Poetry A Riprap On The

Three-fourths Of Philosophy And Literature Is The Talk Of People Trying To Convince Themselves That They Really Like The Cage They Were Tricked Into Entering.

We . . . Must Try To Live Without Causing Unnecessary Harm, Not Just To Fellow Humans But To All Beings. We Must Try Not To Be Stingy, Or To Exploit Others. There Will Be Enough Pain In The World As It Is.

As A Poet I Hold The Most Archaic Values On Earth . . . The Fertility Of The Soil, The Magic Of Animals, The Power-vision In Solitude, The Terrifying Initiation And Rebirth, The Love And Ecstasy Of The Dance, The Common Work Of The Tribe. I Try To Hold Both History And The Wilderness In Mind, That My Poems May Approach The True Measure Of Things And Stand Against The Unbalance And Ignorance Of Our Times.

Our Relation To The Natural World Takes Place In A Place.

Ko Un's Poems Evoke The Open Creativity And Fluidity Of Nature, And Funny Turns And Twists Of Mind. Mind Is Sometimes Registered In Buddhist Terms - Buddhist Practice Being Part Of Ko Un's Background. Ko Un Writes Spare, Short-line Lyrics Direct To The Point, But Often Intricate In Both Wit And Meaning. Ko Un Has Now Traveled Worldwide And Is Not Only A Major Spokesman For All Korean Culture, But A Voice For Planet Earth Watershed As Well.