Vladimir Devidé

Sodo (1642 – 1716)

I fell on my back when I read that. Since then, not a day has passed without me reading, writing, or thinking about haiku poetry.

He is an assistant at the Department of Mathematics.
Mathematics also led him to his second love – Japan.
After several attempts, his dream came true when he received a scholarship for a postdoctoral study in Japan. A person who has love and interests in so many diverse fields, and nurtures them all the time, must find a way, build a bridge to connect them. And so, we could say, naturally, Sodo’s haiku from the beginning of the article entered his world. As soon as he arrived in Japan on July 17, 1961, the last page of the newspaper he took to read became the first page of a new path. It opened the doors to a new, old world into which he entered with enchantment and enthusiasm never left him. Thus, Japan joined mathematics. Sodo’s haiku was enough for his longstanding interest in Japan not to remain just incidental, but to become a need to show the world the values he discovered through books and lectures. Little by little, while working regularly at the Department of Mathematics at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and

Utagawa Kuniyoshi: Journey through Deep Snow (Koso Goichidai Ryaku Zu)

The professor himself, Devidé, wrote haiku and was a member and advisor to the World Haiku Association. The fact that the World Haiku Poetry Award in English has been named after him since 2011 speaks to how highly he was regarded in the world of haiku poetry. This poetic form, which originated in 15th century Japan, follows strict rules characterized by a three-line monostich with 5-7-5 syllables, and as Professor Devidé explains, it does not involve any intellectual intervention between impression and expression, it never rhymes, and usually does not have titles.

We could say that haiku requires the poet to be a photographer and capture the “wonder in the world,” connecting seemingly opposing things with a delicate thread woven from beauty and/or humor, using precisely determined syllables, which can only be achieved when there is a harmonious balance between intuition and skill. The event strips down to the core, mentioning only the most important things. This is how a haiku is created. As Devidé himself emphasizes, “Very concise, ascetic, yet rich in content.”

What could attract a mathematician to haiku poetry? Counting, of course! Inspired by its content, we count syllables, reducing it to the essentials and leaving minimal letters on the paper – haiku.

Ohara Koson (Shoson): Lotus Flower

Several of Devidé’s haikus:

Lily pads
– footprints
Moon’s journey to the lake.

Drops of sweat
on the steel of an axe
– woodcutter.

Dry leaves
pile by the fence
someone’s grave.

After a kiss
even the sounds from the street
become more beautiful.

Winter blossoms
fall softly from the sky
tiny snowflakes.

Sea of flames
around a large cross
– starry sky on Earth.

Precisely because mathematics is not absolutely precise, because within it there are questions on which top mathematicians do not agree, precisely because of that, it allows room for imagination and precisely because of that mathematics is not just a science but also a Art in the highest sense of the word…. It’s no wonder that among great mathematicians there were also great artists, and vice versa. For example, Leonardo da Vinci, Albrecht Dürer, Lewis Carroll… This is how mathematician and japanologist, Professor Vladimir Devidé, spoke about the connection between mathematics and art. His areas of interest in mathematics were mathematical logic, foundation of mathematics, set theory, abstract algebra, and geometry in multi-dimensional Euclidean space. He is most credited for initiating scientific research in mathematical logic in Croatia. He has written numerous scientific papers, professional and popular articles, many of which are cited in various mathematical publications. In addition, he has written a series of books on mathematics. Such activity in itself requires discipline and dedication. In the case of Professor Devidé, it transformed into a form of asceticism, as he lived a very modest life, without a television or a car, surrounded by books that filled his apartment. They represented a great wealth to him. A wealth that helped build strong foundations between seemingly incompatible and distant things.

Such effort and contribution could not go unnoticed and unrecognized, so he received a series of awards and recognitions during his lifetime. The explanations for the first and last awards received almost describe his entire work. The first recognition was the Order of Labor with a golden wreath “for outstanding merits over a number of years of work in the field of science, culture, and education, as well as results achieved in the training of professional and scientific personnel.”

In 1983, the Japanese government awarded Devidé the imperial honor “Kun-san-to zuihosho” (Order of the Precious Treasure, third class) for his contributions to the promotion of Japanese culture. The last recognition received during his lifetime was from the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology “for outstanding contribution and international promotion of understanding between Japan and Eastern Europe.” Let us also add the award “Le Prix C.I.D.A.L. The International Committee for the Dissemination of Arts and Letters through Cinema (C) awarded the film “Mathematics and Art.” There are many reasons that determine priorities in life. Often, we cannot follow what we feel is truly ours and what we would like to dedicate ourselves to. But if we don’t neglect what we love and nurture it by using every opportunity to better understand it, life rewards us with the opportunity to achieve it. This is confirmed by the life journey and work of Professor Devidé. And in the end, we come back to the beginning. Reflecting on Professor Devidé’s overall literary work, we could say that he was like the cottage from Sodo’s haiku at the beginning of the article. With open doors, he let his cottage fill with the values of Japan, and then, translated into lectures, screenings, and books, he left them to the world. Seventeen books inspired by Japan – as many syllables as a haiku usually has! The builder, who did not want to become one, was actually marked by “building” throughout his life. Building strong bridges between the West and the East, and between mathematics and poetry, between science and art. His entire work is a solid foundation for anyone who, for whatever reason, aspires to the same.

1 From an interview by Dean Sinovčić with Prof. Vladimir Devidé for the magazine Nacional, issue 396, June 17, 2003.