In this episode, we sit down with writer, translator, martial artist, and long-time Japan resident Robert R. Gray to talk about his wonderful little book, Whispers of the Departed—a collection of samurai death poems (辞世, jisei) paired with glimpses into the lives of the people who wrote them. From impermanence and acceptance to emptiness and transcendence, the conversation explores what people reveal when there’s nothing left to hold onto.

Links:

• 秘伝 Online Magazine
• Budo Japan (秘伝's English Site)
• [Outro] Iroha ft. Chi@ki by long-time friend of the show, Gomyo Kevin Seperic 

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