"Here there is no talk of the world's affairs - those matters that make wild the hearts of men." Chia Tao (779-843); trans. Mike O'Connor

Saturday, September 24, 2011

Living in Simplicity

From the writing of Weng-siang (1210-1280)

"While everyone else
Is so busy striving,
The lone traveler
Is at ease by himself.
He's been living outside of convention
For a long time now;
In his pouch there is nothing at all.
When he walks,
He takes a cane for a companion;
When he talks,
He has the rocks for an audience.
If you ask him what his religion is,
When hungry it's a bowl of rice."

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