HCSHR 6:08 - Goran Gatalica, Night Jasmine

Night Jasmine by Goran Gatalica, 2022, Nakladnik Publishers, STAJER-GRAF,Slavka Batusica 4, 1090, Zagreb, Hrvatska, Croatia, ISBN 978-953-8105-27-2, pp.194, Price: 18 euro.

Reviewed by Pravat Kumar Padhy

While reading the haiku collection, Night Jasmine by Goran Gatalica, I feel the wholeness of sensory elegance is blended with seasonal references which reflects wabi-sabi exhibiting the transient nature of life. 

full bloom …

a boatman inhales

his lost childhood

The collection is divided into four chapters, “Passing Cloud”, “Searching Heat”, “Wind Chimes” and “Scent of Snow” , all of which assimilate human aspects with nature. Gatalica is compassionate to living beings and interestingly refers to many creatures: ants, bees, butterflies, fireflies, dragonflies, lizards, wildfowl, cat, cow, sheep, snakes, birds, etc. Poetically, Gatalica explores through images of aesthetic infusion:    

temperature jump –

a blue dragonfly explores

the monk’s shadow

Equally, he embellishes deserts, mountains, forests, beaches, flowers, climate, war, childhood stories, and family life into poetic rationality. Aptly Jim Kacian in his foreword pens, “… the poet concerns himself with blossoms, insects, the elements, birds but also family, fellow travellers, war, and even God.” The poet is sincerely humble and keenly observes his surroundings.  Galtalica is conscious of everything: plum stains on mother’s apron, grandpa’s pipe, flies on the cow’s tail, a butterfly on the scarecrow’s shoulder, corn seeds on the shoes of the shepherd, and many more. 

Gatalica writes, “The best haiku poems are like fruits kernels that have been peeled after all the poetic alterations. They are the bare essence of nature and the universe. Harmony, consonance and beauty grow out of them – all evoking the spiritual world. The experience that connects us to the humanity of the very soul that brings water to refugee can be likened to the opening of a night jasmine blossom.” Gatalica in a metaphorical way expresses his feeling for the people in need and melds human values through a touch of blissful nature: hence, the title of the beautiful collection. His oneness of human feeling is aptly reflected by the universal translation of haiku poems into multiple languages (Japanese, Italian, Czech, French, and Hindi) included in this collection to reach across and spread the fragrance of the jasmine flower. The poet voices deep concern about refugees. His heart longs for the war-stricken masses: 

night jasmine –

her blooming soul brings water

to a refugee 

Gatalica condemns war and violence in our society, and he advocates for world peace, blissful living and universality.  The modern world could  learn from him and realize the wisdom of peace. This is unique in contemporary haiku. He deals with the disaster of war through the incisive image of imminent deep darkness: 

approaching war –

wild thorns covered up

with twilight 

This reminds one of the tragedies of war and oblivion of emptiness Bashō lamented in the Narrow Road to the Deep North:

summer grasses —

all that remains

of soldiers’ dreams

        -Matsuo Bashō 

Frightened by the psychological fear and tension across borders, Gatalica portrays the emotional anxiety for a truce in the following haiku: 

truce agreement –

between the soldier’s boots

a cobweb 

How fragile is the scenario of war that the poet imagines. Here Gatalica expresses his concern and metaphorically compares the apprehension of a peace truce with the delicate cobweb. In suffering and agony, the poet holds with optimism even the edge of the thread. There is always a scope for hope and composure as Gatalica pens:

sun dial shadow

on the edge of a grave

a butterfly

 

amid pandemic –

on our little balcony

the cardinal’s song

Gatalica is skillful in the use of imagery, brevity of expression, and minute observation. He has exhibited poetic sensibility and awareness. The poet crafts the images through the purity of nature and wishes to cherish a sunny and humble social life. This is one of his remarkable exquisite skills and cadences. 

mother’s forgiveness –

snow becomes brighter

in front of my house

 

adopting a child –

warmth of

the winter sun 

Greg Piko writes, “The result can be particularly moving when an image from nature is set beside an image that depicts human behaviour.”  The charisma of humanism and forgiveness is poignantly blended in the above haiku. How warmly the poet architects the social issue of the adoption of orphans. This defines the essence of literature for exhibiting a holistic societal life. 

The beauty of human feeling is closely related to the serene ambiance. The element of poetic spirit and metaphorical linkage has been depicted at places by Gatalica: 

autumnal sounds –

my father shapes the wood

into a violin 

In the above haiku, the poet unveils the sensory image of sound with elegant juxtaposition: ‘autumnal sounds’ versus ‘violin’. The readers can explore the subtle flow (ma) of a Zen feeling. 

The grief-stridden emotion at mother’s death is juxtaposed with the ‘autumn rain’. One can observe the emotional angle through the images of ‘autumn rain’ and ‘handkerchief’. 

mother’s death –

I fold the first autumn rain

in my handkerchief 

The following haiku is one where Gatalica merges an action-based image with human psychology. Here ‘comb’ is skillfully used as a metaphor. There is a poetic semblance between ‘farming’ and ‘combing hair’. The vertical axis (time) is juxtaposed through years of ‘farming’ with the passing ages depicted through ‘his thinning hair’. This speaks about allusiveness and true haiku spirit. 

years of farming –

father’s comb passes smoothly

through his thinning hair 

The message of peace and wellness spreads through the tenderness of butterflies, the fragrance of flowers and the vastness of the sky. The collection Night Jasmine propounds the spirit of universal goodness with resonance.