Seasons of the Soul

Food for Thought

 

A man should never be ashamed to own that he has been in the wrong, which is but saying that he is wiser today than he was yesterday.
  ~Alexander Pope
                 ~~~~~~~~
There’s a worm addicted to eating grape leaves.
Suddenly, he wakes up, call it grace, whatever,
something wakes him, and he’s no longer a worm.
He’s the entire vineyard,
and the orchard too,
the fruit, the trunks,
a growing wisdom and joy
that doesn’t need to devour.
                          ~Rumi

Parting the Veils

Breaking waves crash
on the shore
Tension brimming
Veils are thinning
Tides are changing
But what for?

Walking through the
labyrinth maze
Anguished people in a haze
Looking for a daily fix
Where none is to be had

Alteration, altercation, liberation
Tiny granules forming sand
Tension brimming
Veils are thinning
Eternal law - supply/demand

Some will reap
and some will sow
Amidst the chaos
flowers grow

The soul does bloom
in light of day
But through the dark
the angels play
and people pray
and life gives way

Tension brimming
Veils are thinning
For Heaven is at hand'

~KJ

  Hopi Prayer
 
Do not stand at my grave and weep.
I am not there, I do not sleep.
I am a thousand winds that blow.
I am the diamond glints on snow.
I am the sunlight of the ripened grain.
I am the gentle Autumn's rain.
When you awaken in the morning hush,
I am the swift uplifting rush
of quiet birds in circled flight.
I am the soft stars that shine at night.
Do not stand at my grave and cry;
I am not there, I did not die

* * * * * *

A Love Song to God

Oh, great Spirit...you are the wings of love...
 
You are the fulfillment of our lives and the filler of our dreams
 
It is your Will that we desire...
It is your vision for us that we aspire
We ask you to ennoble us on this path
 
Help us see our own beauty and goodness so that we might be that and receive that from others.
 
And on a personal note, we ask you to guide us and to watch over our loved ones and friends who are in the midst of turmoil or travail...
 
Bring your light to them, and wrap us all in your sheltering arms of love
 
Amen.

Miracles

Why, who makes much of a miracle?
As to me, I know of nothing but miracles,
Whether I walk the streets of Manhattan,
Or dart my sight over the roofs of houses towards the sky,
Or wade with naked feet along the beach just in the ledge of the water
Or stand under the trees in the woods,
Or talk by day with any one I love, or sleep in the bed at night with any one I love,
Or sit at table at dinner with the rest,
Or look at strangers opposite me riding in the car,
Or watch honey-bees busy around the hive of a summer forenoon,
Or animals feeding in the fields,
Or birds, or the wonderfulness of insects in the air,
Or the wonderfulness of the sundown, or of stars shining so quiet and bright,
Or the exquisite delicate thin curve of the new moon in spring,
These with the rest, one and all, are to me miracles,
The whole referring, yet each distinct and in its place.
To me every hour of the light and dark is a miracle,
Every cubic inch of space is a miracle,
Every square yard of the surface of the earth is spread with the same,
Every foot of the interior swarms with the same,
To me the sea is a continual miracle,
The fishes that swim - the rocks - the motion of the waves - the ships with men in them,
What stranger miracles are there?

~Walt Whitman

Transformation

Oh, wondrous splendor!
Leaves as pages of our lives
falling into space of void,
fodder for renewal.

Needing nothing but the flask
for filling up the empty cider.
Stinging nettles, prickly pears...
Life’s rose amidst the thorns.

“Ah”...he cries, though vanquished by a distant foe.
Hark...the herald angels sing
 Hosanna...Oh, on High!
And so they hover...
Golden wingspan crossing wisdom’s gate.
   
“Is it too late?” the young man cries beside the road.
Never too late...Never too late.

The doors of heaven fling wide open
Bidding Welcome...
    
The Myth of Separation gone.
~KJ

Forgiveness Is the Cash

Forgiveness Is the cash you need.
All the other kinds of silver really buy                                  
Just strange things.
Everything has its music. 
Everything has genes of God inside.
But learn from those courageous addicted lovers          
Of glands and opium and gold—
Look,                                
They cannot jump high or laugh long                          
When they are whirling.
And the moon and the stars become sad                    
When their tender light is used for Night wars.
Forgiveness is part of the treasure you need                
To craft your falcon wings And return
To your true realm of Divine Freedom

From The Subject Tonight Is Love, 60 Wild and Sweet Poems of Hafiz                                            version by Daniel Ladimsky

A Kabir Poem

The flute of interior time is played whether we hear it or not,
What we mean by “love” is its sound coming in.                                                                  When love hits the farthest edge of excess, it reaches a   wisdom.
And the fragrance of that knowledge!
It penetrates our thick bodies,
It goes through walls—
Its network of notes has a structure as if a million suns were arranged inside.
This tune has truth in it.
Where else have you heard  a sound like this?

~Kabir

Angels

 

by Alix Taylor

Those creatures with

The lovely wings,

We call angels,

Do not need time.

They work on the instant.

They pick up God’s little

Telegrams and Immediately fly to

Our side to help us read them.

A Moment In Time

Hear the gentle rain now
Quietly calling out to you.
Listen to the pitter-pat
Of sweet rain anew.

Come smell the fragrance
Of a rose freshly blooming out;
Calling upon you to partake,
Of what life is all about.

See yonder Red-tailed hawk,
Mastering the skies.
Seeing all that lies below:
Nothing hidden from his eyes.

Look up! Behold the stars!
A part of you is there.
Walk peacefully upon your path
With a smile. Do not despair.

All around you is beauty,
In every bush and tree.
Awaken to the source of light
Forever residing within thee.

~Stanley Peele

Forgiveness Is the Cash

Forgiveness Is the cash you need.

All the other kinds of silver really buy                                  

Just strange things.

Everything has its music. 

Everything has genes of God inside.

But learn from those courageous addicted lovers          

Of glands and opium and gold—

Look,                                

They cannot jump high or laugh long                          

When they are whirling.

And the moon and the stars become sad                     

When their tender light is used for Night wars.

Forgiveness is part of the treasure you need                

To craft your falcon wings And return

To your true realm of Divine Freedom

 

From The Subject Tonight Is Love, 60 Wild and Sweet Poems of Hafiz                                               versions by Daniel Ladimsky