Quote by Ryokan: “The thief left it behind: the moon at my window.”

When a burglar came while Ryokan slept and took all he had, he noticed the thief had left the most beautiful thing: the moonlight. This is a lesson in what cannot be stolen — beauty, presence, and peace of mind are beyond ownership and beyond loss.

This poem describes an actual event in Ryokan's life — a thief broke into his hut and found little of material value to take. Ryokan's response, recorded in verse, exemplifies the Zen principle of non-attachment: what is truly valuable cannot be possessed and cannot be lost. The poem became one of the most celebrated examples of Zen-influenced Japanese verse.

Japanese Zen Buddhist monk and poet of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, renowned for his simple lifestyle, love of children, and deeply personal calligraphy and verse. He lived alone in a mountain hut for much of his life, refusing temple appointments and administrative roles in favor of wandering, writing, and play. His poems are among the most beloved in Japanese literary tradition.