This poem is based on an incident that happened in my school. The teacher mentioned in the poem is Mrs. Usha Raman who is the principal of the school I studied in Sankarnagar, Tirunelveli. If you join the first letters of all the lines, you will get the sentence, ‘Mrs. Usha Raman is my guru’.
Dear reader, don’t you love these rhyming lines
Of verses through which a mystic light shines?
These words are like a sailing antique ship
And their meaning is the sea for that trip!
Where are you racing to? My loving friend!
Trust me, those wild cravings don’t have an end;
The wealth within you is your grand kingdom;
My friend, there you can taste the true freedom!
Let yourself become a wise, living verse
That wears metaphors and flies to excurse;
Trust your heart! deep down, it does know the way;
Run in that direction, you’ll find the ray!
Don’t worry about what these people think;
Sing like the sparrows, dance, rejoice and drink!
It’s your road and yours alone; walk with joy!
Life is a drama and world is a toy!
The fruit of wisdom lies deep inside
the forest called mind,
behind the veils of its unconscious layers..
Deep inside the heart, it hangs in the
branches of the tree of love
that glitters with its aromatic flowers…
Thoughts, emotions, sensations and experiences
are the other trees in the forest…
As a hungry seeker, you begin to seek
that fruit of wisdom…
Along the way you eat
some fruits of pleasure that are sweet,
and some fruits of pain which are bitter..
You say, ‘not this!’, and move on, as you see
every tree and its fruits…
There are ups and downs on the way;
forbearing heat and cold, you keep seeking
the fruit of eternal wisdom!
At last, you taste it! and then,
only the taste remains…
Love is a journey from receiving love to giving love…
When you beg for love, it becomes a need;
When you crave for love, it becomes greed;
When you want to own someone’s love, it becomes a possession…
When you get addicted to someone’s love,
it becomes an obsession.
But when you discover that
the spring of love is inside your heart,
you will stop begging love
and start giving love…
Love is inside your heart;
once it is discovered as such,
it flows unconditionally
towards all directions and
to everyone,
just like the scent of aromatic flowers…
When you discover true love,
you will discover yourself;
When you discover yourself,
You will discover God…
God is love!
Your life is the most beautiful mystery
And the screen which plays your private history;
Your life is the truth, consciousness, and bliss
That can’t be pointed out as that or this.
The life screen is the only truth you know;
All that are manifest move in its show;
This essence of life is your true nature;
Knowing this ends the distress and torture.
The one truth that pervades the time and space
Shines in the heart and showers love and grace;
By the veil of darkness it is concealed;
By nonstop inquiry, it is revealed.
That one truth is called by various names;
Deep inside you, it eternally flames;
It is the immortal life and the way;
Look inside, you can find its sparkling ray!
From the dawn of life, seers have seen this
And were reborn by its transforming kiss;
Unless you’re reborn as a wide-eyed kid,
It remains tucked away by a dark lid.
Those who mourn will be appeased by its shade;
Their craving thirst will be killed by its blade;
Those who cleaned their heart are blessed by its touch;
The mere words can convey only this much.
Neither moth nor rust can impair this truth;
None can steal it and none can cause your ruth;
No spade can cut it and fire can’t burn it;
Water can’t wet it and wind can’t dry it.
The birds of the blue sky don’t sow or reap;
About tomorrow, they don’t grieve or weep;
Like those blissful birds, you can become free
Then You’re not the wave, but the boundless sea!
Listen to this good news and wipe your tears!
Wake up from your dream and destroy your fears!
The guiding good shepherd is inside you
As a light that shines with a golden hue!
Whoever has ears, let them hear this song;
With their friends and foes, let them get along!
The kingdom of heaven is filled with love
where the peace descends on you like a dove!
The day when I first set my eyes on you,
Each of your eyes looked like a drop of dew.
Showing a fear in those dark round pupils
And a look as sharp as tall church steeples!
You began to speak but it was so rare;
Sometimes all that came from your mouth is air
Even if you spoke it was soft and mild,
With voice that sounded like a little child!
I had always wished if there was a clue
To find out what locked your lips with a glue
And I always wanted to ask you why
you were so calm, gentle, reserved and shy!
Slowly you gathered the courage to smile;
But still you were far like a lonely isle;
Shortly you began to laugh and giggle;
Not once did you shout, argue or niggle!
Like a wide, calm sea with turquoise waters
Or a big lake with fishes and yachters,
Your glance was enticing, mystic and deep
Beyond which loads of secrets were asleep!
Sometimes I wonder why lilies don’t speak
And marvel at the daisies near a creek,
Inquiring why they don’t utter a phrase;
Like you, they just remain silent and gaze!
Here is my recent poem about non-duality or advaita, which has some pointers to contemplate for anyone who is seeking the truth:
You are the Truth – The Essential Wisdom of Advaita
The poem in the above image is a part of the longer poem that I wrote later.. I expanded the above poem to make it a part of a story which is metaphoric and reveals the essence of the ancient teachings.. It combines the vedantic teachings, mindfulness and verses from the Bible:
You are the Truth
Carrying the weight of past in my head
And dragging the scenes which were old and dead,
I ran to grab the bliss of the future;
The more I ran, the more was the torture..
The torture of the hedonic treadmill
Followed me as I continued uphill;
I was caught in the prison of craving
With tedious thoughts, my mind was raving.
I met an ugly old man on the way
who had a long thick beard with shades of grey.
His face was shining with heavenly bliss;
In his eyes I saw an endless abyss!
“What makes you so happy in this rat race?”,
I asked him as he slowly turned his face.
He replied,”The answer is within you!
The grand kingdom of God is within you!”
“That’s a joke”, I said “Are you kidding me?”.
“No!” He said, “Turn inward, you’ll become free!
You’ve made your own boundaries inside your mind,
You’ve closed your eyes and think you’ve become blind”.
I said, “How can I get out of this trap?
I want to find the way, give me the map”
He said, “You’re the way, the truth and the life!
Be still and know you’re that, and end this strife!
You’re not your body and you’re not your mind;
Not knowing the timeless truth makes you blind;
You’re not your story and you’re not your thoughts;
You’re not those age old, buried mental knots.
You’re not that chattering voice in your head;
You’re not anything that you did or said;
You’re not anything that you have or know
You’re the truth that is watching all this show!
You’re not anything that can be perceived;
You’re not an object that can be observed;
You’re the screen where the world is being played;
You’re the emptiness where the form is made.
You’re the one witnessing the mind and breath;
You’re one without two, beyond birth and death;
Like the air trapped in a small round bubble,
You feel separate which brings all the trouble.
Inquire inside and wake up from this dream!
Let truth alone shine like a bright white beam!
By inquiry, your illusions will break;
You’ll stop mistaking the rope for a snake”
Hearing these words stopped my thoughts for a while.
Looking in, I slowly began to smile.
I watched my thoughts as they slowly passed by;
I observed my mind like a secret spy.
For years, I contemplated on his words;
I watched my thoughts fly like a bunch of birds.
One day, I woke up and realized the truth;
Since then my life has been peaceful and smooth!
A soon as I woke up this morning, there was an urge to write a new poem, after many days.. So, I was caught up in a creative maze for 30 minutes and ended up with this:
(the infographic updated on 3rd Aug, 2018)
I can remember the very first day,
When I left my home and then lost my way..
I can remember the very first time,
When I learnt to say that old English rhyme…
I can remember my very first sight
Of a rising sun that looked red and bright..
I can still remember my oldest dream
Which woke me up at night and made me scream…
I can still smell the scent of the wet earth
When it rained for the first time since my birth..
Shanmugam's Blog 