--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is not merely the brevity by which the…" description: "\"It is not merely the brevity by which the haiku isolates a particular group of phenomena from all the rest; nor its suggestiveness, through which it re..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c1/reginald-horace-blyth-18264_art_it-is-not-merely-the-brevity-by-which-th_812913.jpg" --- # It is not merely the brevity by which the haiku isolates a… ![“It is not merely the brevity by which the haiku isolates a particular group of phenomena from all the rest; nor its suggestiveness, through which it reveals a whole world of experience. It is not only in its remarkable use of the season word, by which it gives us a feeling of a quarter of the…” quote by Reginald Horace Blyth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c1/reginald-horace-blyth-18264_art_it-is-not-merely-the-brevity-by-which-th_812913.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c1/reginald-horace-blyth-18264_art_it-is-not-merely-the-brevity-by-which-th_812913.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c1/reginald-horace-blyth-18264_art_it-is-not-merely-the-brevity-by-which-th_812913.jpg) > “It is not merely the brevity by which the haiku isolates a particular group of phenomena from all the rest; nor its suggestiveness, through which it reveals a whole world of experience. It is not only in its remarkable use of the season word, by which it gives us a feeling of a quarter of the year; nor its faint all-pervading humour. Its peculiar quality is its self-effacing, self-annihilative nature, by which it enables us, more than any other form of literature, to grasp the thing-in-itself.” [Reginald Horace Blyth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reginald-horace-blyth/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The haiku’s power lies in its minimalism, seasonal focus, humor, and self‑effacing nature, allowing readers to perceive reality directly. **In simple terms:** Haiku’s brevity and self‑effacing style reveal reality. Key Takeaway Embrace simplicity to see deeper truth. Themes minimalism seasonality humor self‑effacement Mood contemplative introspective Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - poetry analysis - creative writing - mindfulness practice - teaching literature Key Concepts phenomenology aesthetic literary theory Questions to Reflect On - How does self‑effacement change perception? - What role does season play in meaning? A Different Perspective Its brevity can limit depth for complex subjects. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Brevity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brevity/) [Brevity Haiku](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brevity-haiku-281303/) [Feelings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feelings/) [Form](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/form/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Groups](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/groups/) [Haiku](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/haiku/) [Haiku Isolates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/haiku-isolates-281304/) [Humour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humour/) [Humour Peculiar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humour-peculiar-281306/) [Literature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literature/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Particular](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/particular/) [Peculiar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peculiar/) [Pervading Humour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pervading-humour-281305/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Quality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/quality/) [Quarters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/quarters/) [Remarkable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/remarkable/) [Seasons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seasons/) [Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self/) [Use](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/use/) [Whole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/whole/) [Whole world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/whole-world/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) [Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years/) ## Related quotes > [The sun shines, snow falls, mountains rise and valleys sink, night deepens and pales into day, but it is only very seldom that we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reginald-horace-blyth/the-sun-shines-snow-falls-mountains-rise-and-valleys-sink-night/) [Reginald Horace Blyth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reginald-horace-blyth/) > [ Regarding R. H. Blyth: Blyth's four volume Haiku became especially popular at this time \[1950's\] because his translations were based on the assumption that… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reginald-horace-blyth/regarding-r-h-blyth-blyth-s-four-volume-haiku-became-especially/) [Reginald Horace Blyth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reginald-horace-blyth/) > [Regarding R. H. Blyth: The first book in English based on the saijiki is R. H. Blyth's Haiku, published in four volumes from 1949…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reginald-horace-blyth/regarding-r-h-blyth-the-first-book-in-english-based-on-the-saijiki-is/) [Reginald Horace Blyth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reginald-horace-blyth/) > [Regarding R. H. Blyth: Two men who may be called pillars of the Western haiku movement, Harold G. Henderson and R. H. 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We have trouble with the concept of brevity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-sanderson/this-is-going-to-take-a-while-i-m-a-fantasy-author-we-have-trouble/) [Brandon Sanderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-sanderson/) > [“Life is too short to waste being a productive member of society.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sol-luckman/life-is-too-short-to-waste-being-a-productive-member-of-society/) [Sol Luckman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sol-luckman/) > [“It's not my accent, but my brevity makes me stylish.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/it-s-not-my-accent-but-my-brevity-makes-me-stylish/) [Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/) > [it is the brevity of life which makes it tolerable; its experiences have value because they have an end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winifred-holtby/it-is-the-brevity-of-life-which-makes-it-tolerable-its-experiences/) [Winifred Holtby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winifred-holtby/) ## More by Reginald Horace Blyth > [Regarding R. H. 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Blyth. . . .](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reginald-horace-blyth/regarding-r-h-blyth-two-men-who-may-be-called-pillars-of-the-western/) [Reginald Horace Blyth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reginald-horace-blyth/) > [There is a Hindu myth about the Self or God of the universe who sees life as a form of play. 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