I roll it on my tongue until it becomes smooth.

It was a haiku that made me want to imagine all sorts of things.

Now, please enjoy this image
created by AI!

Corporate slaves in a battle for space at the cherry blossom viewing

Corporate slaves in a battle for space!
I was deeply moved by this bold opening, and

Come to think of it, these days, it's rare for company departments to hold cherry blossom viewing parties, and I haven't encountered scenes of battles for space much anymore...

As I pondered that, I thought,
but wait a minute, could it be that
by using the term 'corporate slave',

the 'battle for space at cherry blossom viewing'
is a play on 'the battle for promotion posts = musical chairs'?

Isn't it a double meaning?

It was a haiku that felt like social satire.

Now, please take a look at this
image created by AI!

I found the color of the breeze, lilac

Beautiful.
That is my first impression, and that is all there is to it.

The sensation of a spring breeze blowing through,
the scent of lilac flowers.

And there, the color of the breeze exists.

....Wait a minute.
The breeze has a color?
And you found that color!
Huh? What does that mean?

'That color is lilac.'

With this gentle address,

Ah, that's right.
This must be the color of lilac.

I felt a strange sense of conviction, and

It was a haiku that made me feel the refreshing spring
dyed in lilac blue.

Now, please take a look at
this image created by AI!

Soft spring sunlight pours down onto my fur

My fur?
Hmm? Whose fur could it be?

Since it says 'boku' (I), is it a boy, a baby?
Or maybe someone bigger? No, perhaps a pet?
Since it says 'boku', is the author talking about themselves?

And since the 'soft spring sunlight' is
pouring down on 'my fur',
does that mean the fur is fluffy?

While I was curious about the mystery,
it was a very soothing haiku
filled with a heartwarming gentleness.

(I felt relieved after reading the explanation that it was from a dog's perspective ☺)

Now, please take a look at
this image created by AI!

Hazy moon, Schrödinger's cat sways

This is just,

• Schrödinger's cat

• Hazy moon

The brilliance of this combination is superb!
(It's amazing how they boldly used and summarized it, even though 'Schrödinger's cat' alone is 9 characters long.)

The quantum fluctuations evoked by the Schrödinger's cat experiment, and the cat appearing with a sway.

Was it decided from the beginning that this cat would suddenly appear
from within the light of the hazy moonlit night?

Or was it in a state of quantum fluctuation, existing and yet not existing, until just before that moment?

This is a haiku with a mysterious worldview.

Now, please take a look at this image created by AI!

Pirororon I am pink nice to meet you

Above all else, the 'Pirororon' in the first five syllables is just...

What an impact! Huh? What is 'Pirororon'??? My head is filled with curiosity, and to top it off,

I am pink nice to meet you!

It just comes out of nowhere. I was completely overwhelmed by this unique worldview; it is just so novel. When I read the explanation, it turns out a mysterious plant had sprouted. (A cute pink flower was blooming.)

To my surprise, this haiku was written based on a real-life experience.

Now, please take a look at this image created by AI!

Spring darkness my mental state is silken tofu

What on earth is 'mental state is silken tofu'???

This wouldn't leave my head. But since it mentions 'spring darkness,' is the person struggling? And why tofu? Moreover, silken tofu. Not firm tofu.

...

I understood after reading the explanation. 'Mental state is silken tofu' is a handle name used in a game, implying a mental state as fragile as 'silken tofu'.

I see, if that's the case,
it's silk, not cotton!

That is a haiku that made me nod in agreement.

Now, please take a look at this
image created by AI!

Nothing in particular to say, but it is spring

Above all, this unique sense of relaxation.
And yet, it has that feeling of,
"Spring is just great, isn't it?"

When spring arrives, for some reason I can't explain,
my mood brightens.

There's no need for an explanation for that.
It's simple, yet it has something that speaks directly to the heart,

It was a haiku that made me want to write one like this myself—relaxed, yet carrying a message.

Now, please take a look at this
image created by AI!

Spring melancholy, squeezing out whipped cream in the afternoon

Squeezing out the whipped cream.

Starting with spring melancholy and connecting it to this striking action. A juxtaposition.
Are they lost in thought?
Is there something unpleasant they want to forget?

But for now, they are absorbed in squeezing the whipped cream,
focusing entirely on making the sweets in front of them.

Or perhaps you are using this quiet time on a spring day
as a time for self-reflection?

Did you squeeze it tight
and make some kind of resolution?

It was a verse that
really sparks the imagination.

Now, please take a look at
this image created by AI!

Cherry blossoms falling, as if to say, 'I'm not telling you'

The way cherry blossoms fall
is fleeting and lonely.

And when they fall,
they don't tell you about it; they just suddenly start to scatter...

Hey, why didn't you tell me you were going to fall?

Everything that has form will eventually disappear.

Not knowing if it's today or tomorrow,
is this truly the impermanence of all things?

But it is beautiful precisely because time is limited.
A human life is the same; no one tells you when you will 'fall'.
(This might be quite far from the author's intent, though 💦)

That is a verse that made me feel such things.

Now, please take a look at
this image created by AI!

Hanamatsuri: The extroverted Buddha descends

Hanamatsuri, celebrating the birth of the Buddha,
and there...

An extroverted Buddha!!!

This phrase alone is so funny,
An extroverted Buddha, seriously (lol)
Just imagining it is already hilarious.

The teachings of Buddha are,

The world does not go as you wish,
Therefore, cast away your desires,
Let go of your attachments.

Things like that,
might sound negative at first glance,
but actually, hidden behind them,

is the message to live in the present moment,

and since that message is also included,

maybe Buddha is actually
an extrovert?

This is a haiku that made me think about that.

Now, please take a look at this
image created with AI!

In closing

Thanks to the organizer of the Lilac Cup and all the crew members, I have been able to fully enjoy this haiku competition, but

I must not forget that
it is all made possible through their considerable hard work,

something I am feeling anew now as I accept the flow of the "freezing declaration".

And finally,
with respect for the organizer of the Lilac Cup and all the crew members,
I would like to create (well, I had AI create it 😅) and present an image of a standing ovation.

Thank you for everything as always m(_ _)m