English Original
a line of ants
in the pilgrim’s bag
his son's ashes
Second Place, 5th Radmila Bogojević International Haiku Contest, 2021
Carmela Marino
Chinese Translation (Traditional)
一排螞蟻
在朝聖者的袋子裡
他兒子的骨灰
Chinese Translation (Simplified)
一排蚂蚁
在朝圣者的袋子里
他儿子的骨灰
Bio Sketch
Born in Sacco, a town and comune in the province of Salerno, Italy, Carmela Marino now lives in Rome with her husband, and she is the mother of a son. She began writing haiku during her son Daniele's hospitalizations, discovering in the form a path toward awareness and personal growth. Her work is featured in The Haiku Foundation archive and has received numerous Italian and international honors, including recognition in the European Top 100.
This deeply moving haiku operates on a delicate balance of stark realism and profound emotional weight.
ReplyDeleteIn L 1, "a line of ants," offers an unadorned, grounded observation of the natural world. It is an ordinary image that feels complete in itself, anchoring the haiku in reality.
L 2, "in the pilgrim’s bag," introduces a sudden shift, raising narrative questions. The word "pilgrim" carries both physical and spiritual connotations, signaling a purposeful, sacred journey.
Then L3, "his son's ashes," re-contextualizes everything, delivering a powerful, devastating turn. It immediately transforms the ordinary ants into an image charged with mortality. The line introduces a productive ambiguity:
Are the ants drawn to food residue, or are they a symbol of nature's cold indifference to human grief? This openness is the haiku's greatest strength. The intersection of a sacred spiritual quest with the raw, biological reality of decay allows the haiku to achieve immense emotional resonance without ever lapsing into sentimentality.