Life, Mystery, and Poetry

Today was another good day. Classes were fun, and I got to reconnect with some friends I hadn't seen since last semester with the first meeting for the Campus Environmental Center. Here is a list of some of the things we're working on: planting trees and managing our student run garden, a project to get UT to sign a sustainability pledge (thus saving thousands of dollars and cleaning up the environment at the same time - but don't ask me the specifics just yet), general and ink cartridge recycling, bringing sustainable and local produce to UT, volunteering and camping, and that's only half of them. Woo whoo. Anyways, I also got to work out after the meeting, thus strengthening my bod and getting some endorphins going. I can see the pieces of an integral lifestyle slowing coming together, and I am very grateful to be in the Austin community with so many intelligent, creative people. If only I could find a girlfriend...

I hope the people who have read this blog are enjoying the contextual layers of the universe. It's massive! We are sooo small! Who is not utterly shaken by the depth of mystery that is the universe?! Why do we spend our lives avoiding inquiry into where this is coming from? I listened to a dialog between Adyashanti and Bert Parlee today (via Integral Naked) and Adyashanti spoke mostly about a nondual, "direct approach" to spirituality, and near the end of the discussion he said something like...We start off not knowing who we are, and we begin spirituality with asking who am I, and all the existential questions, not knowing what this mystery of life will reveal. When we become awakened or enlightened, we are married to the now and the mystery of living still does not realize itself, we are just no longer attached to our identity. So what I'm trying to say is that the mysteriousness of being is a fundamental quality of the universe; we can't escape it, so we should embrace it and allow our acceptance of it to deepen our experience day to day, as human beings.

Federer is playing Blake right now in the US Open Quarterfinals, and it is the most amazing match I've seen this whole tournament (I've seen many matches too). These guys are so talented. Gets me excited to play tennis. UT Club Tennis starts tomorrow. Whoo woo.

Time for a poem.

WHO WROTE ALL THE MUSIC

Why is it now
That I come to you like a humble servant
Willing to feed you brilliant words and love
From my own sacred mouth and hands,

Willing to say, "I am sorry,
I am sorry for all your pain?"

It is because when God
Fully revealed Himself in me

I saw that it was Hafiz
Who wrote all the music you have been playing.

I saw it was Hafiz
Who wrote all your notes of sadness,
But also etched and gave you
Every ecstatic wince of joy your face, body,
And heart has ever known.

Okay my dear,
You have stumbled enough in the earth's sweet dance.
You have paid all your dues
Many times.

Now let's get down to the real reason
Why we sit together and breathe

And begin the laughing, the divine laughing,
Like great heroic women
And magnificent
Strong men.

- Hafiz

This does not in any way, shape or form, compare to Hafiz, but here is a poem that I tried to write in the style of Hafiz, inspired by his ecstatic, electrifying words.

6 15 5 God’s Little Book

God has a little book of poems
He always carries around
And sometimes when he’s in the garden
He stops for a moment
And reads one aloud

In the comfort of his infinite mind
He loses himself in the seas and storms
Of our journeys

But certain lines make him chuckle
As he pauses to grin
For tricking you

God’s bookshelves flow for miles
But surely one by one he reads them all
In fact, he is always up to date
On the news

God turns the pages
And the poem ends
At times he may shed a tear and sigh
before
Tending to his garden
Often times he laughs and glows with rapture
Those are his
favorite


God loves to see us joyful
In a natural state
When the chains of ego lifted
His dance
Commonplace


Peace and love.