Sesson Yūbai

Sesson Yūbai (雪村 友梅, 1290 - 14th day of the 1st month, 1348) was a Japanese Zen Buddhist monk of the Rinzai sect. This priest and poet who is considered "the first important poet of the Five Mountains. Quotes I do not like praises and honoursNor did I fear disdainI just stayed away.My mind, clear water,My body bound and tiedFor three years in Chang'an.I sing what I feel in songsIn straight words, undecorated. From: Bingatshū, as cited in: Katō, Shūichi. A History of Japanese Literature: From the Man'yōshū to Modern Times, 1997. p. 105. Quotes about Sesson Yūbai When the Japanese Zen priest Mugaku Sogen (1226-1286) was in China and threatened by invading Mongol troops, he composed a fourline poem. Years later another Zen priest, Sesson Yūbai (1290-1347), when he was in prison and threatened with death, took Mugaku's poem and, using each line as the opening verse of a new poem, Donald Keene. Anthology of Japanese Literature, from the Earliest Era to the Mid. p. 347 External links Category:1290 births Category:1348 deaths Category:Poets from Japan Category:Zen Buddhist monks Category:Buddhists from Japan