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SITTING
It is onlyin the deep stillnessand silenceof zazenthat the wordsof the Dharmaresound loudest From the cushionsamadhi ariseslike a Phoenixtakes wingand with the final bellall to oftenflies off mindlesslyand it’s goneuntil the next sitting.
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POWER
In my dreams, I haveinfinte power and a hintof omniscience one minuteand am impotent, deafand dumb the next,and there is no predictingwhich moment willbe which or whena shift will suddenly happen. I generally stay outof trouble, and when disasterlooms, and I am powerless,I can awaken, resetthe projector and try again,although I do havea nagging fear…
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UMMON’S THREE DAYS 鐵笛倒吹 六十八
What were you doingthree days agoand what will you dothree days from now.Are you the same person nowas you were, will be? While your face in the mirrorKoanseems much the sameeach day you die a biteach day you are reborn.A thousand daysa thousand yearsa passing moment,how do they differ? A reflection on Case 68 of…
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NEEDLE
She tells me I should rest,that I need convalescent time,but I want to tell her, “why,it isn’t like they stuck a needlein my eye, so why rest?” butit actually is just that, but the restof my body is none the worsefor the wear on my face,and it hurts less when Iam doing something otherthan thinking…
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POSSIBILITY
It is quite possibleI had seen you beforein the hallway perhaps.I hope I smiled,I assume you did.Neither of uscould have imaginedit would one daygrow into love.
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HOLY ARMY
1. A millennium agothe army of the lorddressed in mail and rodeproud steeds acrossbarren lands, swordsflashing in a red roasting sunwashed in the bloodof the infidels.They stopped for prayerblessing the bodiesleft along the dirt trackleft by their hooves,a common gravefor common facesdiffering only in the colorof skin and hair. 2. In this millenniumthe army of…
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WAITING, STILL
I stood on the cornerwaiting patiently for you. It seemed like hours. It was probably minutesbut Einstein was rightabout relativity also. You never arrived,but I hadn’t expectedyou to do so, that wasthe nature of us. I will wait againin two weeks. Same corner as usual,but an hour earlier. You will not show upand will offer…
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NOT YOU, NOT NOW
The cat ignored him totally this morning. She wouldn’t give him the time of day if she could have told time. It was surprising, and for him it was painful. He loved the cat, and he thought the cat loved him. Once he thought he saw her sneer but he knew cats did not do…
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WOODEN PILLOW 鐵笛倒吹 六十
If, sitting at your mealyou hear the song of a bird,what do you do?You may tap your chopstick rest,and perhaps he will answerand repeat his sweet song.If you tap a second timeand there is only silenceis the bird rejecting youor offering his song to another,flown from your window. Perhaps you should tap againand hear the…
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CAPACITY
It is not that I am gettingforgetful as I grow older, it ismerely that I am replacingold information with new,my mind is large butits capacity is still finite. So if I forget your namewhen I see you, it is notbecause you do not matter,although that could be the case,it is simply that I nowremember the…