Late at night, listening to the winter rain Recalling my youth — Was it only a dream? Was I really young once? - Ryōkan

If someone asks
about the mind of this monk,
say it is no more than
a passage of wind
in the vast sky.

When you encounter those who are wicked, unrighteous, foolish, dim-witted, deformed, vicious, chronically ill, lonely, unfortunate, or disabled, you should think: “How can I save them?” And even if there is nothing you can do, at least you must not indulge in feelings of arrogance, superiority, derision, scorn, or abhorrence, but should immediately manifest sympathy and compassion. If you fail to do so, you should feel ashamed and deeply reproach yourself: “How far I have strayed from the Way! How can I betray the old sages? I take these words as an admonition to myself.”

The thief left it behind:
the moon
at my window.