Haiku, Haiga, Tanka, Taiga, Senryu and Gendai are all forms of Japanese Haiku poetry. Although hard to master the rewards are great for haiku teaches one to appreciate those "Aha!" moments that life so often offers. Haiku also teaches how to economize one's words because of its traditional limited structure. It also reinforces how to "show " rather than "tell "about an experience. A very good haiku will sometimes take hours if not a few days to get the "Aha! " moment making the moment far more impressive. Haiku : traditionally nature themes with a 5,7,5 syllable structure Haiga : haiku placed within a painting or a photograph indirectly connected Tanka : five line verse containing a haiku with a 5,7,5,7,7 syllable structure usually, any theme Taiga : Tanka placed within a painting or a photograph with an indirect connection Senryu : a three line haiku usually depicting human foibles Gendai : modern haiku on any theme using any structure of verse