Saturday 16 October 2010

Buddha on The World


Ingredients:
Sayings of Buddha on "The World".
Rendered in haiku form.

This is thirteenth in the series.

The image is "Gates of Dawn" by Herbert Draper. I imagine the acronym of the title is no coincidence. The painting represents the goddess of the dawn.


Directions:
Noble and mindful,
Don’t get caught up in this world
Of petty wrong views.

Pay respect to all,
Treat all in equal measure
And observe the law.

Practicing the way
Brings happiness to this world
And joy far beyond.

Look upon this world
As if it were a bubble
And you its dreamer.

See how the finery
Of this world thrills the senses.
Do not get attached!

In the royal train,
While fools flounder in its wake,
The wise are unmoved.

A master’s waking
Is like when the moon comes out
From behind a cloud.

When the unmindful
Become mindful, their insight
Shines forth on the world.

Wake from ignorance,
Overwhelm evil with good,
May you too shine forth!

How few see clearly!
Like birds in a hunter’s net,
How few can escape!

The wise are like birds
Who see through illusion’s net
And fly to heaven.

Swans fly through the air,
Magicians travel through space,
Masters leave the world.

One who breaks the law
And lies with impunity
Will balk at nothing.

Fools do not rejoice
In charity of others,
So they lose heaven.

The wise give freely
In charity and in joy,
So they find heaven.

Better than heaven,
Or to rule supreme on earth,
Is enlightenment.

6 comments:

  1. Thanks for dropping by!

    Another painting I thought of using for this is Hacker's "The Cloister and the World" with a woman dancing in the background, another in a visionary trance.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Loved this part in particular...


    The wise are like birds
    Who see through illusion’s net
    And fly to heaven.

    Swans fly through the air,
    Magicians travel through space,
    Masters leave the world.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thanks Nancy!

    My favourite part was...

    "Look upon this world
    As if it were a bubble
    And you its dreamer."

    As if... not that it is...

    I've made a white background to my posts now, so hopefully it's easier to read?

    ReplyDelete