unask

 

shovelling snow with the Buddha

In the usual iconography of the temple or the local Wok
you would never see him doing such a thing,
tossing the dry snow over a mountain
of his bare, round shoulder,
his hair tied in a knot,
a model of concentration.

Even the season is wrong for him.
In all his manifestations, is it not warm or slightly humid?
Is this not implied by his serene expression,
that smile so wide it wraps itself around the waist of the universe?

But here we are, working our way down the driveway,
one shovelful at a time.
We toss the light powder into the clear air.
We feel the cold mist on our faces.
And with every heave we disappear
and become lost to each other
in these sudden clouds of our own making,
these fountain-bursts of snow.

This is so much better than a sermon in church,
I say out loud, but Buddha keeps on shoveling.
This is the true religion, the religion of snow,
and sunlight and winter geese barking in the sky,
I say, but he is too busy to hear me.

Billy Collins

 

 

actor

What do all examples show?
What can any actor know?
The contradiction in every act,
The infinite task of the human heart.

Delmore Schwartz

 

 

robin

What is the Christmas without
snow? We need it
as bread of a cold
climate, ermine to trim

our sins with, a brief
sleeve for charity's
scarecrow to wear its heart
on, bold as a robin.

R S Thomas

 

 

window

A lighted window floats through the night
like a piece of paper in the wind.

I want to see into it. I want to climb
through into its lighted room.

As I reach for it it slips through the
trees. As I chase it it rolls and tumbles
into the air and skitters on through the
night . . .

Russell Edson

 

 

golden eyes

I am a Holy Instrument always tuned by God
I live beyond every dimension.

I have been lifted drunk off the floor
In a Magnificent Tavern.

Now at my seat upon Divine Love
I gaze at Everything with brilliant, clear eyes.

Hafiz is an Emerald Compass.
My knowledge will put manna in your purse.

My only duty that now remains
To this world

Is from every direction
To forever serve you wine and
Hope.

Hafiz is a Golden Skirt
The Beloved has lifted off a magnificent floor
And has tied around His waist.

Watch us whirl, whirl,
Whirl!

Hafiz

 

 

a yellow flower

A yellow flower
(Light and spirit)
Sings by itself
For nobody.

A golden spirit
(Light and emptiness)
Sings without a word
By itself.

Let no one touch this gentle sun
In whose dark eye
Someone is awake.

(No light, no gold, no name, no color
And no thought:
O, wide awake!)

A golden heaven
Sings by itself
A song to nobody.

Thomas Merton

 

 

 

Hanuman, monkey god

In Hindu symbolism, the monkey represents the mind. Like a monkey, the mind is never still.

This monkey-mind happens to be the only thing over which we have absolute control. We cannot control the world around us, but we can control our mind. We cannot choose our life, but we can choose the way we respond to it.

We - as humans - have the unique ability to programme our mind. In other words, we have the power to change the way we perceive life. And by changing our perceptions of life, we have the power of changing our world.

When Hanuman enters Rama’s life, he changes Rama’s world. He transforms a crisis (the loss of Sita) into an opportunity (rid the world of Ravana). He transforms a victim into a hero.

Thus, Hanuman is no ordinary monkey. He is the perfect mind. He embodies the highest potential that our mind can reach.

Devtutt Pattnaik.