Haiku a phrase in the remaining 12 "on" (it may not be apparent from the English translation of the Issa that the first five "on" mean "Edo's rain"). In comparison with English verse typically characterized by syllabic meter, Japanese verse counts sound units known as ""on"" or morae. Traditional haiku consist of 17 "on", in three phrases of five, seven and five "on" respectively. Among contemporary poems "teikei" ( fixed form) haiku continue to use the 5-7-5 pattern while "jiyuritsu" ( free form) haiku do not. One of the examples below illustrates that traditional haiku masters were not always constrained by
Yonekura Shigetsugu turning point in Japanese warfare; many cite it as the first "modern" Japanese battle. Yonekura Shigetsugu rushed the Takeda flank singlehandedly before he was killed by gunfire. His corpse was later impaled on a pike by Nobunaga's forces. (see Battles of Kawanakajima) Following the battle, Nobunaga continued henceforth until he had effectively established control over all of Japan. Yonekura's death poem is often performed in Noh plays to this day, and is a prime example of the Haiku form in death poems. While death poems did not adopt any prescribed form as far as syllables, tone, and length were concerned