death and morning glories

unlike the nasturtium, however, morning glories are plentiful in both cultures, though in japan they are very likely to be found in poetry known as death haiku. along with the cicada, and dew in the grass, the morning glory appears as a reminder of both life's beauty and life's brevity.

the moon departs:
frost falls upon the
morning glory.

asagao ya
tsuki no wakare o
hana no hie

kato

(the first image is by ide gakusui; the second is margaret jordan patterson, third is katei taki, and last is g. lebart.)