[Tsurukame Cup] The Min-Hai (Everyone's Haiku) Tournament is not a Haiku-Do Championship (ﾉｼ*｀ω´*)ﾉｼ

The Tsurukame Cup is approaching its submission start date on 6/25. This time, I will be serving as a judge for the haiku tournament. Am I getting carried away because I won the grand prize at the previous Space Cup? There's about a 3% chance of that. Wait, there is?

Up until now, I have declined all invitations to plan or manage events (sorry about that). I am a selfish person who always wants to remain a carefree participant. There are various reasons and circumstances behind why I accepted the role of judge this time, but I shouldn't blab about internal matters, so I will omit them here ○┓

Why are you acting so high and mighty by numbering things?

To all the participants, there are three things I want to convey as a judge.
1. The Min-Hai Tournament is not a Haiku-Do Championship, you know.
2. Don't get too caught up in the 'don'ts' of haiku rules.
3. Let go of the fear of being judged by others.

Suppressing the urge to retort to myself, 'This guy is acting pretty high and mighty just because he won the grand prize last time...' I will continue ٩(๑•̀ω•́๑)۶

The Min-Hai Tournament is a festival for everyone. When you see haiku from seasoned experts, you might think, 'Is it okay for me to participate?' or 'Would it be embarrassing to submit something like this?'

It's fine! That doesn't matter! Others are others!
The Tsurukame Cup is not a Haiku-Do Championship(ﾉｼ*｀ω´*)ﾉｼ

Suppressing the urge to retort to myself, 'Well, you can say that because you won the grand prize and are in a relaxed position...' I will continue (*✪д✪*)

One of the judges, rira-shan, wrote something good in this morning's article.

I don't want rira-shan's true intentions to be misinterpreted, so I'll add a little supplement. Among the participants, there are those who are seriously aiming to win. I am not denying such people.That is simply their way of enjoying Min-Hai the most. Of course, since it is a tournament, there are regulations. As long as you follow those, I think there are a hundred ways for a hundred people to enjoy it (...is that right, rira-shan? lol)

Well, yeah. Since there is judging, and there are preliminaries and finals, of course you want to be chosen. If you aren't chosen, you'll be disappointed. You'll compare yourself to others. You'll think, 'Everyone is amazing, and compared to them, I have no talent.' Since I didn't even pass the preliminaries until the Space Cup, I understand that feeling very well.

When all is said and done, it ultimately comes down to personal preference.

Judging criteria vary from judge to judge. Experience and knowledge also differ. But they all share the fact that they are human beings with emotions. That means, ultimately, everyone chooses based on their own preferences.

Since we're at this point, I'll be blunt, prepared to be scolded by someone. Judges write in their critiques that 'this part was good,' but that's an afterthought. Before that,there must be the feeling of 'I like this haiku!'. Because haiku is a creative work.

It's not like a 100m dash where you time it, nor is it like a shot put where you measure the distance. Since it's a creative work, it's not ranked by objective records, but chosen by the judge's own subjective opinion.


Which means. Which means, you see.

Min-Hai judging is not about determining the superiority or inferiority of haiku(ﾉｼ*｀ω´*)ﾉｼ
It's just that a judge who happened to like it will evaluate it(ﾉｼ*｀ω´*)ﾉｼ

I do have respect for the implicit "thou shalt nots" though

Haiku regulations are originally supposed to be just two things: 1) write in 5-7-5, and 2) include a seasonal word. Personally, however, I feel that "there are quite a lot of people who evaluate based on implicit 'thou shalt not' rules (´めωめ｀)ﾝﾑｩ".

I understand that this culture has been cultivated throughout the history of haiku that our predecessors have built up to this point, and I personally have respect for that. However.just because I respect it, I don't want to force others to "be that way" with their own haiku.


Things I think about from my limited experience: if you get too caught up in these "thou shalt nots," you'll gradually become unable to write. I think you'll feel stifled and stop enjoying it.

This is important, so I'll write it again.
The Everyone's Haiku Tournament is not a Haiku-do Championship.
It's an all-comers festival.

No seasonal words, or even double seasonal words are fine, my dear

In fact, the application guidelines for this event only state the following.

Especially for all you beginners, please don't get too caught up in "thou shalt not" rules that aren't written here, and just try writing as you like. As for the judging, I think it's healthier to just think, "If I'm lucky and it suits the judge's taste, I might pass the preliminary round." Personally, I feel that thinking or judging like "everyone says three-part cuts are a no-go, so three-part cuts must be a no-go" is very dangerous in the field of creative work, not just haiku. There's no basis for it within yourself. It's what you call mass psychology. I want to avoid making negative evaluations based on stopping your thinking, like "this seems to be said to be bad in haiku." I feel strongly about this. Creative work is a matter of taste.





I will simply and purely choose the haiku I like. I will return taste with taste.I have no hesitation there. Though I do think I'll cry because there are too many haiku I like and I won't be able to choose them all (´めωめヾﾀﾞﾊﾊ

Other people's evaluations are scary, aren't they? I get it (´;ω;`)

To confess, even I was very conscious of the judges until the Sasa Cup. I even aimed to be chosen by this person (as is usual in these times, well, I didn't even come close, lol). I read the judges' evaluation point articles and was too caught up in them. I worried about whether I would be criticized if I submitted a haiku like this.

In short, I wasafraid of other people's evaluations.

I let that go at the Space Cup. You could say I stopped caring. Like, I don't care about the judging (that's going too far, lol). I thought, if I write as I like and enjoy it, that's fine. When I wrote with my shoulders completely relaxed, that was the result. It's a mysterious thing.

Creation is a matter of preference.
Creation is free.
Creation is self-satisfaction.

Always place yourself at the center of your heart.
That is what becomes originality.

If you are afraid of the evaluation of others, you cannot create freely.
That is what I think.

So, one last time.
As a judge, there are three things I want to tell everyone.
1. The Everyone's Haiku Tournament is not a Haiku-do Championship, okay?
2. Don't get too caught up in the 'don't' rules of haiku.
3. Let go of the fear of other people's evaluations.

Oh, there was one more (´めωめヾhaha

4. Let's all have a blast together ٩(๑•̀ω•́๑)۶

★The Tanka Tournament is also powering up even more ヽ(•̀ω•́ )ゝ✧

★Of course, there is also Senryu ( ●´ސު｀●)

★A Tsurukame popularity poll, you say? (*✪д✪*)

[A summer full of fun projects besides the Tsurukame Cup (๑￫ܫ￩)]
★Speaking of short-shorts, it's Summer Pirika!
With a significant increase in the number of judges, this is sure to be a huge success too (✧≖‿ゝ≖)

★'Thinking of the scent of summer.' Essays and photos are also welcome here. Please be careful not to get the project name wrong (☆ФωФ)

★What do you wish for on Tanabata ~2022~
Anzai-sensei... I want cash (´めωめ｀) ← What a blasphemous guy

★The Haiku for Cat Rescue Project. Turning thoughts into form is not an easy thing. Respect to everyone involved.