Purity and Growth: On Pound’s "Fan Piece, for Her Imperial Lord" : Rethink.

This haiku is far more cryptic than the previous ones. It is probably an example of why first impressions - thankfully - fail when it comes to poetry. The last line gives us the distinct impression something bad has happened.

But read the commentary and notice what's hiding in that middle line: there's a hidden spring image. Something is being lost, absolutely - whether it is a bad thing is another question entirely.