Sunday, 31 October 2010

Buddha on Impurity


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

This is eighteenth in the series.

The image was originally
"Salomé" by Gaston Bussière, then changed to "Circe offering the Cup to Ulysses" by John William Waterhouse and now back to Salomé, but a different painting: "The Apparition" by Gustave Moreau.


Directions:
Like a withered leaf,
Death draws near to take you far,
And what will you take?

In the autumn breeze,

Death’s messengers are at hand,
So are you prepared?

Fashion of your self

A lamp and a refuge. Quick!
Strive hard and be wise!

When your lamp shines out,

Free from all impurity,
You’ll reach the pure realm.

Time runs short till death

And death yields no resting place,
So are you prepared?

Fashion of your self

A lamp and a refuge. Quick!
Strive hard and be wise!

When your lamp shines out,

Free from all impurity,
You’ll die never more.

One breath at a time,

As one who cleanses silver,
The wise cleanse themselves.

Step by step, gently,

Slowly, each moment, practice
Alchemy of heart.

Don’t indulge too much

In food, clothes, shelter or drugs,
The world’s attachments.

Exposed to the world,

The heart of man rusts like iron
In the elements.

As rust formed from iron

Corrodes the iron that formed it,
Man’s wrongs corrode him.

Learning’s tarnished by

Not reciting, like a house
That is not maintained.

Beauty’s tarnished by

Idleness, like a watchman
Who is unmindful.

The world is marred when

Women lack dignity or
Men lack charity.

But the greatest flaw

Of this world is ignorance.
By Truth, be flawless.

Life’s easy for one

Shameless, brash and insulting,
Fearless as a crow.

Life’s hard when one feels

Shame to be modest and pure,
And sees what is right.

He who kills, lies, steals,

Commits adultery or drinks,
Digs up his own roots.

Listen and know this!

Lack of restraint is evil.
Greed and lust hurt you.

Faith and devotion

Move people to give, so smile
That others receive.

He who’s resentful

Of gifts offered to others
Breaks concentration.

Uproot resentment

And, day and night, you’ll build up
Great concentration.

No fire burns like lust,

No bond grips like hate, no net
Like illusion's net.

To see others’ faults

Is easy, but difficult
To see one’s own faults.

Confront your own faults.

Before you winnow others’
In the wind like chaff.

Men spot others’ faults,

Yet they camouflage their own
Like wily huntsmen.

Do not dwell upon

Nor rail against others’ faults,
Or you soil your way.

The way is nowhere

In the heavens to be found,
Only in the heart.

The awakened’s Truth

Is the only path that yields
Noble perfection.

Most men love the bonds

That keep them back from the path,
But masters are free.

The way is nowhere

In the heavens to be found,
Only in the heart.

The awakened’s Truth

Is the only path that yields
Noble perfection.

All things rise and pass,

But the awakened master
Is ever awake.

1 comment:

  1. Most men love the bonds
    That keep them back from the path,
    But masters are free.

    The way is nowhere
    In the heavens to be found,
    Only in the heart.

    nice........

    ReplyDelete