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kumar ul islam
United Kingdom
791 Posts |
 Posted - Dec 20 2015 : 06:13:07 AM
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spinning tales about countless things
about darth vader and angels wings
climbing mountains with peaks so high
hearing the sound and touching bodhis sky
with many words his yarn is told
sometimes wise and sometimes bold
all in all the light he brings
surely makes the world dance laugh and sing
blessings  |
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Dec 20 2015 : 10:36:29 AM
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Yes!! That just made my day. Thank you, Kumar.
speaking in mystical tones, extracting the ancient knowledge, bestowing benevolent poetry
on the far side of the ocean, on the near side of divine presence
and everywhere in between
kumar walks and talks and writes with an outpouring of sturdy jewels
helping the world glisten with a little more sparkle |
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Dec 23 2015 : 6:12:08 PM
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this blue, spinning ball, with its perfect curvature, and its fragmented land masses that broke apart from one whole piece
this atmosphere of recycled fluid and air, constantly swapping elements and bargaining in the trenches
this playground for predators and prey alike—shaking and rumbling in the bowels of the underground:
blooming on the surface with full color, never limiting its audaciousness
you there, creature, do you unpeel your spongy feet from the naked ground
and strive to scale the mountain—looking down at death, unnerved by the threat of the end?
do you hang by the precipice of sharp rock so you can flex your muscles and mortality in triumph?
maybe the climbing pitch is done for the joy of the movement: the sheer gesticulation and poise of supremely conditioned limbs
i see sublime calmness emanating from your face as you scurry upward towards the inevitable summit
slow, calculating, confident, meticulous
your faith lies not in belief in a masculine God, but in the applied pressure of your precise effort and range of consciousness
no one made you;
you made yourself,
and i salute you for it. |
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Dec 26 2015 : 9:47:47 PM
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There is something deep inside of me that doesn't want to lose. It accepts loss as it comes, but the loss does not diminish the desire to win. There is this need to be completely fulfilled in a way that is undeniable and comprehensive. It seems like an impossible state of being to attain, but the aforementioned ancient impulse to achieve victory disregards the seemingly impossible obstacles that stand in the way. Well, they are not so easily disregarded at times, because they have to be confronted and gone through.
And then it occurs to me that I am the one who has set up the obstacles, and created the game. I am the one who has fashioned the rules and regulations, and made sure that there is a ridiculous abundance of territory to cover. Most of all, I set up the show so that neither I, nor anyone else, could not ruin the completion of the game.
Watson said to Sherlock: "What made you this way?" To which Sherlock replied: "Oh Watson, nothing made me this way. I made me this way."
It is the universal I. The I that precedes, intercedes, and supersedes all the little I's. The I of God. And you cannot sever that I from any other I. They are always connected, and cannot be broken apart absolutely.
As I discover myself, I discover you, simultaneously. And if you grow bored of me, you merely want a different angle, because we like to dabble in certain angles as we approach our self. Some angles are so compelling, and so distinct, that they gravitate and absorb other angles into their fold. Infinite angles are being polished and assimilated at all times. Like a diamond, the cuts are what defines the experience.
There is nothing sweeter and truer than the peculiarity of two reflections chasing each other to find their source. Desperately chasing each other to find what is bouncing off the mirror. At first, amused at the separation, then hellbent on closing the gap. The gap is what tortures souls. The gap is also what brings them together.
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kumar ul islam
United Kingdom
791 Posts |
Posted - Dec 27 2015 : 06:03:21 AM
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| The cloud of unknowing between us and God. |
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Dec 31 2015 : 03:00:51 AM
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And then it comes clearer that we are God.  |
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Dec 31 2015 : 03:52:32 AM
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I breathe out strongly from the nostrils and feel the exhale of air roll down my chest, abdomen, thighs, and knees. Much like water descends from the peak of a rolling river, my respiration zooms across the meniscus of my skin in a parallel sheet of oxygen-rich vapor.
This body is its own world, with its own terrain.
Whitman said that the body is not more than the soul, and the soul is not more than the body, and nothing, not even God, is greater than one's self is.
