some poetry
I’m not really one for poetry but came across some that I quite liked. Any more of your own… you’re welcome to post it here (even in HTML if you like).
One was in a comment that someone had left on Nipun’s site on the day he was about to leave for his trip to India. [ I’m wondering how many readers of his site had ever noticed it… 🙂 ]
V.I.B.G.Y.O.R.
Bang!! Bruised and shaken I lift myself up
And realise I had just walked into a wall.
I wasn’t seeing well enough, I suppose,
Or I would have seen it.
So I take a minute to look around
And notice it is surrounding me.
What? How? Really? NOOOOO!!!
How could it be? Impossible, I thought.
There must be a way out
But I don’t see any; until I look up.
Above me I saw sky, not blue,
But emanating colours of every hue.
Really!!! Wow!! Amazing!
But am trapped, with wall all pervading.
I scan the surface for a foothold
But find none except one.
One foot’s on and quickly off
For it’s shaky at best.
So I get down and look.
Closely.
And there I see what pleases me.
A Crack!!
"The brick is loose!!" I shout,
And try hastily to pull it out.
I pull and it’s off surprisingly
easy.
And on it is etched in stark relief
"Peace".
Stunned, I drop to my knees to look again
When out the corner of my eye
I see a beautiful light.
Violet.
Scouring for another crack
My hand quickly finds a gap.
Another brick is loose
And this one says "Fear"
I turn my face and catch the light.
Indigo.
Heart racing like a rocket
I drop the brick entranced.
A second ago it was Violet
And now it’s Indigo.
With footholds, not one but two,
I reach higher for another.
And out pops a third brick.
This one’s called "Hope".
I can scarcely wait to see the light
Which to my delight is crystal Blue.
My mind stretching more than my body
I reach once more.
Two bricks oblige me with their message,
One says ‘Joy’ and one ‘Sorrow’.
And the light? It was Green through one
And the other Yellow.
Up above the ground below
I stab once more for grip or hold.
This brick was smiling, unconcerned that
It said "Doubt".
I smiled back, bathing in the
Orange glow.
I knew there was one more
And sure enough there was.
Heart pounding like a flapping dove
I knew this one would say "Love".
And from behind it came this burning
Red.
I lost my foothold momentarily
And came down crashing.
Around me lay the unbound bricks,
My life in words before me.
Peace. Fear. Hope. Joy.
Sorrow. Doubt. Love.
And up above were seven rays
Of colour so special, I couldn’t help but gaze.
And then I heard a rumble,
That quickly changed to tumble.
Covering my face I realised
The wall was crumbling all around me.
But it was not the sound
But really the light.
I was so unprepared
For the sight.
And I just sank back, really low,
For I was in the middle of a rainbow.
——————————————————
Was reminded of that one after reading another poem from a friend Vikas recently:
As I am, so are all others
As I am, so are all others.
As I took birth, so did all others;
As I will die, so will all others.
As I feel happy, so do all others;
As I feel sad, so do all others;
As I develop ill will, so do all others;
As I develop compassion, so do all others;
As I hate, so do all others;
As I love, so do all others.
As I have many emotions, so do all others;
As I suffer, so do all others;
As I need love and happiness, so do all others.
As I can master my mind, so can all others;
As I can purify my mind, so can all others;
As I can be happy, so can all others.
May all others and I be happy;
May all others and I be peaceful and liberated;
Free from all mental impurities like anger and lust;
Free from all physical and mental suffering.
As I pray for myself, so I pray for all others;
As I realize that –
As I am, so are all others.
Author: Vikas Nagpal, A Vipassana Meditator
———-
Came across another amazing one recently…
The human school – daily reflection
You will receive a body
You may like it or hate it,but
it will be yours for the entire period
of this time around.
You will learn lessons.
You are enrolled in a full-time
informal school called Life.
Each day in this school
You will have the opportunity
To learn lessons. You may like
the lessons or think them irrevalant and stupid.
There are no mistakes, only lessons.
Growth is a process of trial and error: Experimentation.
The “failed” experiments are as much a part of the proccess
as the experiment that ultimately “works”.
A lesson is repeated – until learned.
A lesson will be presented to you
in various forms until you have learned it.
When you have learnt it, you can then
Go on to the next lesson.
Learning lessons does not end.
There is no part of life that
does not contain its lessons.
If you are alive, there are lessons to be learnt.
Others are merely mirrors of you.
You cannot love or hate
something about another person
Unless it reflects something
You love or hate about yourself.
What you make of your life is up to you.
You have all the tools and resources you need.
What you do with them is up to you.
The choice is yours.
Your answers lie inside you.
The answers to Life’s questions
Lie inside you.
All you need to do is
Look, listen and trust.
( i.e do vipassana —-:-) my interpretation ).
– Contributed by Dr. Harsh Mahajan.