Japanese Buddhist monk Ikkyū’s life and poetry: a goliardic invective against the clergy and a soteriological sublimation of sex
Keywords:
Ikkyū, Buddhism, Zen poetry, sex, soteriology, satoriAbstract
This article attempts to show how the Japanese Buddhist monk Ikkyū Sōjun (1394-1481) uses poetry to criticize the moral corruption of his fellow Zen members in the turbulent last years of Japan’s Muromachi period and to display sex as a worldly tool to reach enlightenment. First of all, we shall explain the historical background that led to the emergence of a critical voice such as Ikkyū’s, and thereupon we shall explore some excerpts of his work, especially passages from the poetic collection Kyōunshū, in order to illustrate the denunciation of the clergy and the sublimation of carnal knowledge.
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