Wang Wei (698--759) is one of the greatest High Tang poets. His works are often claimed to take a Buddhist perspective, combining appreciation of the beauties of nature with awareness of sensory illusion, and thus rendering Wang widely known as "Poet Buddha."

The book is an original and ambitious attempt to criticize the prevalent assumptions about Chan Buddhist implications in Wang's nature poetry. The author weaves in information and perspectives from literal and historical sources, using them to examine Wang's ideology of reclusion, his associations with Buddhist monks, and his...