Hold it lightly

Coming, going,
the waterbirds
don’t leave a trace,
don’t follow a path.

Dōgen Zenji, 1200 – 1253, Japanese Buddhist writer, founder of the Sōtō school of Zen, On Non-Dependence of Mind

Expect the circus

The glorious, colorful life comes to those who expect it, dream it. Remember how grand life was when the circus or the fair was imminent? Colors changed. More dramatic than the change of seasons was the change of attitudes.

So expect the circus, always.

Be the circus.

Tennessee Williams

Sunday Quote: Consider this

Think of the wren

and how little flesh is needed to make a song

Galway Kinnell, Why Regret?

Free of care

It is blossom season in Japan and in gardens here. They are often used as a metaphor for human existence – beautiful but short lived – a reminder that life needs to be celebrated yet always contains an element of impermanence.

You ask me why I dwell in these green mountains;
I smile and am silent, for my heart is free of care.
As the peach-blossom flows down the stream and goes into the unknown,
I live in a world apart that is not of men.

Li Po, 701-762, Green Mountain

Gladden the heart

The beginning of the season of Ramadam

What actions are most excellent?

To gladden the heart of a human being, to feed the hungry, to help the afflicted, to lighten the sorrow of the sorrowful, and to remove the wrongs of the injured.

That person is the most beloved, who does most good to God’s creatures

From the sayings of the Prophet Muhammad in the Sahih al-Bukhari 

Sunday Quote: A good plan

Sell your cleverness and buy bewilderment

Rumi