Ryokan's zen poems are celebration of the joys and sadness of everyday life. His spare, direct style is remarkable for its immediacy and intimacy.

This bilingual collection contains more than 150 of his finest poems in Japanese and Chinese, including his famous lyrical correspondence with the nun Teishin, who befriended him in his later years. It also includes a biographical essay on Ryokan, and useful notes on the poems themselves.