In This Life, I’ll Be a Wanderer in the Mortal World

The reclusive literary talent Bai Luomei lovingly recounts the passionate life of Su Manshu, the sentimental monk of the Republican era!

He became a monk in his youth, studying the scriptures, meditating, and chanting Buddha’s name. He vowed to grow old beside a solitary lamp, yet his heart remained bound to the mortal world. Deeply in love, he experienced several romantic encounters and bouts of longing, only to end up hurting both others and himself. Burning with fervor, he traveled far and wide, raising his voice in hopes of doing what little he could for his country and its people. After thirty-five years wandering the mortal world, he had no attachments to anyone or anything. He was Su Manshu, the sentimental monk of the Republican era.

In elegant, concise prose, Bai Luomei recounts his life of drifting and hardship, along with his feigned madness and irreverent disdain for the world.