The goal of Brahman's nature to attain -
Existence-Knowledge-Bliss, Abode Supreme -
we must become That what we seek to gain,
through waking up from time's hypnotic dream.
Achievement, leaving nothing to achieve,
Pure Knowledge, leaving nothing to be known,
Eternal Home, impossible to leave,
Sheer Seeing, leaving nothing to be shown.
Yet though each atom carries Brahman's Name,
like necklace wed to gold and pot to clay,
we lose ourselves in Maya's futile game,
renouncing Bliss of Sun as mortal ray.
When pitfall of "becoming" is not seen,
forgotten That what we have always been ...
Author notes
inspired by Sri Shankaracharya's "Atmabodha" verse 54 :
"Realize that to be Brahman the attainment of which leaves nothing more to be attained, the blessedness of which leaves no other bliss to be desired, and the knowledge of which leaves nothing more to be known."
http://www.sankaracharya.org/atmabodha.php
In a list
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Comments
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My goodness, maa. Your poetry is so full of truth and, and is the very essence of all things beautiful. Once again I encounter a mention of the hypnotic dream of forgetfulness. I love your poetry, dear friend, and never tire of reading the expression of your pure heart.
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HOODWINKED!
Again, I have to expound on your limitless talent for "weaving words" in such exquisite phrasing that the reader is captivated from beginning to end. If this were in a contest, there would be no argument as to which poem should received GOLD: it would be this one hands down.
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I feel so blessed to receive such caring resonance from a fellow poetess ... thank you so much, dear bonnie ... english is only my second language,
and if some of my verses are pleasing, it must be a higher force who deserves the merits
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much love,
maa
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So profound
When I can write like you I will be content
David XX -
You are a sage onto us here....
I feel the wisdom of your words seep their truth into my veins. The instinct to abtain, to be able to show these higher goals in physical manner leads to a well-fed ego, not much more. Again, you remind us that a divine life is one of change, acceptance and learning. Blue
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maa
Respected maa
The word 'Atma' has a pun:
1. Atma= self, onself.
2. Atma= 'soul','spirit'.
Bodha= comprehension
Thus Atma- Bodha= 1.Comprehension of oneself, Comprehension of one's self, 2. comprehension of the soul, the spirit or the spark/spirit of life.
Both are very difficult.
Well your diction is reminiscent of the ancient Indian sages, worthy of worsip.
Kudos to you
Hemant Vinze -
Your poem reminds the reader that there is a specific purpose for everyone on Earth. In my understanding, that purpose is to serve the Lord with gladness. If indeed we follow that narrow pathway, and do all things with lovingkindness, we can avoid the "pitfall" of self, and selfishness.
Your sonnet is graciously written, and makes me glad to know that I have "always been". Exquisite work! Very spiritual and soul revealing.
I am Not proficient in iambic pentameter but I know a beat when I read one and your poem surely has that sonnet cadence.
Much LOVE Always ♥
Renee
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I just knew that I would receive a perfectly structured and metered sonnet in our contest when I learned that you were writing for us. By writing a poem of spirituality reflecting that there is nothing more to gain the poem its self is written in a perfection that leaves the reader with nothing more to be gained.
Penned in perfect decasyllable and meter this poem flows beautifully. I love the traditional start of the Volta as you used the word “Yet”, it prepares the reader to open his/her mind in a new direction. Thank you for helping to make our contest a success by composing a classic masterpiece. Good luck in our judging.
Love,
Amera♥
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I haven't read your sonnets for a while, and this one is more peaceful than some of yours I recall. It is as though you have resolved the conflict between consciousness and conscience that seemed to be the theme of those I last read.
As is expected of all your work, the rhyme and flow of this poem comes through in flawless form while engaging our minds with its content and message. I enjoy the hopefulness and purpose expressed here in straightforward though image filled verse.
