Taming the Wild Horse: An Annotated Translation and Study of the Daoist Horse Taming Pictures (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9780231181273)

In thirteenth-century China, a Daoist monk named Gao Daokuan (1195-1277) composed a series of illustrated poems and accompanying verse commentary known as the Daoist Horse Taming Pictures. In this annotated translation and study, Louis Komjathy argues that this virtually unknown text offers unique insights into the transformative effects of Daoist contemplative practice. Taming the Wild Horse examines Gao's illustrated poems in terms of monasticism and contemplative practice, as well as the multivalent meaning of the "horse" in traditional Chinese culture and the consequences for both human and nonhuman animals.

The Horse Taming Pictures consist of twelve poems, ten of which are equine-centered. They develop the metaphor of a "wild" or "untamed" horse to represent ordinary consciousness, which must be reined in and harnessed through sustained self-cultivation, especially meditation. The compositions describe stages on the Daoist contemplative path. Komjathy provides opportunities for reflection on contemplative practice in general and Daoist meditation in particular, which may lead to a transpersonal way of perceiving and being.

Author: Louis Komjathy
ISBN-10: 0231181272
ISBN-13: 9780231181273
Publisher: Columbia University Press
Language: English
Published: 01/15/2019
Pages: 264
Format: Paperback
Weight: 0.75lbs
Size: 8.70h x 5.60w x 0.80d