When I received the call telling me I had won the grand prize for a Haiku competition I was extremely baffled yet amazed at the same time. I ran to my mother’s room to inform her of my success and she replied “And that’s why you should be a writer.”

My name is Zeshan Hayat. Let me take you through a short yet interesting journey of my life and how I’ve been influenced by poetry.

From a young age I have always been writing poetry as a hobby to express my thoughts and feelings. During my days at primary and secondary school I was urged by teachers to enter poetry competitions which I won, and have had a few poems published in large anthologies.

It wasn’t until I received an old poetry book from my grandfather that I began to slowly rekindle my interest in poetry, for that was the first time I read a Haiku. I still remember the feeling quite vividly as the words of Matsuo Bashō echoed through my imagination.

Grand prize winner Zeshan Hayat

After my secondary school education I decided to study Japanese at the University of Central Lancashire in Preston. My interest in the culture sprang from meeting many Japanese students at college and also through the poetry I had read. One of the most inspiring moments, however, was when I came across an animated series entitled “Mushishi” by Yuki Urushibara. The vivid artwork and the storylines really evoked my imaginative side to write more and more poetry, and in particular the soundtrack and music used in this animation definitely helps me focus on writing. When writing the poem for the EU/Japan Haiku competition I listened to this soundtrack.

However, due to my continuous efforts being spent on my university studies, I once again found less time to concentrate on poetry. I hit a writer’s block and could not produce new ideas for a long time.

It was at this moment that by chance I came across a Japanese television drama entitled “Samurai High School”. Watching Japanese drama is a hobby of mine and I therefore came across this one quite naturally. During a very stressful period in my life this drama really helped motivate me, especially towards the end when, during a particular scene, the actor Miura Haruma produces a death poem to express his feelings.

「十七の散る命火を. 誇るべし. 残る夜月を. 清らかにを照れ」

“Be proud of the 17 year old flame of life that ceases to be. The moon, left behind, shines brightly.”

These words truly moved me and helped me understand the value of life, which consequently inspired me to study more about the life of the Samurai, and thus I wrote my thesis at university based on the Samurai culture. Through my study of morals and ethics during the Samurai time I grew more and more in touch with my Islamic roots. It was at this time that I was introduced to the Haiku competition through a post from my university lecturer on the popular social networking site Facebook.

I do not write traditional poetry. However, the thing I love about the Haiku form is that it enables the reader to capture a moment and a feeling in such a short number of lines. It’s like seeing something and then blinking, so when you open your eyes the image no longer remains as it was. That brief moment in time is captured in the Haiku form, and when reading other Haiku I can imagine what the writer had seen during his or her special moment.

Light breaks free

A new day is born

The mantis comes out to pray

For this particular verse I drew my main inspiration from my eastern and Islamic roots. It is said in Islam that, during the last third of the night, God descends to the lowest of the heavens and waits there to give people anything that they wish for. After this last third of the night dawn appears and we must pray before then. As a follower of the Islamic faith, I pray five times a day during different intervals, and the morning one was always my favourite. It was the sign of a new day, a sign of light breaking free from the darkness and, because we are blessed with this light, we offer a prayer of gratitude.

From learning of the Samurai death poems and understanding the value of life to getting back to my roots, I felt that poetry, especially the Haiku form, has helped shape me as a person throughout my life journey.  For me, 2012 was a year of new beginnings. It was the year that I would finally graduate and move into the working world. A year that deserves commemoration as a new chapter of my life has begun just as the relationship between Japan and the EU has developed further into a new era of partnership.

Winning this competition means so much to me as I will be representing all of the people who entered from the EU. With that in mind I wish to do them proud and collect the prize not only for myself but for their efforts also.  And may we all enter a new era of peace through our prayers.