This reminds me of the Apostle Paul speaking of growing mature in the love of God and one's fellow creatures when he says, "Now we see but a poor reflection; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known." (I Corinthians 13:12 NIV)
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you are a great observer and a wise man, ben ...
thank you so much for your precious and honest feedback on both form and content of this sonnet ... let's see if there are still traces of conflict left in me, they will certainly show up at one moment or another ... and I shall welcome them like friends, allowing them to return to the light from which they once manifested ...
thank you as well for the wonderful quote from the scriptures ...
it is beyond precious ...
maa
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Great! I love the lines:
Yet though each atom carries Brahman's Name,
like necklace wed to gold and pot to clay,
AND
When pitfall of "becoming" is not seen,
forgotten That what we have always been
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thank you for your kind visit, emptyslate ...
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the essence
dear maa, your poem really carries the perfume of the essence in beautiful words. the goal, the path and the obstacels all are the ultimate . Nothing is outside.
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thank you for your joyful visit on these pages, ingrid
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your lucid words truly enlighten the meaning of this poem even further ...
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oh totally by the time we become we got no place to go because were there but while were becoming we can become anything
we must become That what we seek to gain,
this line jumped on me and its totally true, greddy people become things but people who have clarity become great things
so awesome
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thank you for your precious feedback and sharing of your own wonderful perspective, dear elizabeth ... I hope you are well ...
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You have nailed it! When we are "becoming" we have goals, desires, expectations. Not the goals, desires, and expectations we were born with and given as a proper birthright, but those we acquire as our own selfish personal comforts. Once we loose those, we learn what goals, desires, and expectations we were given as gifts at birth and that by existing at all they are completely met. We have always known this, only we have become distracted by our selfish personal wants and desires. You say it in so much more lovely words than I can.
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dear allan,
as always, your comment adds some spices to my sometimes a bit abstract philosophical-poetic dishes ... thank you ! also, your down to earth elaborations not only speak a more simple and less ambiguous language that everybody can understand, but they contain also your authority, strength and particular presence that will push the right buttons in whoever comes your way ...
namaste -
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Thank you Marion, but I must confess that it is not any great accomplishment to be able to speak of such things. The truth is in the putting, so to speak. Living right is far more meaningful than speaking right. You have inspired me to write a short story now!
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Beautiful rhyme and flow, sweet sister. Sometimes the harder we strive to "become", to "attain", the deeper we bury ourselves in the web of illusion. As we awaken from our dream we find that "being" is the becoming which is the dance of Brahman's own awareness.
A sweet write, sweet sister,
Rahad
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my equally sweet brother,
thank you so much for gracing my page with your words of insight and wisdom that are a nourrishing fertilizer for the fragile saplings of our spirit easily shattered by the storm ...
I am forever grateful to have found you,
maa
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By awakening ourselves from complacency
we may allow ourselves to become
what we envision? Or perhaps I see
with a different lens as my mind
takes on the beauty of your words!
maa, the challenge, the mind
in search of meaning...
M-C
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my precious friend,
I'm afraid the mind can't grasp it ...
that's the whole deal ...
but the moment the mind's veil subsides, if only for a little while, we can see who we really are - and the good news is that we don't need to BECOME IT, we ARE IT already ...
I love the little story of a buddhist teacher (maybe it was even gautama, the historical buddha himself) and his disciple asking him : "master, what is enlightenment ?" and the teacher picking up a flower and holding it up.
and another one, of a zen-master and his pupil asking him : "master, what is zen ?" the master replies : "the cypres in the courtyard."
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Ah, yes, the teacher-pupil stories
are enlightening and fascinating.
Willing the veil to lift so I "am" IT. -
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and now that you SEE that you are it, you also see that there never was a veil ...
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Seeing/perception... -
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YES !!!
that's the right Eye for seeing ...
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I certainly could use my share of peace and contemplation. I guess I'd be willing to try anything that got me to a better place.
So thee is a state where nothing else can be attained? I'll never reach there.
