Guest guest Posted February 13, 2009 Report Share Posted February 13, 2009 A week end Poem sent by courtesy of Ivan. His notes are interesting. An auspicious week end to all. We have a Ramana satsang in London tomorrow on THE NATURE OF THE MIND. Alan --- On Fri, 13/2/09, Poetry Chaikhana <ivan wrote: Poetry Chaikhana <ivan[Poetry Chaikhana] Kalidasa - WakingalanadamsjacobsDate: Friday, 13 February, 2009, 5:36 PM Here's your Daily Poem from the Poetry Chaikhana -- Waking By Kalidasa(350? - 430?) English version by W. S. Merwin & J. Moussaieff Masson Even the man who is happy glimpses something or a hair of sound touches him and his heart overflows with a longing he does not recognizethen it must be that he is remembering in a place out of reach shapes he has loved in a life before this the print of them still there in him waiting -- from East Window: Poems from Asia, Translated by W. S. Merwin Amazon.com / Photo by Stig Nygaard / ============ Thought for the Day: If you don’t occasionallymake a fool of yourself,you’re not fully alive. ============ Here's your Daily Music selection -- Deepak Ram Searching for Satyam Listen - Purchase More Music Selections Hi Alan -and his heart overflows with a longinghe does not recognizeI just love these lines. It reminds me of revelation I had around age 20 that really helped me through a lost, lonely period. It was a time when I felt this excruciating inner ache, a hole in myself, an empty space, with no idea how to fill it. Other people that age were busy with life: schoolwork, friends, dating, imagining their futures. But at that age I was struggling with a terrible void.But then I started really watching people. I wanted to watch all the "normal" people to figure out how I could be more like them. Then suddenly it struck me: No matter how "happy" one may be, everyone -- without exception -- has that same gaping hole in their life. Most people pour all of their energies into either filling it endlessly, and with the wrong things, or they cover it up, ignore it, avoid it through endless activity. That sort of happiness is brittle, all too fragile. Suddenly we glimpse something or "a hair of sound touches" us, and that empty space becomes unavoidable. The hunger, the longing overflows.I saw that the whole world is defined by that longing. And I also began to understand that I wasn't really different from everyone else. It's just that perhaps I found it more difficult to avoid staring at that uncomfortable question mark that sits at the center of everyone's life. That insight not only reassured me that I was fundamentally okay, it also gave me permission to feel compassion for people I used to quietly envy. Everyone, all of us, high and low, rich and middle class and poor, famous and infamous and obscure -- we're all struggling with that haunting hunger.But why? What is that hunger? Why is there a hole in the center of the world?To really know the answer, we have to stop looking away. We have to stop distracting ourselves. And we have to stop trying to fill it with petty things -- money, sex, fame.Turn and sit and just quietly look at that empty space. Get to know it. Learn its feel.Here's what I've discovered in my own exploration: That hole is exactly God-shaped.But there's an important corollary to that statement: God is not shaped like the cutout doll handed to us when we were children. The word "God" itself is too limiting, and is heavily layered with cultural assumptions. That's why I often use words like the Divine, the Eternal, the Real.The most important thing about that God-shaped hole: When we finally, truly, really see it, an amazing river of bliss pours through that hole and washes over us...==Boy, was that somber, or what? Ivan wakes up to an overcast Colorado morning, and this is what he gives us? ;-) I predict the sun will shine next week!Ivan Share Your Thoughts on today's poem or my commentary... New on the Poetry Chaikhana BlogIn addition to the daily poem, other recent blog posts include: Video - Inspiration - A fascinating, experimental animated short about the struggles and breakthroughs of the creative process. More Video & Music - Hendrix's Little Wing... on Ukulele - Comments (1) “Little Wing†was always my favorite Jimi Hendrix song. There’s something so dream-like to its words and soft groove... Well, this is not your typical version of Little Wing. Give it a listen. You’ll be surprised. More Lover & Beloved - 2. The Song of Solomon - Comments (9) Virtually every Christian and Jewish love poem, sacred and secular, in some way hearkens back to the Song of Solomon... More Donations to the Poetry ChaikhanaI want to send out a sincere thank you to each one of you who contributed some of your hard-earned money in the past couple of weeks:- Deb (ON), Eirene (CA), Maryann (CA), Emma (PA), John (Australia), John (CA), Patricia (CA), Leonid (Israel), Liz (BC), Linda (KS), Christa (CA)-No new monthly rsEach and every contribution makes a big difference in maintaining the Poetry Chaikhana.---A few reasons to consider making a donation of your own... Ivan is always purchasing poetry books in search of new poets and good translations. Your contribution helps expand the library. A voluntary monthly subscription doesn't need to be forever. You can cancel the automatic donation at any time -- and still continue to receive the daily poem. Save the sacred poets! 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Poetry Chaikhana HomeNew | Books | Music | Teahouse | About | ContactPoets by: Name| Tradition | Timeline Poetry by: Theme | CommentaryBlog | Forum | Video Channel www.Poetry-Chaikhana.com Poetry ChaikhanaP.O. Box 2320Boulder, CO 80306 Ivan M. Granger's original poetry, stories and commentaries are Copyright © 2002 - 2008 by Ivan M. Granger.All other material is copyrighted by the respective authors, translators and/or publishers. ============ Plain Text: If you have any difficulty reading this HTML formatted email, please let me know and I can send you plain text emails instead. Cancelling: If you wish to stop receiving this Daily Poem email from the Poetry Chaikhana, simply reply to this email and change the Subject to "Cancel". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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