Hojoki; Visions of a Torn World by Kamo-no-Chomei

Author:Kamo-no-Chomei
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Kyoto, Kamo-no-Chomei, Buddhism, medieval Japan, Japanese classical literature, Heian-kyo, earthquake, fire, Japan, meditation, priest, ten-foot-square hut, translation
Publisher: Stone Bridge Press

So as we see

our life is hard

in this world.

We and our houses

fleeting, hollow.

Many troubles

flow from your status,

social rank.

The lowly man

who lives beside the man of power

cannot openly rejoice,

even when glad.

And when sorrow

becomes intolerable

he never can cry out.

His anxious air,

his constant fearful trembles,

are those of a sparrow

near the nest of a hawk.

The poor man

who lives near the rich

is shamed by shabbiness.

He goes in and out

by day or night

with self-effacing air.

He sees the envy of

his wife, children, servants.

He knows the rich despise them all

and his heart is troubled.

Never, never

can he find peace.

If you live

among crowds

you cannot flee

when fire breaks out.

If you wish to live

far from others,

traveling is hard

and there is danger of thieves.

The powerful are greedy.

Those who stand alone are always mocked.

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