A zen monk...

I was a Zen monk who didn't know Zen,
so I chose the woods for the years I had left.

a robe made of patches over my body,
a belt of bamboo around my waist.

mountains and streams explain the Patriarch's meaning,
flowers smile and bird songs reveal the hidden key.

sometimes I sit on a flat-topped rock,
late cloudless nights once a month..


translated by RED PINE