When the night air is glowing sparkly, and points of consciousness reveal themselves in meaningful color spread across space, I know then, that the light comes not from the sun or reflection of the moon, but from me, who am a sun and moon somehow, the same as any shred of the universal, living cloth interwoven into every fiber of being.
And beauty. Beauty in abundance. A bumble bee pollenates the receptive bud of a red flower; his furry body curls inward to cup the petals as he takes and gives simultaneously. Where is the paycheck for his labor? Who designed a barter system to sustain the continual exhanges, and how was the agreement reached?
"But I can still remember just the way you taste." |
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Charliedog
1625 Posts |
Posted - Dec 31 2015 : 06:03:26 AM
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orangesky
Germany
39 Posts |
Posted - Dec 31 2015 : 08:50:35 AM
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| Wonderful |
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Blanche
USA
859 Posts |
Posted - Dec 31 2015 : 6:57:56 PM
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| Wishing you new angles in 2016 - in practice and life! |
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Dogboy
USA
2201 Posts |
Posted - Dec 31 2015 : 11:24:48 PM
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| Cheers for years! |
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Jan 01 2016 : 12:07:48 PM
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Happy New Year! Charliedog! OrangeSky! Blanche! Dogboy!  |
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Dogboy
USA
2201 Posts |
Posted - Jan 01 2016 : 12:31:44 PM
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quote:
"But I can still remember just the way you taste."
...one of my all-time favorite song sentiments, btw... |
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Jan 06 2016 : 9:25:46 PM
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Every movement matters. Every word, every gesture, every intention and follow-through. There is nothing that is truly inconsequential. It all counts.
When Alex Honnold climbs free solo, the reality of life's perfect continuity is so apparent and undeniable. Why? Because any wrong move, any break in the fluidity of his animated, muscular poise—and he plummets to his death thousands of feet below. His faith lies in his own strength, and in the cause and effect of all conditions. Every action has a reaction; every motion sticks to a target.
Chasing stillness. That is what I do. Surrender to it, fight it, ask, demand, beg, roll over into the position where I can be in touch with the void.
I love memory...the way a mental picture can flash before my mind with such crisp lucidity. Like it was yesterday, as they say. I was having memories of living in San Francisco earlier. My wife and I drove all the way from Florida, with a car stuffed full of our basic belongings. We took our time, spending nights in Nashville, St. Louis, and a few small towns too.
Driving into San Francisco, after about a week of westbound travel, the Oakland Bay Bridge came into view like a cloudy vortex sucking us into the final destination looming on the Pacific Ocean. Crossing that expanse of steel girders felt so surreal, and there was a peaceful feeling about the final approach. It was the calm before the storm.
Experience is defined by the perception of granularity, which is the relative relationship of details within the whole. The more granules that can be detected, the finer the perception. Having done my share of dulling and blotting out chunks of continuity within my life experience, I now crave the granularity more than ever, and the return of refined awareness does not disappoint.
Language creates the landscape, just as much as it describes it. Numbers do the same thing, as do fundamental shapes. The design precedes the form, and then the form continues to learn from the design. |
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Jan 18 2016 : 12:07:17 AM
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Rhythm. What is it? It is beats repeated. It is notes strung together. It is stillness keeping tempo with the mood of the moment.
Perhaps I might be more specific.
It is a steel string being thumped and plucked in a repetitive pattern, resounding off a mahogany neck and a spruce body. It is an inner thought composed of words and desires, released in 15-second intervals, skipping across the placid lake of a calm mind. It is getting lost in the panoply of the interior world, and returning to the signature vibration we call the mantra.
It is putting the foot on the gas pedal, dodging and weaving through the flow of traffic at speeds in excess of what is legal. It is tugging at the the myofascia and enticing the tactile tension to become bliss. It is celebrating the ego, the sworn enemies, and the fairytale lovers, consecutively, in sequence, or even all at once.
