A change in header was long overdue. The winter chill has given way to a rainy, moody summer.
But, of course, there are big things on our minds. The pandemic is going viral and we’ll be remembering this year for a very long time. What will change, how, which industries will stay, which will fall, who will win, who will lose, will humankind recover its conscience, or will this be a blip that only momentarily eclipsed our collective daily grind?
Time will tell, but in the meantime, a haiku by Paul Pfleuger, Jr.
Smiling
behind the death mask,
this is God, too
My Guru, ever compassionate, held our hands for 43 days, giving us darshans – a glimpse of him and room at his feet every single day. That makes a full mandala – a length of time approximately 40 days in which the human system completes one physiological cycle. When we take up something for one mandala, it gets written into our system like software and functions on a completely different level. Across these days, he spoke about a range of matters including this crisis facing us. How his constant presence has transformed us, I cannot even begin to guess.
During one session, someone asked him what Shiva thought of the virus.
His response reminded me of these verses by Kabir:
Inka bhed bata mere avadhu, acchi karni kar le tu
Dali phool jagat ke mahi, jahan dekhun va tu ka tu
Tell me the secret, Avadhoo, shower your compassion
In all of nature in this whole world, wherever I look, I see you
Hathi mein hathi ban baitho, chinti mein hai chhoto tu
Hoye mahavat upar baithe, hankan vala tu ka tu
Massive you are as an elephant, tiny when as an ant
Also as the mahout you sit, the one riding the elephant is also you
Choro ke sang chori karta, badmashon mein bhedo tu
Chori kar ke tu bhag jaave, pakdan vala tu ka tu
Among thieves you are a thief, you sit among scoundrels too
You are the robber who robs and runs, the one who catches him, also you
Jal thal jeev mein tu hi biraje, jahan dekhoon va tu ka tu
Kahe Kabir suno bhai sadho, guru milaye jyun ka tyun
In water, earth and all life you are present, wherever I look, only you!
Says Kabir, listen Seeker, the Guru shows you the unsullied You!
A version of the song by the awesome Prahlad Singh Tipaniya:
But, of course, there are big things on our minds. The pandemic is going viral and we’ll be remembering this year for a very long time. What will change, how, which industries will stay, which will fall, who will win, who will lose, will humankind recover its conscience, or will this be a blip that only momentarily eclipsed our collective daily grind?Time will tell, but in the meantime, a haiku by Paul Pfleuger, Jr.
Smiling
behind the death mask,
this is God, too
My Guru, ever compassionate, held our hands for 43 days, giving us darshans – a glimpse of him and room at his feet every single day. That makes a full mandala – a length of time approximately 40 days in which the human system completes one physiological cycle. When we take up something for one mandala, it gets written into our system like software and functions on a completely different level. Across these days, he spoke about a range of matters including this crisis facing us. How his constant presence has transformed us, I cannot even begin to guess.
During one session, someone asked him what Shiva thought of the virus.
His response reminded me of these verses by Kabir:
Inka bhed bata mere avadhu, acchi karni kar le tu
Dali phool jagat ke mahi, jahan dekhun va tu ka tu
Tell me the secret, Avadhoo, shower your compassion
In all of nature in this whole world, wherever I look, I see you
Hathi mein hathi ban baitho, chinti mein hai chhoto tu
Hoye mahavat upar baithe, hankan vala tu ka tu
Massive you are as an elephant, tiny when as an ant
Also as the mahout you sit, the one riding the elephant is also you
Choro ke sang chori karta, badmashon mein bhedo tu
Chori kar ke tu bhag jaave, pakdan vala tu ka tu
Among thieves you are a thief, you sit among scoundrels too
You are the robber who robs and runs, the one who catches him, also you
Jal thal jeev mein tu hi biraje, jahan dekhoon va tu ka tu
Kahe Kabir suno bhai sadho, guru milaye jyun ka tyun
In water, earth and all life you are present, wherever I look, only you!
Says Kabir, listen Seeker, the Guru shows you the unsullied You!
A version of the song by the awesome Prahlad Singh Tipaniya:
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