Gratitude

2024, November, Issue 125

With this prayer, this prayer beyond time and space,

May gratitude arise in this ever-changing moment,

this gratitude, may joyful gratitude appear

as blessings for all beings, all beings;

May this gratitude emanate from the depths of my heart,

From the depths of our open hearts and mind;

For all, for all I give thanks, we give thanks

To all, for all beings, in their relentless pursuit

Of knowing and not knowing;

We thank all beings, all beings,

Knowing that we are all making this possible,

thanking us all for making this all possible;

Every one of you have made this happen,

all that has happened, it is because of you,

your karma, every action, every thought,

every breath you breathe, every breath you give,

every breath you take, every breath,

it is because of you and only you, you

who are all and beyond all, you who are

truly poisoned by your own views, your own ego,

ignorant and confused, poisoned by attachment, all;

This meal, this day, this life, this appearance

could never happen, never ever, without

without absolutely every single thing in the universe,

the multiverse sings to you,

sings to places imagined,

places not yet known,

places that will never be known

unless you awaken;

All this that, everything, is,

is because everything makes it possible, and all of it

is necessary, good, bad, beautiful, ugly;

For this I am grateful, grateful for the good,

grateful for what seemed to harm,

grateful for that which must be overcome,

grateful for the trauma which has convinced me,

convinced me that this place is unnecessary,

convinced me that this failing body was necessary

convinced me that awakening to what is is essential,

as it is, as the only solution;

I am grateful for this acceptance

Of all that has come my way,

as well as those things that were transformed

amid the storm of these energetic resonances;

Within this feast of each other,

may all who have sacrificed themselves,

either willingly, or not knowingly, be blessed;

May my every action from here onward

be one of blessings, of gratitude,

of love and compassion,

for all those who have sacrificed themselves,

bringing blessings to all;

May we all awaken in this gratitude

In gratitude of those who have made this possible

on this day, in this way,

at this time;

All beings have given of themselves

for just this,

All causes and conditions, true blessings

have been generated

by all who have given of themselves,

And we always give of ourselves,

We have no other choice in this All-Good,

this magical display of karma,

this dance of appearances

in this most unlikely of places,

for all eternity.

Truly As It Is

A poem by Robert Aho © 2024

If we really look, really look very closely at any appearance at all, we see something very obvious that is really quite humbling. We see that everything connects to everything. We see that nothing is ever possible without absolutely everything else.

Really examine what I just stated here. Think, for instance, how life would be if you were not connected to everything around you. If you think about this for more than a few seconds, you will quickly realize that your body will fail almost immediately if it were somehow disconnected from everything else.

You couldn’t survive without the air that is breathed by all beings, whether sentient or not, by plants, by microorganisms of various sorts. If you were somehow magically disconnected, you wouldn’t even have time to gasp your last breath. All beings everywhere are responsible for providing you with the air that you breathe. Without them, you would instantly suffocate.

When you think about the food you eat, if you really examine that, it soon becomes quite obvious that innumerable beings have perished so that you can enjoy a meal, just one simple meal. The beings who needed the plants you are eating, the beings who died along the way as your meal was being transported to your market, the deaths of forest creatures after their trees were destroyed to make cardboard boxes and grocery bags, the innumerable other ways that beings were destroyed, all suffered. The flesh of the animals you consume required sacrifice, both for the dead animals and for those who had the task of ending their life. Even a simple leafy green has death applied to it.

I think we owe all beings a debt of tremendous gratitude.

It is not my task to be morbid, it is my task to see what is, as it is. It is my task to help you to see things realistically so that you might awaken. When we begin to see, we begin to appreciate all beings, even those stinkers who are making things difficult. It’s important to be realistic, if we are to understand the necessity of gratitude, if we are to understand just what appearances mean.

Our blissfully ignorant state prevents us from truly appreciating all that appears, all the beings who come our way, all those who have made everything possible. If we are able to gaze at appearances with an understanding of how it really is, this sadness will help us to awaken, for the benefit of all. We will awaken.

Blessings in Light,

Robert Aho