It is the way to freedom. Now, catch me...if you can. |
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Dogboy
USA
2201 Posts |
Posted - Jan 18 2016 : 09:25:52 AM
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FREEZE!
...I didn't say Simon says... |
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Jan 18 2016 : 10:48:53 AM
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| Hehehe...well played! |
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Jan 27 2016 : 01:18:22 AM
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The rain is drizzling outside in the dark night, with the persistent hum of crickets matching the light sprinkle, and the occasional ribbit of a tree frog punctuating the drone of falling water and pulsing insects.
This diversity. This matrix of specimens. This memory bank of reproduction.
I'll be flying to L.A. this upcoming weekend. The workshop has been canceled, unfortunately, but there is still good reason to go, due to the presence of like-minded rascals. We might be sleeping in a tent on the beach. We might be visiting the headquarters of the Self-Realization Fellowship. We might stumble into a new den of bliss and genius, with any luck.
Forever craving, forever content. Vibrating smooth, and processing friction. Full of gratitude for the shelter before us. Full of nonstop desire to extend the empire to the farthest reaches of the earth, but for now, the front door will do.
Ambiguous enough to protect privacy. Specific enough to spark interest. In the middle...the tightrope beam of balance beckons.
Whitman:
I am the teacher of athletes,
He that by me spreads a wider breast than my own proves the width of my own,
He most honors my style who learns under it to destroy the teacher.
A prophecy. A distant whisper. A certain destiny. |
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sunyata
USA
1507 Posts |
Posted - Jan 27 2016 : 08:01:26 AM
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Have Fun in L.A! Sounds like lots of fun beach, camping and SRF. Can't get better than that.
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yogani
USA
5195 Posts |
Posted - Jan 27 2016 : 10:46:19 AM
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dv2014
USA
93 Posts |
Posted - Jan 27 2016 : 11:58:39 AM
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| The SRF temple and garden in Encinitas is a peaceful beautiful place, we visited it a few years ago. Enjoy your trip! |
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Jan 27 2016 : 9:49:53 PM
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| Thanks all! And thank you for the report, DV. Looking forward to check it out. |
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Charliedog
1625 Posts |
Posted - Jan 28 2016 : 03:53:01 AM
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 Enjoy! Walking in the footprints of Yogananda...... |
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Jan 28 2016 : 11:05:56 AM
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| ...yes, I need to absorb some of his purity through my feet. |
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Bodhi Tree
2972 Posts |
Posted - Jan 29 2016 : 03:42:07 AM
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The thick syrup of Cat Power's sultry voice pours in through my ears, and she sings: "Once I wanted to be the greatest. No wind or waterfall could stall me, and then came the rush of the flood...stars at night turned deep to dust."
She is Southern. I've watched interviews of her on YouTube. She speaks delicately, timidly, thoughtfully. She is stunningly beautiful to me. And like many performers in the spotlight, she has struggled with addiction. Of course, that only makes my love for her increase exponentially. So, I drop her name and image in stillness...and release...and release...and release.
As many times as it takes. For as long as it takes. Whatever it takes.
Desire = the strongest force in the universe. And love is desire. They are the same.
When I contemplate the scope of beauty now present on Earth, I possess approximately 0% doubt regarding the future of this blue, bulging planet. The future is paradise. The future is green, lush fertility rolling across the hills and adorning the landscape with geometric shapes, morphing forever into new fingerprints of curvature and chlorophyll and benign chemicals. And the toxic ones? Oh, they have their place, and their use, and their sacredness too.
Soaking in another song of Cat Power...she pines away with minimal piano backing her vocals:
"Oh, I do believe in all the things you say. What comes is better than what came before. And you better run run, run run to me. Better run, run run, run run to me. Better come, come come, come come to me. Better run..."
It is the softest demand I have ever heard. Who could turn her down? 'Tis futile to resist. The only viable option is to match her radiance with one's own.
As Whitman wrote: "Dazzling and tremendous how quick the sunrise would kill me, if I could not now and always send sunrise out of me."
Better slow down before I get lost in the stories. Not. ;-) |
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Journal of a Disgruntled Mystic
