What Words of Paradise did for Sufism and The Perfection of Wisdom for Buddhism, The Moon in the Pines does for Zen and the poetic form of haiku suffused with its spirit. In a spare three lines and seventeen syllables, the haiku--stylized, reflective, elliptical, often elegiac--isolates a mood, insight, or aspect of nature, subtly drawing the reader's own experience into complicity with the poet. For four hundred years its focused clarity has reflected the Zen desire to greet each moment of life with a "beginner's mind."
Here, illustrated with the finest of Japanese paintings are haikus from classical masters including Sokan, Chiyo-Ni, Soseki, and Basho, alongside some modern-day writers. Clustered around the themes of Dawn, Daylight, Dusk, and Moonlight, their meanings are amplified in end notes and an introduction on Zen and haiku. Jonathan Clements's expert new translations unlock a fresh spirituality that, proffering an instant evocation, invites a transcendent meditation. The Moon in the Pines is a lavish jewel of a gift book.
"Mouth agape
At falling flowers
A child is Buddha"
--Kubutsu
Here, illustrated with the finest of Japanese paintings are haikus from classical masters including Sokan, Chiyo-Ni, Soseki, and Basho, alongside some modern-day writers. Clustered around the themes of Dawn, Daylight, Dusk, and Moonlight, their meanings are amplified in end notes and an introduction on Zen and haiku. Jonathan Clements's expert new translations unlock a fresh spirituality that, proffering an instant evocation, invites a transcendent meditation. The Moon in the Pines is a lavish jewel of a gift book.
"Mouth agape
At falling flowers
A child is Buddha"
--Kubutsu
