Under the Basho

An international online journal

focused on haiku and related Japanese genre poetry

Launched in 2013, it ceased publication in 2026.

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Stefan Raffl

Celestial Magic

The moon lounges in the sky, white against blue. Unencumbered by convention, she flirts with hills, teases treetops, and hovers above a traffic light, as if declaring— watch out, a new signal—white. We drive past a moon garden, night-blooming flowers now washed in the sun –no glint on water. No serenade. No shadows stretch across sleepy grass. Sunlight drips through leaves. We follow it back to the sky.

What if we moved like her? Invent a secret language only the tides can read. Teach math through dance. Unveil randomness in orbits. Freedom waits for us to dare break our own habits. What if we lived unmasked—moon-bright, full; showed up as we are, even with the dark spots we usually hide?

honest glance

makes world anew—

moon and sun in step