Fr. George Mia - God is a mystery so great that it cannot be exhausted by any one religion.

Then cried they, “We have chosen this for road
And tread it, Rajaputra ! till the close –
Though all its stones were fire – in trust of death.
Speak, if thou know’st a way more excellent;
If not, peace go with thee !”

Onward he passed,

Exceeding sorrowful, see how men
Fear so to die they are afraid to fear,
Lust so to live they dare not love their life,
But plague it with fierce penances, belike
To please the Gods who grudge pleasure to man:
Belike to baulk hell by self-kindled hells;
Belike in holy madness, hoping soul
May break the better through their wasted flesh.

“Oh, flowerets of the field !” Siddartha said,
“Who turn your tender faces to the sun –
Glad of the light, and grateful with sweet breath
Of fragrance and these robes of reverence donned
Silver and gold and purple - none of ye
Miss perfect living, none of ye despoil
Your happy beauty. Oh, ye palms! which rise
Eager to pierce the sky and drink the wind
Blown from Malaya and the cool blue seas,
What secret know ye that ye grow content,
From time of tender shoot to time of fruit,
Murmuring such sun-songs from your feathered crowns?
Ye, too, who dwell so merry in the trees –
Quick-darting parrots, bee-birds, bulbulbs doves –
None of ye hate your life, none of ye deem
To strain to better by foregoing needs !
But man, who slays ye – being lord – is wise,
And wisdom, nursed on blood, cometh thus forth
In self-tormentings !”

- - - x - - -

Pray not ! the Darkness will not brighten ! Ask
Nought from the Silence, for it cannot speak !
Vex not your mournful minds with pious pains !
Ah ! Brothers, Sisters ! seek

Nought from the helpless gods by gift and hymn,
Nor bribe with blood, nor feed with fruits and cakes ;
Within yourselves deliverance must be sought ;
Each man his prison makes.

THE LIGHT OF ASIA - EDWIN ARNOLD 1892

Song of the Soul

A poetic non-literal version entitled "Song of the Soul" is rendered in B.K. Iyengar's Light on Yoga (1966: p.53):

I am neither ego nor reason, I am neither mind nor thought,
I cannot be heard nor cast into words, nor by smell nor sight ever caught:
In light and wind I am not found, nor yet in earth and sky -
Consciousness and joy incarnate, Bliss of the Blissful am I.

I have no name, I have no life, I breathe no vital air,
No elements have moulded me, no bodily sheath is my lair:
I have no speech, no hands and feet, nor means of evolution -
Consciousness and joy am I, and Bliss in dissolution.

I cast aside hatred and passion, I conquered delusion and greed;
No touch of pride caressed me, so envy never did breed:
Beyond all faiths, past reach of wealth, past freedom, past desire,
Consciousness and joy am I, and Bliss is my attire.

Virtue and vice, or pleasure and pain are not my heritage,
Nor sacred texts, nor offerings, nor prayer, nor pilgrimage:
I am neither food, nor eating, nor yet the eater am I -
Consciousness and joy incarnate, Bliss of the Blissful am I.

I have no misgiving of death, no chasms of race divide me,
No parent ever called me child, no bond of birth ever tied me:
I am neither disciple nor master, I have no kin, no friend -
Consciousness and joy am I, and merging in Bliss is my end.

Neither knowable, knowledge, nor knower am I, formless is my form,
I dwell within the senses but they are not my home:
Ever serenely balanced, I am neither free nor bound -
Consciousness and joy am I, and Bliss is where I'm found.

The Creator and The Parasite

Excerpt of Howard Roark’s Courtroom Speech – From The Fountainhead, by Ayn Rand

“Nothing is given to man on earth. Everything he needs has to be produced. And here man faces his basic alternative: he can survive in only one of two ways—by the independent work of his own mind or as a parasite fed by the minds of others. The creator originates. The parasite borrows. The creator faces nature alone. The parasite faces nature through an intermediary.
“The creator’s concern is the conquest of nature. The parasite’s concern is the conquest of men.
“The creator lives for his work. He needs no other men. His primary goal is within himself. The parasite lives second-hand. He needs others. Others become his prime motive.
“The basic need of the creator is independence. The reasoning mind cannot work under any form of compulsion. It cannot be curbed, sacrificed or subordinated to any consideration whatsoever. It demands total independence in function and in motive. To a creator, all relations with men are secondary.
“The basic need of the second-hander is to secure his ties with men in order to be fed. He places relations first. He declares that man exists in order to serve others. He preaches altruism.
“Altruism is the doctrine which demands that man live for others and place others above self...

Diamond Ear Rings

Substituted, the circumference of devotion

Now a reminder of adrift emotions.

Precious though as markets deem

To return now, a redundant scheme.

A chest weighs heavy as glittering orbs palmed

Deep breaths rendered by golden charms.

Leaning back from those safety steel rails

Rocks exalt in twinkling arcs, hail

A journey that brought life and spark

Vanish into Falls, magnifique and dark.

The Promise of Love...

...is the most beautiful gift of all.

In its youth, standing proud and tall

Ready to denounce critics...snarl.

Thus it matured, knowing its creaks and faults

And lingers to its last recall...

Comes a stranger, meek and mild

Giving credence to a life where none shall lie

The gifts of love now like ashes fly

For a Promise to Honour and Obey

Her love walks by...