Cold Mountain Zen

An eclectic collection of poetry by Hanshan, the legendary 8th-century Buddhist monk, compiled by Hiroaki Sato, who adds wonderful material on him by Akutagawa and Mori Ogai

The Tang Dynasty poet Hanshan (“cold mountain”) and his friend Shide (“foundling”) are among the most iconic figures in the history of Zen Buddhism. Variously described as Buddhists, mystics, crazy hermits, Taoists, and incarnated bodhisattvas, the two monks have been immortalized for centuries in countless Zen paintings...