Jewish haiku

Jewish haiku are poetic parodies, based on the 5-7-5 syllable form of Japanese haiku, sometimes combined with traditional Jewish noodging (pestering, carping). Many of these poems were first published in "Haikus for Jews: For You a Little Wisdom" (Harmony Books, 1999) by David M. Bader.
Although they are called haiku and consist of three lines of 5, 7 and 5 syllables respectively, these short poems have more in common with senryÅ« or zappai than with real Japanese or English haiku.
The following are examples of humorous Jewish haiku:
:The sparkling blue sea
beckons me to wait one hour
after my sandwich.
:No fins, no flippers,
the gefilte fish swims with
some difficulty.
:In the ice sculpture
reflected bar mitzvah guests
nosh on chopped liver.
While most Jewish haiku are humorous, the first part of the Shema, one of Judaism's most important prayers, also follows the syllable pattern and the scansion of the haiku:
:She-ma Yis-ra-el,
A-do-nai E-lo-hei-nu,
A-do-nai E-chad
:Hear, o Israel!
The Lord is our God,
The Lord is One! (or alternatively: The Lord Alone!)
In May, 2008, Ed Nickow started a blog called "The Torah In Haiku" where he posts original Jewish haiku related to the Torah portion of the week and Jewish holidays. In 2010 he wrote "The Haggadah In Haiku", a Passover haggadah with a haiku for each step of the seder.

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