Forget what you think you know about haiku.
Haiku is a lens those with a permanent, heightened sense of awareness can view their daily lives through.
Extreme focus on a present moment and image to conjure up three lines that can be read aloud in one breath provides deeper understanding as to how these moments fit into the context of the rest of our lives.
Originating in thirteenth-century Japan, haiku has since evolved largely thanks to the father of haiku, Matsuo Bashō (1644-1694), who elevated the form in the seventeenth century, establishing the natural world as an enduring theme.
The International Society of Haiku Poets credits Kobayashi Issa (1763-1828), another prolific haiku poet, as an integral part of the society’s origin story. Issa is often ranked as one of the masters of the haiku form after Matsuo Bashō and Yosa Buson (1716-1784).
For more information, refer to Our History*.
We are publishing three books of haiku in 2025. Membership applications in the United States may be made
in person at the Rensselaerville, NY headquarters, above the library.
If you're unable to apply in person, please send correspondence to
ISOHP-HQ c/o Rensselaerville Library PO BOX 188, Rensselaerville, NY 12147.
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