The Ultimate Hottie
Sometimes spiritual seekers seem like alcoholics,
And gurus like bartenders,
And sanghas like nightclubs,
And "God"... the Ultimate Hottie.
Alas... when satsang ends,
And the "high" wears off after a few days,
And the Ultimate Hottie stops returning our calls,
She seems nothing more than the Ultimate Tease.
Beside ourself with Grief and Longing,
We drink our way into oblivion,
And awaken, dawn after dawn,
In the arms of Maya.
Until... one morning,
Turning to gaze upon the face of Illusion,
We see, instead,
Our long lost Beloved.
It was Her all along,
Wearing Maya's makeup!
We were simply too drunk,
On the bartender's words.
---
Too Drunk To Dream Of More
I've read that the goal of this life,
Is to reach Union with the Divine,
Forsaking this world of separation,
And abiding Eternally in Her arms.
But I have Vanished in that Embrace,
The Heaven of Nonexistent Existence,
Only to find, upon the world's return,
That I Loved creation more than ever.
For The Beautiful One followed me,
From the Kingdom of Heaven,
A stowaway in the Heart of my Being,
When the world, and I, returned.
I find myself now, ever confounded,
For I am individuated, but not separated,
Blessed by Her Perfect Residence,
In this residence, most imperfect.
How can I long for Heaven, there, then,
When She Holds me, here, now,
And Resting in Her arms, I swoon,
Too Drunk to dream of more.
---
Where Is The Mind?
"Where is the mind?" asked another Heart, sitting next to me in The Tavern of The Beloved.
"He's off at the temple of learning, seeking knowledge and understanding."
I responded, taking a sip of Wine, eyes fixed upon the Face of The Beautiful Innkeeper.
"What knowledge will he bring, when at last he joins us?" the Heart friend queried.
He will say, "I Am."
"And how will you respond?" asked the friend.
I will say, "I Love."
---
The Beloved Could Not Refuse
Perhaps it is better that I am imperfect,
So far from sainthood's virtue,
For if the Beautiful One dwells here,
In this ramshackle hut, this crumbling ruin,
Is it not proof for others, imperfect,
Of Love's Unimaginable Grace?
Were I a saint, the jurists would declare,
But of course She dwells there,
For that temple has become sanctified,
Purified and brought to perfection,
Through a lifetime of spiritual disciplines,
And rigorous adherence to the law."
But it has not been so.
As it is, they are left scratching their heads,
For bound in legality, they cannot conceive,
How Love would transcend the rule of law,
And convey a beggar, poor in perfection,
But Rich with Longing and Sincerity,
To this Table, set by the Cup Bearer.
They cannot conceive that when I cried,
With the Whole of my imperfect Being,
For a Love beyond cause or condition,
Beyond prerequisite or requirement,
Beyond perfection and imperfection,
A Love beyond all dualities...
The Beloved could not refuse.
---
The Mind Still Wonders
Oh, the mind still wonders,
About the unfathomable mystery of life,
Even though the Whole of Being,
Is Drunk on The Beloved's Wine.
It still revels in contemplation about,
In deep consideration of,
In profound meditation upon,
But now... like an enchanted child.
Oh, it still desires to know,
But no longer "struggles" to do so,
No longer "needs" as it did, before,
The fruition of concept and theory.
For The Question has been Answered,
Not in thought, word, or concept,
Not in knowledge or understanding,
For nothing is known, nothing understood.
The Question has been answered,
In the Living Presence, Here, in form,
Of the Soul's formless Ecstasy Revealed,
Shining in dualities, beyond dualities.
And still... the mind Wonders.
---
She Whispered
A voice said...
"For you, of all people, there is no hope,
Of experiencing The Beloved's Embrace,
For scripture declares, She cannot touch the 'unclean'."
And She whispered...
"Your tears have washed away clean and unclean."
A voice said...
"For you, of all people, there is no possibility,
Of surrender, of vanishing in Union beyond dualities,
For you are shackled, bound in servitude to your self."
And She whispered...
"The key of Unbearable Longing has freed you."
A voice said...
"Of all Hearts, yours can never be,
The dwelling place of The Beautiful, The Radiant One,
For Her Perfection cannot abide in such corruption."
And She whispered...
"Your Heart, Surrendered in Love, has made you Holy to me."
So many voices have spoken...
So many words, with firm authority, citing scriptures,
Words that break the Heart, and wound the spirit,
"She will Love you only if, only when, only after."
And She whispered...
"These legalists know nothing of Love."
Whispering again...
She made vanish the one who would be judged,
And left the remnants of that imperfect self,
Filled with Her Perfume.
---
Drown Here
"Drown Here," She pointed, ushering,
"For the Water of your Soul is of the Ocean you seek,
In every drop, the Whole of the Ocean, Complete."
"In your very Essence, the Heart's Desire Fulfilled."
---
Where Have You Been?
At the time, it seemed horrific,
But looking back now...
I cherish the day I failed,
Inadequate, Incapable,
The day I was Defeated,
Utterly, Completely,
The day I abandoned forever,
All hope of victory,
And Surrendered,
Falling where I stood,
Only to find...
In the ashes of Catastrophe,
The face of The Beloved,
And Her Beautiful Voice, sighing...
"Where have you been?
I've been waiting."
---
A Different Place
This Fullness, Completion, and Bliss,
Does not exist in the realm,
Of ever-changing conditionality,
The ever-changing weather of manifestation.
Although it Shines into that realm.
This Fullness, Completion, and Bliss,
Has nothing whatsoever to do,
With "becoming" this or that,
With "doing" or "not doing",
Nothing to do with "changing",
With "perfecting",
With starting or stopping,
With "when" or "if".
This Fullness, Completion, and Bliss,
Exists in a... "different place".
Within which, from which, as which,
Lover and Beloved arise.
The Wellspring of The Heart.
And although Unmoved, Impenetrable,
Untouched by the ever-changing nature,
Of this Dream of Heaven and Hell,
This Fullness, Completion, and Bliss...
Illumines that Dream of opposites...
From a Different Place.
