Sky Above, Great Wind

Ryokan (1758-1831) was an eccentric Buddhist hermit and Japanese poet that produced a great number of haiku, waka, and other types of Japanese poetry during his lifetime. Writing about either the seasons, people who he met in his travels, his Buddhist practice, or nature, Ryokan continued the great haiku tradition of having his words conjure images in the minds of his readers, as if they were seeing the scene he was writing about with their own eyes. More so than his poetry, Ryokan was regarded admirably during his day for his simplicity and embodying of the Dharma, even though he was not a conventional monk like Dogen or Hakuin. Sky Above, Great Wind not only features the poems of this eclectic monk, but also some of his brush art, as well as anecdotes about him that paint him as one of history’s great holy fools.