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Essays in Idleness
Yoshida Kenko (c. 1283-1352) was a Buddhist priest, a reclusive scholar and poet who had ties to the aristocracy of medieval Japan. Despite his links to the Imperial court, Kenko spent much time in seclusion and mused on Buddhist and Taoist teachings. His Essays in Idleness is a collection of his thoughts on his inner world and the world of Japanese life in the fourteenth...more
Paperback, 104 pages
Published
April 15th 2005
by Cosimo Classics
(first published 1332)
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If I fail to say what lies on my mind it gives me a feeling of flatulence. – Kenkō (1285–1350)Kenkō, a fourteenth-century Japanese monk, courtier, poet, and antiquarian, had a lot on his mind. Retired from the tumult of the imperial court, he spent whole days alone in his cottage in Kyoto, jotting random, nonsensical thoughts on slips of paper that he pasted to the walls. After his death, these scraps were peeled away, sorted, and copied into a volume now known as Essays in Idleness (1332). The...more
I actually didn't know that I already reviewed this book once before here. I guess it makes sense, because I only heard about this book one, two years ago, when this blog was already up. But nevermind, I have new things to say!
Basically, after my first review, I lost the book. I don't know how, I don't know when but it was lost for a period of time. And then I found out I was going to Japan. So before I went, I was at Kinokuniya using up all those vouchers people gave me; and quite naturally, I...more
Basically, after my first review, I lost the book. I don't know how, I don't know when but it was lost for a period of time. And then I found out I was going to Japan. So before I went, I was at Kinokuniya using up all those vouchers people gave me; and quite naturally, I...more
This book is an amazing non-linear experience! Read each entry----some have a logical story or anecdote that follows temporal order, some are just observations or the author's expression or a sudden whim or an idea----in order and feel your brain enter a new zone of cognitive consciousness. You will realize that a "story" following in "logical" order isn't necessary after all.
Besides, the ideas are very clear, the person holding the pen was a genius in his own quiet way. Not thunder and lightin...more
Besides, the ideas are very clear, the person holding the pen was a genius in his own quiet way. Not thunder and lightin...more
A Buddhist monk, Yoshida Kenko wrote these essays - reflections, really - during the 14th century. "To while away the idle hours, seated the live-long day before the ink-slab, by jotting down without order or purpose whatever trifling thoughts pass through my mind, verily this is a queer and crazy thing to do!" his opening sentence reads. Many of the reflections have little relevance or context for the present-day reader, especially an American, at least as they're rendered in translation; these...more
I became aware of Essays in Idleness after reading an article in Smithsonian magazine about it. As someone who studies and practices Zen, I found the book intriguing. It's a primary document from an author who lived hundreds of years ago; his collected thoughts and wisdom. The series of short essays are an interesting mix, some very thoughtful, others quite humorous. On the topic of Zen Buddhism, I can't say there was a much new here that I hadn't encountered before. But the real charm of the bo...more
Almost all of these are at least mildly interesting in some way, and it's pretty cool to read a primary source from 13th-century Japan.
Some were beautifully evocative and really made me homesick for the four seasons and/or Japan.
A few reminded me of "deep thoughts" by Jack Handey, like these two:
#149
----
You should never put the new antlers of a deer to your nose and smell them. They have little insects that crawl into the nose and devour the brain.
#223
----
Tazu no Oidono had for his boyhood nam...more
Some were beautifully evocative and really made me homesick for the four seasons and/or Japan.
A few reminded me of "deep thoughts" by Jack Handey, like these two:
#149
----
You should never put the new antlers of a deer to your nose and smell them. They have little insects that crawl into the nose and devour the brain.
#223
----
Tazu no Oidono had for his boyhood nam...more
Essays in Idleness is a collection of one man's observations of the world and his thoughts concerning life, morality, and art, as well as, other topics of importance. Yoshida Kenko's wise, perceptive, and sometimes humorous musings offer a glimpse into the mind and heart of a buddhist scholar and poet who lived in fourteenth century Japan.
His wisdom and compassion is underlined with humor and wit. The collection is numbered from one to two hundred and fourty-three to make for easy reading and lo...more
His wisdom and compassion is underlined with humor and wit. The collection is numbered from one to two hundred and fourty-three to make for easy reading and lo...more
Medieval Japanese history, cultural criticism, Buddhist meditations, and personal musings coexist happily in this charming book. In an essay on the pitfalls and pleasures of alcohol Kenko notes, "In winter it is delightful to sit opposite an intimate friend in a small room, toasting something to eat over the fire, and to drink deeply together." That sounds delightful indeed. Though not all warm and fuzzy (it was written in 1331, so expect some misogyny) Essays in Idleness is a generally pleasant...more
Ageless wisdom with many unexpected funny twists. This will probably become one of my all time favorites.
Jan 31, 2009
Matthew Gatheringwater
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
how-to-live
There are many nuggets of wisdom here, but the short pieces that make up this collection of reflections are too disjointed, too rooted in distant times and traditions, and some are too banal to merit the Sacred Book status with which Essays in Idleness was first represented to me. Once I stopped expecting it to live up to its reputation, I enjoyed it as a fascinating diary by a sensitive soul living in interestingly difficult times.
I read it on Russian and ... <3
Apr 08, 2008
Justin Jaeger
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Lovers of History, Japan, and/or Anthropology.
Shelves:
read-for-school
It's "Life's Little Instruction Book" for Medieval Japan. Kenkoo actually had entries for this book on scraps of paper that he plastered on the walls of his tiny living space. With selections like, "You should not sniff the antler's of a deer. There are tiny insects on them that will crawl into your brain and kill you." (Paraphrased) this book is a perfect reminder that the philosophers, scientists and theologians of any period in time are never perfectly correct.
This has been a disappointment. I suppose I was looking for more Buddhist insight, but what one gets seems unfocussed and all over the map. Notes on historical importance of each section would have been helpful, instead of the too brief and diffuse Introduction.
Nov 24, 2007
E
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
anyone who loves succinctness
Review:
This book is life: it is a single book with a single author, but topics arise in fits and starts and there is no overarching narrative.
What I learned:
Complete collections are not as perfect as incomplete ones.
And don't sniff deer antlers.
This book is life: it is a single book with a single author, but topics arise in fits and starts and there is no overarching narrative.
What I learned:
Complete collections are not as perfect as incomplete ones.
And don't sniff deer antlers.
So far, I really love this book!
Droll and easy to read.
1596050624
May 31, 2013
Sebastián Figueroa
marked it as to-read
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
non-fiction,
philosophy
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“The pleasantest of all diversions is to sit alone under the lamp, a book spread out before you, and to make friends with people of a distant past you have never known.”
—
15 people liked it
“You should never put the new antlers of a deer to your nose and smell them. They have little insects that crawl into the nose and devour the brain.”
—
4 people liked it
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