Brief verse from Japan / With seventeen syllables / Illustrated here

HAIKU

Think of a poetic snapshot that captures nature’s essence in just three short lines.

This clue describes a "brief verse from Japan" with "seventeen syllables," which directly points to a haiku—a traditional Japanese poetic form known for its 5-7-5 syllable structure. The last line, "Illustrated here," hints that the clue itself is an example of a haiku, mirroring the answer. The wordplay lies in the clue’s own format, making it a self-referential puzzle.