Oh wow. Oh wow. Oh wow. ~Steve Jobs’ last words That these were Steve Jobs’ last words, or really anyone’s last words, captures our imagination. A message from the threshold of death, from one perhaps seeing something marvelous, unable to describe it, simply expressing wonder. We might think that what is being seen is what […]
Embrace tigerBurn eyes brightInto your heart and soulReturn to mountainFrom its heightSink deep into the earth
The Tao that can be understood is not the eternal TaoThe name that can be named is not the eternal nameThe nameless is the origin of heaven and earthThe named is the mother of ten thousand thingsDesireless one can see the mysteryDesiring one can see the manifestations ~Tao Te Ching These are the
What Cannot Be Named Read More »
RhythmDrums deep deepDays rollingMoons hideBabies crySap risesFlowers dieBlood tides flowLovers smileRain sings singsRhythm humsDrums Deep
I was at my cabin in the hammock, which hangs suspended between two giant trees. Looking straight up, I had a sense of being held in the loving embrace of their boughs. Gradually, my breathing fell into a rhythm that, at least in my imagination, mirrored the breathing of the trees. As they exhaled oxygen,
Jeweled Net of Indra Read More »
Every hero’s journey returns him home. ~A Course of Love We are so fond of seeking. “I’m a seeker,” someone says at a spiritual retreat. “It’s all about the journey,” someone else says. We struggle to be content with chronic longing because we get so tired of looking for that special place, that place we
We ride the breath into formAnd then forget who we areBelieving that we are formDreaming the illusionAs we search everywhereWondering what it is that we forgotSeeking it where it is not and never will beUntil at lastWe hear breath’s callAnd ride it home again
How many of us have tried to glue together a broken plate or cup or figurine in such a way that the damage is invisible? A friend once sent me some ceramic tai chi figures that all got broken in shipment. I spent hours piecing together the fragments. Most of the repairs were almost undetectable,
Sealing the Cracks with Gold Read More »
On cloudy daysTime stands stillNo sun marks its pathNo shadows trace its passingSuch days are magicDoorways into mysteryStep throughInto eternity
EvenAfter all this timeThe sun never says to the earth“You owe me”Look what happens With a love like thatIt lights the whole sky~Hafiz When I’m at my mountain cabin, I often sit by the creek. I just watch. And listen. And breathe. Everything is so beautiful. Water dances along. Trees stand impossibly tall while the tiniest
The ground beneath our feetThat we think strongIs but an icy crustLightning cracks racePop and thunderWe dare not moveIt matters notWe will fall throughInto our destinyAnd remember once againThat what diesWas never realAnd we are Laughing Free
The Ground Beneath Our Feet Read More »
I think; therefore I am. ~Descartes There is no such thing as a true thought. ~Adyashanti These two quotes represent contrasting concepts of thought. The first reveals thought as the source of our very existence. The second knocks thought off its pedestal. We reflected on these statements during the last in person gathering of the
Thinking about Thinking Read More »
We are dream walkersDream selves in our dream worldSearching for what is not hereBut something hears the callThat comes quietly from the darkIn the silenceDeep calls to deepLike a moth to the flameWe are drawn to what appears as deathBut in truth IS truthIn time, in timeDeep calls to deep …and deep answers
Deep Calls to Deep Read More »
Invest in loss? That does not sound like wise financial planning or a promising career strategy! Yet it is a slogan we practice with in martial arts, passed down by tai chi master Cheng Man Ching. What does it mean? In the martial arts context, it means being willing to lose in order to gain skill
Snowflakes feather floatOn path and boughTwinkling diamond starsMore precious rareThan any gracing throat or earWhat wondrous gift is thisSo freely givenThat I should be So bounteously blessed
Remember the intro to the Star Trek series? Their mission was “to boldly go where no one has gone before.” Yesterday I pulled up behind a car at a stop light and laughed out loud at their bumper sticker – “boldly going nowhere.” We always think we are or ought to be going somewhere, don’t we?
Boldly Going Nowhere Read More »
You find me in the silenceWhisperingThe language only known to usCreator and createdDancing the eternal danceIn never ending harmony
One of my favorite zen stories goes something like this:A university professor went to visit a famous Zen master. While the master quietly served tea, the professor pontificated about Zen, holding himself forth as an expert on the topic. The master poured the visitor’s cup to the brim, and then kept pouring. The tea spilled
…mamma in her kerchief and I in my cap had just settled our brains for a long winter’s nap… ~Clement Clarke MooreSome of you might recognize that line from the poem ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas. As children we were focused, of course, on the visit from St. Nick with his bottomless bag of toys.
A Long Winter’s Nap Read More »