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well, it's not really a state - more a non-state ...
and we can't really reach it - because we are IT already ...
how to say : like after having satisified one of your desires (for example you were craving for moxie and drank one bottle of it) ... it's not the moxie that has fulfilled your desire ... not the "object" moxie that has made you happy ... your satisfaction (probably in the case of moxie we can call it "bliss") is due to the absence of desire (of more moxie, in your case) ... enjoy that impermanent state as long as it lasts, it' s a glimpse into that "non-state" of desirelessness, of freedom from sense-object-based happiness ...
maybe now you'll say, I want MORE moxie, so you go drink 10 cans of the bliss-promising nectar ... with the result that you get really, really sick ... here, there is also an absence of desire (of more moxie in your case) and you'll probably say : no more moxie, never ever again, yuck !!! which might make you realize that moxie - much like all the other sense-objects - carry both "pleasure" and "suffering" within them ... the joy is short-lived and when the object is absent, suffering follows ...
in order to get out of that hell, one needs to discover his true nature that is Peace-Love-Bliss-Wisdom ... before we thought that those qualities were "objects" to be attained or obtained - but when we realize we ARE That what we were seeking for in the objective world of impermanence, all is well ...
we cannot BECOME what we already ARE ...
the most heartfelt blessings to you, my friend - and by the way, I love your new avatar and believe it or not, I like your physical face very much !
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''in order to get out of that hell, one needs to discover his true nature that is Peace-Love-Bliss-Wisdom''
Or moderation.
Thanks, that was a genuinely interesting reply. Gives me a little window into a world I know nothing about. And thank you about my ugly mug. My friend Mariza and I once had a conversation a while back how friendly, etc your face was too.
Physical face...does that mean I have a non-physical one...oh my, this could get strange, lol
Thanks for the cool reply. -
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Physical face...does that mean I have a non-physical one..."
yes, your face-less face
and your "moderation" answer shows that you are already an enlightened buddha ... I told you !
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To be
simplicity sweet sister
what could be more perfect
the ease of being
so nice to read precious gems my friend
always an exceptional write
very lovely
God bless you...
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thank you for gracing this page with your precious smile, sister ...
I am happy that this simple message seemed to resonate within you ...
much love and many rainbow-blessings,
marion
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So heaven's supposed to be...
Best of luck in the contest! -
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thank you my friend ...
you are a wondrous lemon-tree growing blue flowers ...
I always knew you were special ...
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I'm undoing the knot of the final couplet, but your sonnets continue to delight me.
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how about cutting it ?
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So profound
Ever line of this poem is so full of power and wisdom. These lines should be absorbed into 'Being', Then ever becoming would Become,- 'Are This'!
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I see the lion is not sleeping but wide awake ! both literally and metaphorically ... thank you for your truly enlightening and profound comment ... I always enjoy the comments more than my original poem, especially when they spring from such luminous sources of wisdom as yours ...
namaste -
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Thankyou most sincerely
As you have said, 'even a parrot can repeat,- 'I am That'. I could say to you that I have written these words because I am standing on the shoulders of Giants! But even that would not be true, more like, I am the dandruff on the shoulder of Giants. But I love your page and your poetry, it is inspirational. You make me realise what is possible, thankyou
David XX -
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your words spring from humility, david ...
and the "dandruff on the shoulder of giants"-metaphor reminds me of a great story of a master who had sent out his disciple who was eager to realize the Self, asking him to find somebody inferior to himself, the student ... many years passed and - to make a long story short - one day the student saw his own excrements and thought he had finally found something inferior to him ... but when he bent down to them, the pile of feces said to him : "you think you are superior to me, ha ? but look at me : yesterday I still was a perfumed mango-fruit, and after meeting you, that is what I have become !!!" needless to say that at that moment, the student realized his true nature on the spot ... having realized his no-thingness, his all-one-ness became evident ...
also, my husband's teacher jean klein, used to say : "go on and pretend to be That - until you know for sure that you ARE That."
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maa
Don't you just love these old master pupil stories, I could listen to them all day
Have you heard the one which teaches us to live in the present moment, which goes as follows
There was a very wise master who was about to die and all of his followers gathered around his death bed to here his final words of wisdom. As a special treat, one of them had baked his favourite cake as a last meal. As the master was eating the cake and his disciples leaned forward to hear his final words of wisdom, he was heard to say, 'This cake is delicious', then he died
David XX -
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yes I do love those a lot ... have a couple of zen-story-books in my shelf, those are my favies ... the one you shared here is truly delicious ... like the cake must have been ...
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