Fleeting, enlightenment passes in a moment.
This Zen death poem (jisei) was written by the monk Gizan Zenrai in 1878, moments before his passing. In the Zen tradition, such poems distill a lifetime of contemplative practice into a final gesture—pointing to impermanence, emptiness, and the fleeting nature of awakening itself.
Painting: Fleeting Enlightenment
Original available.
The Poem
Born into this world
I leave now for death.
I walked a thousand towns
Visited countless homes --
What does it mean now?
The moon, reflected in the water
A flower floats in the sky
Fleeting, enlightenment passes in a moment.
— Gizan Zenrai (1802–1878), Zen monk. Translated by Heron Dance.
The jisei — the Zen death poem — is among the most compressed forms in the contemplative tradition. Gizan Zenrai's final verse holds the paradox at the heart of Zen practice: the moon reflected in the water, the flower floating in the sky, enlightenment itself slipping through the moment it is seen. The poem asks nothing of the reader. It only points.
Benefits of becoming a member of Heron Dance.
Members receive PDFs of all books Heron Dance has recently published:
Nurturing the Song Within (The inner work underlying creative work).
Nurturing the Song Within Diary Planner. (Second quarter daybook and planner. Not dated for any specific year. Full color art throughout).
Meditations on Gratitude, Beauty and Mystery (Gratitude as a spiritual practice and as a philosophy of life).
The Pausing for Beauty Poetry Diary — Poetry that celebrates the beauty and mystery of wild nature and of life.
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The Tao Te Ching Journal: A Path To Inner Quiet
Zen Mountain Journal blends Taoist hermit poetry, contemplative art, and reflections drawn from a lifetime shaped by wilderness, solitude, and decades doing creative work on the outer boundaries of our culture. These journals are companions for seekers — guides in the reconnection with inner quiet, beauty, and the “soundless music” of a life lived with simplicity and meaning.
• Size: 9.25 × 8.5 inches — convenient size for desk or lap.
• Hardcover — the book can be written in without a table or desk.
• Double wire-o bound to lay flat.
• Printed on Mohawk Superfine, a premium uncoated paper for a beautiful writing surface.
• 160 pages.
