These two works on life's fleeting pleasures are by Buddhist monks from medieval Japan but each shows a different world-view In the short memoir Hojoki Chomei recounts his decision to withdraw from worldly affairs & live as a hermit in a tiny hut in the mountains contemplating the impermanence of human existence Kenko however displays a fascination with more earthy matters in his collection of anecdotes advice & observations From ribald stories of drunken monks to aching nostalgia for the fading traditions of the Japanese court Essays in Idleness is a constantly surprising work that ranges across the spectrum of human experience Meredith Mc Kinney's excellent new translation also
Includes:: notes & an introduction exploring the spiritual & historical background of the works Chomei was born into a family of Shinto priests in around 1155 at at time when the stable world of the court was rapidly breaking up He became an important though minor poet of his day & at the age of fifty withdrew from the world to become a tonsured monk He died in around 1216 Kenko was born around 1283 in Kyoto He probably became a monk in his late twenties & was also noted as a calligrapher Today he is remembered for his wise & witty aphorisms ' Essays in Idleness' Meredith Mc Kinney who has also translated Sei Shonagon's The Pillow Book for Penguin Classics is a translator of both contemporary & classical Japanese literature She lived in Japan for twenty years & is currently a visitng fellow at the Australian National University in Canberra' Essays in Idleness is a most delightful book & one that has served as a model of Japanese style & taste since the 17th century These cameo-like vignettes reflect the importance of the little fleeting futile things & each essay is Kenko himself' Asian Student