A Spontaneous Poem

2024, May, Issue 96

HRIH!

Out of this great expanse arises Ultimate Bodhicitta,

awareness present in this instant, expanding, swirling,

radiating supreme light, appearances become clear;

There is no difference between dreams and daily life; 

All objects are mind, empty illusions dance before us,

emptiness appearing, manifesting, empty as emptiness;

Seeing all as illusion, may great waves of benefit

be generated for all sentient beings!

OM AH HUNG!

OM AH HUNG!

OM AH HUNG!

A poem from, The Frog: A Spiritual Autobiography, Spanning Many Lifetimes, pg. 287, © 2021.

In Podcast 18, I spontaneously picked something from one of my books.  I held them both up, then made a decision.  In this case, I felt strongly that I should open The Frog: A Spiritual Autobiography, Spanning Many Lifetimes, to see if it would bring benefit to others that way.  I proceeded to explain that poem verbally. 

The following adds to that brief explanation:

We begin with the great compassion of Bodhicitta.  That is what the seed syllable HRIH represents in the above poem.  It is most important, and best to be rather sudden about it, which is a reflection of your own determination to awaken.  Saying this poem out loud as part of your personal practice can be very beneficial.

In the next line, we see Ultimate Bodhicitta arising from expansive open heart and mind.   This is the relative view, as Ultimate Bodhicitta only appears to be arising.  It is an illusion, because Ultimate Bodhicitta is brilliant, including and beyond all that we know.  The shedding of our own ignorance makes it seem as this brilliant bright light of Ultimate Bodhicitta is arising.

When we suddenly become aware of our own awareness, it seems very unstable.  We see this condition within a very turbulent manifestation of mind.  We see that we have absolutely no stability.  The energetic dimension is becoming apparent.

As we radiate supreme light, clarity manifests in our own consciousness.  We see appearances for what they are, rather than what we believe or want them to be.  Even though we might not yet feel that our view has stabilized, we relax enough so that we can see things as they are.

When we are able to see clearly, we see the illusion of mind.  We see that there is absolutely no difference between dreams and daily life.  We develop a certain confidence about this.

In this clarity, we see how quickly everything changes.  We see this illusion.  It is as if this energetic display is some fantastic dance.  Each and every moment changes.  With this view, we see a certain crispness that we had never seen before.  We relax.

We discover the true essence of emptiness.

When we see all as illusion, we realize that our own realization will create tremendous benefit for all sentient beings.  This is followed by the three repeating mantras of body, speech and mind.

Hopefully that explanation will provide you with some essential knowledge.  Even though my book is rather lengthy and a bit repetitive in places, a person could really just study small parts of what I have written.  It is rather concentrated, with more to it than meets the eye.

Usually, I write some sort of essay with this newsletter; however, in this last podcast, since I read a poem from The Frog: A Spiritual Autobiography, Spanning Many Lifetimes, I felt it was important to follow that with an additional explanation.  My writing should trigger more questions and discussions.  Since Spiritual Practice relies on the individual asking questions, investigating and taking the initiative, my writing includes that as part of my intention.

I would like to hear more from people.  Maybe a few more people can write a review on Amazon or leave a comment under this post.  If we can get a little bit of a discussion going, maybe we will have the basis of a Spiritual Community, and we can start an online practice together.

It would also make me happy if people read my books as part of a book club.  If people want to hear from me during such activities, I’d be happy to chime in.

Blessings in Light,               

Robert Aho