Everything that
arises from
conditions will
cease
when those conditions
come to an end
But from where did those conditions arise?
From previous conditions, of course
Then how about the first condition –
where does it come from?
When you arrive here, words fail you
thinking is simply no use
I brought all this to the old woman
who’s my neighbour to the east
But the old woman didn’t like it at all
So I told it to the old man
who’s my neighbour to the west
and the old man just frowned and walked away
I tried writing it down on a rice cake
and feeding it to a dog
But even the dog wouldn’t take it
My choice of words must be bad, I thought
My language must be a bit confused
So I rolled arising and ceasing into one big whole
And gave it to the skeleton lying in the field
Instantly, the skeleton stood up
And started to sing and dance for me
Its song went on and on, resonating through the past
the present, the future
Its dance’s subtleties revealed
all the realms of sentient life
Three times the song was repeated
three times the dance performed
And then it stopped
The moon had sunk below the horizon
tolling in the city of Ch’ang-an
-Taigu Ryokan (1758-1831). Based on the translation by Ryuichi Abe and Peter Haskel