SOURCE: "The Poetry of Santoka (1882-1940)," in A Reader's Guide to Japanese Literature, Kodansha International, 1988, pp. 121-23.

In the following essay, Rimer discusses Santoka's life and "laconic, deceptively simple" haiku poetry.

The reader who believes that art transcends its own times will surely take solace and inspiration from the work of Taneda Santoka (1882-1940), a remarkable Zen priest and poet of our century who produced poetry as personal and profound as that of his illustrious predecessor and spiritual mentor, Ryokan (1758-1831). Like Ryokan's poetry, Santoka's work can best be understood as a record of his quest for spiritual enlightenment, the kind of voyage that can be undertaken in any era. Readers in our increasingly secular age may first be drawn to Santoka out of a sense of nostalgia, but in reading his poetry they will immediately come face to face with a strong will and the personality of...