Muso Soseki

Muso Soseki (1275-1351) was an abbot of a Zen monastery, an advisor to shoguns and emperors and a garden designer. He and the first Ashikaga shogun, Takauji, established Zen as the dominate Buddhist sect in Japan and had Zen temples built in all sixty-six provinces. Soseki taught a large number of students, wrote an enormous amount of poetry, and became the most renowned Zen master of his time. He was given the title "National Teacher."

Muso Soseki's poetry

Green Mountains have turned yellow so many times
The troubles and worries of the world of things no longer bother me.
One grain of dust in the eye will render the three worlds too small to see.
When the mind is still the floor where I sit is endless space.

A virtuous man when alone 
loves the quiet of the mountains. 
A wise man in nature 
enjoys the purity of water. 
One must not be suspicious of the folks 
who take pleasure in mountains and streams, 
But rather measure how well 
he sharpens his spirits by them. 

The mountain range
the stones in the water
all are strange and rare
The beautiful landscape
as we know
belongs to those who are like it
The upper worlds
the lower worlds
originally are one thing
There is not a bit of dust
there is only this still and full
perfect enlightenment

A runaway son
will never come
into his own
My treasure
is the cloud on the peak
the moon over the valley
Traveling east or west
light and free
on the one road
I don't know whether
I'm on the way
or at home

In the real world 
the pure world 
no separation exists 
why wait for another time 
and another meeting 
the teaching on Vulture Peak* 
is here today 
who else are you looking for 
to preserve the Way?