150 representative Haikus. Haiku - this is the shortest of all lyrical forms known in world literature, three-line poems that developed in Japan during the 16th and 17th centuries and have been preserved there to this day in a vibrant tradition. "Midday stillness - the shrill of the cicadas penetrates the rocks." - this is a classic haiku by the most famous haiku poet, Bashō. The clear poetry and the seemingly simple statement are sensually immediate and comprehensible - if one is willing to engage with it and attempt to overcome the distance that separates our Western culture from Japan. Chinese Buddhism, Confucianism, and Taoism live on in haiku, but above all, this poetry is shaped by Japanese Zen, which finds its literary expression in haiku. The editor, who spent several years in Japan, has compiled one hundred and fifty representative haikus.