Can I Bow To You

I have mentioned a couple times in my blog entries the book: Haiku Mind, by Patricia Donegan. And have enclosed a link to it, at the end of my post here. She was remarkably credentialed and respected in the world of haiku and meditation. You can read some of her bio on her Amazon page, via the link. 

She surely was a great advocate of the classic 5-7-5 approach to haiku. But I would say, at least an equal advocate of free-style haiku, of which I must have written now over 5,000 in the last 20 years, and have been writing a lot of lately— gosh, probably 100 a month this year. I just like writing. It is my exercise; and perhaps even keeps me mostly healthy. It is often the closest I get to an oasis in a day. And while writing, it is often the best I can feel, and with all of my cylinders working, and any unfurling wings— tasting the sky with any little feathered might.

It is not quite 4:30 a.m. now, and I awoke an hour ago from a beautiful experience, which was: I felt there was something like a very real and visual sacred river flowing out of my forehead—  and everything it touched felt as equally blessed as I did; and anything it touched became like a golden fish in God, and became so happy to be able to just splash around in existence.

And when the little dream, more like a vision, began to end, this haiku came to mind:

Can I

bow

to you

And I felt there were worlds in just those five words. Words that were at the very root and goal of all religions and spiritual practice. Words of great utility.

In Donegan's book, Haiku Mind, (which is an anthology that spans a few centuries) she has 108 haiku and annotates them in usually about one page. Some of her annotations are sooo good, and come from a deep and alive mind & heart— evolved awareness!

I will try and step into her mind and heart, and Buddha’s (and Carl Jung's) the best an old cowboy might, and try and well annotate: Can I bow to you?

I will keep this short, but could probably ramble on for pages. Here goes:

Can you honor yourself enough to really honor all other people, creatures, and forms, by bowing to them in your heart?

Bowing to something always opens the cage door, and outside any cages in you — that could be in any conflict with someone or something. Outside our walls is a limb in the sky where you can sit like a bird, or like the sun and sing; at least from your eyes then — so in love with life.

Can I bow to you? Can I see enough of who you really are? And who I really am to do that?

As easily as the moon's light can place her head upon the feet of all, of all within her ken. To everything she sees. So too, dear, is our destiny and our freedom— in Knowing! 

The holy shrine is now every form I can bow to!

***

Click here to see that book, Haiku Mind.