18 August 2011 - Maitri Upanishad 4.2

Like the waves in great rivers, there is no turning back of that which has previously been done.... [The soul is] like a lame man--bound with the fetters made of the fruit of good and evil.

Bottom Dweller

At the bottom

I lay, prone; sinking

Softly into the cool,

Wet sand

Eyes closed, I feel

The lives passing over

Me; the anguish of

Regret, the cold

Eddy of fear; I

Taste the salty

Tears of the lonely

And I know I am

The lonely, the sinful,

Caught in a whirlpool

Of my own evil,

I pray for release

Into the River’s current

I do not believe I am

Bound to my past

I do not believe

I cannot break free

I close my eyes, and

With a sigh, I

Let go of fear,

Let go of anger,

Let go of regret

…

Looking back, I see

The place in the sand -

Human-shape washing

Swiftly away…

No longer lame,

My soul is a dance

Upon the rapids

I am free.

© 18 August 2011