Think about this day
and the long view
horizon to horizon
as the full moon sets
and Venus rises.
Our outpost
the blue planet
with the mystery
of trees and rivers,
tiny pearl
in a great fire
of swirling stars,
precious gift
so easily abused.
Regard the moon,
listen to the night sky;
we have just this
so tender and green,
soft as sand,
enduring as water.
So lovely…
Beautiful n Precious.
This brings to mind Dogen’s One Bright Pearl
which, of course was written in pictographic language
and could have any of a thousand translations.
“One Bright Pearl”
“The whole universe is one bright pearl.
It’s essence
is that the entire universe is not vast and large,
not minute and small,
or square or round….
While there is a body now, a mind now, they are the bright pearl.
That stalk of grass, this tree, is not a stalk of grass, is not a tree;
the mountains and rivers of this world
are not mountains and rivers
of this world.
They are the bright pearl.
When it is thus,
there is no reason to doubtingly think
that you are not the pearl
because you perplexedly think,
‘I am not the pearl.’
Perplexed thoughts, doubts, and man’s accepting
or rejecting are but passing,
small-scale notions.
Moreover, this is only the pearl appearing as small-scale notions.”
Dogen Zenji
What a beautiful symbol for our planet earth, Dad. Lovely Sunday poem.
This really puts our situation in our vast cosmos in stark reality….wonderful…
A truly sacred place where we may create and live . . .
Honoring home, both in the Universe and in our hearts.
Celestial, secure
If you reduce earth’s age of 4 billon years–to 40 days, man has been here only about 4 hrs. And yet we have almost destroyed our only home.
Timely given the talks on climate change that might slow the damage we are doing to the planet. One can only endeavor to reduce our impact on the earth and leave this place in a more habitable condition that we found it.