---

Poetry By Zen Master Ryokan

Thoughts
When all thoughts Are exhausted I slip into the woods And gather A pile of shepherd's purse.

Like the little stream Making its way Through the mossy crevices I, too, quietly Turn clear and transparent.


No-Mind
The flower invites the butterfly with no-mind; The butterfly visits the flower with no-mind. The flower opens, the butterfly comes; The butterfly comes, the flower opens. I don't know others, Others don't know me. By not-knowing we follow nature's course.
from "Dewdrops on a Lotus Leaf" translated by John Stevens


Lazy
Too lazy to be ambitious, I let the world take care of itself. Ten days' worth of rice in my bag; a bundle of twigs by the fireplace. Why chatter about delusion and enlightenment? Listening to the night rain on my roof, I sit comfortably, with both legs stretched out.