Jeongmin: Three Hundred Korean Zen Poems

Professor Jeong Min, a humanities scholar who has explored ancient texts to draw and introduce profound insights, has published his new work, *300 Korean Zen Poems*, following *300 Korean Classical Poems: Seven-Character Quatrains* and *300 Korean Classical Poems: Five-Character Quatrains*. This book introduces the five- and seven-character phrases seemingly casually offered by thirty-one monks, ranging from Use Uicheon of the mid-Goryeo period to the well-known Manhae Han Yong-un. Through Professor Jeong Min’s beautiful interpretations, readers can experience the charm of *Sosun-gi*—a style characterized by a clean, unadorned language stripped of excess fat, born from a diet of only vegetables and bamboo shoots. To ensure that readers unfamiliar with ancient texts or Buddhist terminology can read through the book without difficulty, Professor Jeong Min has translated the original Zen poems into Korean and added vocabulary explanations and concise critiques. The poems by the monks contained in this book encourage readers to step back from focusing solely on immediate reality, calmly organize scattered thoughts, and ask questions different from those asked before. Just like Professor Jeong Min, who organized a few moves whenever he found it difficult to compose himself, readers too may discover clues to solve life's daunting problems if they savor one move a day.

Korean title: 우리 선시 삼백수

Korean author: 정민

Korean publisher: 문학과지성사

ISBN-13: 9788932029634