SANTOKA: Grass and Tree Cairn, translated by Hiroaki Sato. Vermont: Red Moon Press, 2002, 74 pp., $14.95 (paper)

No matter how deep one's faith or religion is, one may experience feelings of resignation and defeat as well as the loss of compassion for others and oneself.

So it was with some comfort that I discovered the earthy humor and humble embrace of nature in the poetry of Santoka, a Zen poet who, after failing miserably as a student, businessman and husband, took to traveling the countryside.

Ordained a Zen monk in Kyushu, Santoka wandered through Japan begging for alms, much like Basho had done centuries before. Originally named Shoichi Taneda, Santoka was born in Yamaguchi Prefecture, the southern tip of the main island of Honshu, in 1882.