Poems on True Wisdom and Understanding

KOREA; Joseon dynasty

Seon Master Hyujeong wrote these verses at the end of the 16th century. The work expresses his viewpoint that any person, however knowledgeable, so long as they continue to seek material wealth, will never be freed from the cycle of birth and death; one must completely rid themselves of greed and desire to attain true wisdom.
The majority of the calligraphy in this volume is written in regular and running scripts, with the occasional cursive script character appearing intermittently throughout. As a whole, there is a strong contrast of bold and thin, light and heavy, and large and small strokes, further adding to the diversity of this well-balanced work. The right strokes in particular are scripted with a looser hand, such that the right-falling “na” strokes are exaggerated, often extending into the other lines of characters. Unadorned and natural, it is an exemplary work of a Seon practitioner.
Master Hyujeong resided on Myohyangsan and was often referred to by the name, “Seosan Daesa,” meaning “Great Master of the Western Mountain.” Master Hyujeong was a famous Buddhist monk of the Joseon dynasty (1392–1910) in Korea, being the key figure in Joseon’s Buddhist resurgence.