Explore the Craft of Writing Poetry Japanese Verse
Katuata, (片歌, side poem or half poem) is emotive verse. Intuitive rather than logical; the katuata asks a sudden question or makes an emotional statement and then responds to it. This is a stand alone, 3 line poem, however it is often written as a side poem to the renga. This dates back to 8th century Japan found in the Manyõshú (the oldest collection of Japanese poetry)
The elements of the Katuata are:
syllabic, 19 syllables or less.
usually a tercet. 5-7-7. This can also be reduced to a 5-7-5 syllable count if des