Wednesday, January 26, 2022

Shiwu

Shiwu (1272–1352) was a Chinese Chan poet and hermit who lived during the Yuan Dynasty. He got the nickname Stonehouse because of where he lived as a hermit in Yushan, in the north of China. He studied under master Yung-Wei and three years later was ordained and received the dharma name Ch'ing-hung. Kao-feng took him as his pupil and gave him the koan "All things return to one" for study. He had more adventures with another teacher, and then in 1312 at the age of forty he moved to Xiamu Mountain near Huzhou. He composed his "Mountain Poems" (Shan-shih), one-hundred and eighty-four verses mostly dealing with life in the mountains. He had stints as abbots at various temples, seems like 3 times. 

I'm reading The Mountain Poems of Stonehouse translated and commentary by Red Pine. I really like it. This book, like the one before, could bear rereading.

Red Pine went to the monastery where Shiwu studied for 3 years with Kao-feng. The abbot had never heard of Shiwu or Stonehouse or Ch'ing-hung, his nickname and ordination name.



His last poem before his death: 

corpses don't stink in the mountains

there's no need to bury them deep

I might not have the fire of samadhi

but enough wood to end this family line

No comments: