Based on the scant biographical information that's available, I've seen no indication that the Tang poet Meng Hao-ran was himself a practicing Buddhist. But he does seem to have been a fellow traveler and counted a number of Chan monks and masters among his intimate friends. So this is a meditation poem of an unusual sort - not a first hand account of the meditation experience but a second hand account of watching someone else meditate. Think of it as the meditation equivalent of second hand smoke -- a bit of inner peace that wafts by from simply watching someone else who is deep in tranquil contemplation.
Master Yi sits
In silent meditation
Enclosed in a hut
A universe in itself
In the empty forest
Outside the door
A lone peak soars
The pathway descends
Into a deep ravine
Sunset is followed
By a drenching rain
The sky darkens as
The yard falls into gloom
Behold the lotus flower
How it remains unsullied
And then you realize the heart
Also remains pure
宿業師山房待丁大不至
夕陽度西嶺
群壑倏已暝
松月生夜涼
風泉滿清聽
樵人歸欲盡
煙鳥棲初定
之子期宿來
孤琴候蘿徑
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