Walking the high road towards Shikoku

Mr Nagata dwells on the next inn

Tastes the nectar of cool wine

Feels the soothing fan of a young server

Mid-summer, the dusty road offers no succour

Too old, he thinks, too old

Wishing to turn the clock back ten years

Sweat runs down his neck, salt stings his eyes

Occasionally fellow travellers offer greetings

Old ways are disappearing

More tyres than shoes on this pilgrimage route

More walking boots than sandals

In the mountains snow-cold streams, hot springs

This his twentieth year of pilgrimage

His wife left with children in the city to sweat

As he clears his mind with prayer and contemplation

The Buddha calls

Fruit ripens on plum trees

Sakura at The House of Sixth Happiness

Has the sweetest breasts.

Dave Morgan is a writer and community arts organiser in Bolton UK with a long interest in Oriental culture. His publications include the poetry collection Chuang Tse’s Caterpillar (Flapjack Press 2015).