Foolish, later

A late night toilet trip
And I return to the zoo
Snores, grunts, groans, wheezes
Reverberate up and down the space
Beneath the Cosmic Buddha's smile
As I too smile and return to sleep


[25 Nov 2007]

Foolish

Upstairs people
Toss and turn restless
As a loud snore
Fills the space
But I stand
At the window
Gazing outside
To the bright moon
And the Evening Star
With a foolish grin
And a heart full of joy


[24 Nov 2007]

No joke!

The moon is out again
As the clouds race by
It's bright light
Pierces right through
Direct to my eye
While the cold wind blows
As I pause in the cloister
To compose a short poem


[24 Nov 2007]

What Question?

An honoured monk suggests I
Might have an interesting
Question or two
But really what else
Is there to ask
Besides how to solve
The Great Matter
And this bothersome “I”?


[24 Nov 2007]

Evening walk

The bright moon
Accompanies me

Whispers to me
Softly, so peacefully

Then suddenly I see
A handful of stars

Sending a spark
Straight to my heart

As joy bubbles up
With a grin!


[23 Nov 2007]

Intimate

Cutting squashes
My mind drifts
And I cut
Nanquan's cat* instead
Suddenly, awareness
Brings me back
Intimate with
Cutting squashes


[22 Nov 2007]
*Book of Serenity, Case 9: Nanquan Kills a Cat

Revealing

Cutting pumpkins
Squashes actually
Scooping the seeds out
Revealing a heart shaped space


[22 Nov 2007]

Under the stars

Shining points of light
Cutting through the night

Right into my heart
The joy of being awake
Tonight!


[15 Nov 2007]

The Abbey Bells

I light the altar candles
in the early morning gloom
And then the abbey bells
from a mile or two away
penetrate the room

Or do they ring within my mind?
As we practice awakening
Together, the bells and I


[31 Oct 2007]

Surrender (Awake 2)

And yet this morning
There is something so
Calm and refreshing
Tender and intimate

Relaxing and surrendering
To the touch and the feel
Of the crashing cold
Water on my face


[26 Oct 2007]

Awake

Standing in the shower cubicle,
I press the button.
A sudden torrent of cold water
Greets me,
Drenching me in shock!

Reassuring thoughts babble on;
That soon the water will be warm.
But they are powerless against
The sheer physicality of being awake,
In the shocking cold water

And then the warm water comes,
Bathing me, embracing me.
My body drinks it in,
With deep appreciation
And awareness

Ahh!


[01 Oct 2007]

6:15am Friday

A gentle pattering
As the breeze laps
At the poplar tree
On this dark Autumn morning


[28 Sep 2007]

Self-centred

I vow to delivery innumerable sentient beings

And yet

While there is an “I”
There will always be

Suffering


[06 Sep 2007]

Impermanent

All things
come

To pass
away


[06 Sep 2007]

Arriving

The days may pass slowly
Doing very little
But the years pass swiftly
Filled with events

Ages I once talked about
As distant as the planets
Now just around the corner
Awaiting my arrival


[02 Sep 2007]

A Silly Poem

Sunday morning
and the rain pours down
the patio starts to flood
and we add the numbers up
write the letters in a row
homework's all done!

Start to cook lunch
and my mind begins to wonder
what she's doing now
down the other end of there
far away from here
and yet also close somehow

Staring at her photos
for far too long last night
sharing broken languages
and insights into living
laughing at ourselves
as we both turn into pumpkins

This funny silly sparrow
landing in my life
via msn and skype
touching down upon my desktop
causing endless smiles
and not a little strife!


[18 Nov 2007]