Group of 100 Devotees of Koyasan and Kumano

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Haiku poet

Yuki Horimoto

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Yuki Horimoto was born in Wakayama Prefecture in 1974. He graduated from Kokugakuin University. He leads Soukai, a haiku association. He also serves as a part-time instructor at Nishogakusha University and Tokyo Keizai University. He’s an officer of the Association of Haiku Poets. He was chosen to participate in NHK Haiku in 2016 and 2019. He received the 2nd Hokuto Prize, the 36th Association of Haiku Poets New Poet Prize, and the 2015 Wakayama Prefecture Culture Encouragement Prize. His collections of haiku poetry include Kumano Mandara (Bungakunomori), Haiku no Toshoshitsu (Kadokawa Bunko), Geinin to Haijin (Shueisha Bunko, written collaboratively with Naoki Matayoshi), Tanka to Haiku no Gojuban Shobu (Shinchosha, written collaboratively with Hiroshi Homura), and, most recently, NHK Haiku: Higurashi-sensei, Haiku Oshiete Kudasai (NHK Publishing).

As someone who was born in Wakayama City to parents who were from Kumano Hongu, I grew up being influenced by both the Kihoku and Kinan regions. Consequently, the Kino-kawa River and the Kumano-gawa River flow through my body and psyche. I moved to Tokyo at the age of 18, which is now 27 years ago, but those two rivers from my hometown continue to flow in my body and psyche, creating a beautiful sound of flowing water that resonates in my heart. In particular, I often swam in the Kumano River when I was little. I couldn’t wait to go back to Hongu, where my parents were from, during summer vacation. That was because I could swim in the clear waters of the Kumano River and encounter various insects like beetles and stag beetles. For me as a child, Kumano was a heaven-like playground. My experiences and memories playing in Kumano inspire my haiku about everything through the seasons. It was Kumano that turned me into a haiku poet. I would like to offer my heartfelt thanks to the mountains, rivers, plants, trees, birds, animals, insects, and fish of Kumano.

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