A reincarnation and further expansion on ideas that first found a voice on my old AOL Hometown "Astral Panther" pages.
Mystical Voyages and Dream States in Words and Images
2004
so many thoughts fly on the eve of my midnight consecration
they flee on wings of wild birds
disturbed by this unmarked and strange new constellation
my eyes reflect astral visions without words,
dark, sunless galaxies without function,
for i am born upon a day without aspect or conjunction
thus, i stand at the edge of this afflicted abyss,
to approach the retrograde position,
backwards degree by degree;
out-of-sign, out of time, and in transition,
where i stop at the final degree,
awaiting heaven's final decree
will there be pain or will there be bliss?
shall i fall from heaven like an outcast star?
perhaps my path has already taken me away,
away too far,
so very far away, in fact, that i am lost for good
and no force of gravity or ritual can bring me back
to that place where i once stood;
among the pleasant aspects with no cardinal opposition
in some long ago and now forgotten celestial position
now, good bye is the hardest forecast,
the one i hate to chart,
the one that burns a fire sign deep within my heart;
the cold, hard aspect where the silent echoes last,
in a space where the future occludes the past,
forever in that empty square of my mind,
in a place we never part
(the second incarnation of buddha’s smile)
behold, a scroll of mysteries:
be still and listen
until the silence speaks-
it sings a sutra for the universe
from the sacred place
where the echoes of infinity ring
that soundless temple bell toll
when you hear the stars,
come and harmonize in one accord,
find the place where the galaxies are born,
see the million suns prayer wheel turning,
rotating in the cosmic breeze
join with them in the celestial asrama*,
repeat the mantra of their illumination
one shining note opens the door of the soul
and lets it rise
note by note, measure by measure,
chakra by chakra, lifetime by lifetime
across the karma trails the comets trace;
a holy om etched upon the heaven’s eye
9/2004
1 In Tibetan Buddhism, a Bodhisattva is anyone who is motivated by compassion and seeks enlightenment not only for him/herself but also for everyone.
2 Asrama - (Sanskrit) "Place of striving." From sram, "to exert energy." Hermitage; order of the life. Holy sanctuary; the residence and teaching center of a sadhu, saint, svami, ascetic or guru; often includes lodging for students. Also names life’s four stages. The lesser known and explored of the two pillars of Hinduism, varna and asrama, asrama is a system of four distinct and legitimate ways of leading a religious life: as a celibate student, a married householder, a forest hermit, and a world renouncer.
