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dochong

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wooden idols?


a wooden Buddha sits quietly on the altar
reminding the sangha to be patient and diligent
a wooden Virgin Mary stands behind the pulpit
reminding the parishioners to be compassionate and pure
a wooden Cross graces the wall above the podium
reminding the congregation
of the great sacrifice and suffering.
some would say there is a difference,
that images of people are pagan idols.
some would say they are all only wooden images
and ultimately they are the same.
the same or different, this is the dilemma,
don’t get trapped, your thinking will kill you.
neither of these are correct
pay attention, wake up
Buddha and the Virgin Mary are smiling
the wooden cross has two perpendicular lines.
how may I help you, today?
December 18, 1996
Hae An Soen Won
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Poem for Kathy Daul

poem for K. D.


vast blue cloudless winter sky
empty and void this morning,
true nature revealed.
your azure blue eyes are sometimes like this.
some mornings the fog is very thick and cold.
other mornings the low grey clouds hang dense and dark;
but, the sky is always the same.
just like this true nature is always there,
sometimes manifest—sometimes obscure.
how silly to chase our problems and ideas,
are they not just clouds that have appeared by themselves
and will disappear with no intervention?
how many mornings—forgetting the sky?
how many times—ignoring true nature?
the blue mountains are looming in the distance.
somehow  laughing at our frailty
their message is clear.
hurry up!
but, be gentle along the way.
January 11, 1996
Beach Blvd.—Huntington Beach, CA
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Kathy Daul

every shining thing

“inside this box
is a gold chain and pendant
which says Buddha in Chinese,
it is there to remind
you of your true-self
always and everywhere.”
a cool breeze is in the air,
birds begin to fly south.
flowers of spring beginning to recede.
a smile is on my face.
what a miracle—breathing each moment.
38 years have passed before today.
autumn is approaching,
bodies grow old and weary,
but our true self is constant and pure.
the sky is grey in the morning,
crickets chirping every evening.
Zen Master Lin Chi once said;
“gold is a very precious thing,
but if gold dust gets in your eyes
it clouds the vision.”

October 10, 1995
Happy Birthday Kathy
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flight 851




kwan-se-um-bosal,
kwan-se-um-bosal,
kwan-se-um-bosal.
the 737 shakes and rattles
breaking ground at dawn.
morning mist and fog
obscures the sometimes
sharp edge at the horizon.
moments like these
bring me face to face
with my own mortality.
yesterday’s despair and loneliness
give way to joyful anticipation.
the grey earth and blue sky
meet at this fuzzy
pink and red juncture.
leaving dallas behind
the sun rises in the east,
as popping ears
constantly change the pitch
of the droning engines
and the hiss
of the air conditioned wind.
January 20, 1996
Over Central Texas
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subtle form


a subtle form which defies explanation.
there is a place that we each can go,
a shelter beyond the mundane existence
that seems to rule our lives.
it is the existence of eternity,
it is the face of infinity
that we fear.
yet this infinite presence
is with us each moment
and with each breath that we take.
I can see it in the shadows
of the large eucalyptus trees,
and I can hear it in the echo
of the albatross' song,
I can feel it in the warmth of the
mid-day sun against my skin,
it is timeless,
it is breathless,
it is beyond thought
and beyond understanding.
and yet you know
of what I speak
is true
and tangible
in this world of great illusion.
it is the name
of the nameless,
and the face
of the faceless.
and yet our lives
spring forth from it
every second that we breathe.
I can't define it,
or you or me
in the quantum physics
of a universe gone mad,
and yet I am simple
and present
and beyond any concept
that I had a moment ago.
but concepts are many
and our ideas become rampant,
it is in the quiet time of this peace
that overcomes me like a wave,
I don't ask for it,
I only know of it
I can't say it
or know it
or hold it in my hands.
but I know full well
with my entire existence,
that what I speak of exists
in a tangible way.
there is doubt
and there is belief
but what I have is faith
beyond measure.
it is borne on the wings
of a truth built on now.
and in this now
lies the entire cosmos
laid bare for all of us to see.
it is here
and not someplace else
that we come to find ourselves.
and in that instant
that we find it
then we know who we are,
and our loved ones
and our cherished ones
are safe
and protected from harm.
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earth

the earth brings life
and grounds us within
her loving embrace
and bears her fruit
for all to share in abundance.
the wind carries aloft
on the breezes of spring
the seeds of existence
and the birds of the air.
the fire of our passion
and the fire of heat
gives life and expression
to our simple human existence.
the water of this world
is the universal solvent
and washes away both
the soiled and misguided intent.
the elements of life
are actually all one
it is merely our thoughts
that separate them into pieces
that life presented whole.
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world union


we are in the midst
of a world in union
and the separation of thought.
do we see an image,
or do we exist in the moment?
there is no outside
nor is there a tangible inside,
yet we make this
and it has somehow
come to exist
as our world of thoughts.
there is a dance
in which we circle
round and round
till we come back
to the place
where we began.
humanity is the essence
running through all
of our veins,
so why call others by a name?
if we must
use a name,
just call you me;
and know that
I am you.
love is like the
transcendent blue sky,
ideas are merely
clouds forming
and dissipating
in the clear azure sky.
the sky is always present
and never denies
the clouds from forming,
yet when the clouds must leave
the sky is never holds on.
be the sky
and let the misty places pass
of their own volition.
be as the unborn essence
of your original existence
within the timeless grace
of the dance.
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perfection


there are moments
when life seems so perfect
and life is grand and wide
and for all of eternity
there is this kiss
on our cheek
that lets us know
that love is the place
of sanctity and grace.
it is within your eyes
that the universe
in its vast transparency
is allowed to yield
its only bless’d treasure.
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an answer


the ultimate question always becomes
what am I or what is this?
no answer and surely no reply
can ever touch the depth
beyond a simple not knowing mind.
experience
outside of thinking—
acknowledgement
without cognitive process—
realization
functioning on its own—
thinking becomes subservient
to our actual awareness…..
don’t stress
just be
and allow
your true self
to shine forth
with no intervention
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returning


should the universe
return in upon itself
or our happiness
strain at the trials of life,
the brilliant illumination
of the jewels within our
body house–
contained in that sacred
heart shrine of equanimity,
we have vowed
to cherish this love
which came from god–
and of which no thought
could ever hold its true majesty–
by eternally nourishing
the constant flowing forth
is our lifetime of passion,
tenderness, and friendship.
the price of our hearts
is the debt we must repay
to Vishnu or whatever god
was there to witness the
sanctified bless’d union.
valuing the we
and nullifying the ‘I’
love is the world
that we inhabit.
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