For Warmth

I hold my face in my two hands.

No, I am not crying.

I hold my face in my two hands

to keep the loneliness warm–

two hands protecting,

two hands nourishing,

two hands preventing

my soul from leaving me

in anger.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

Direct your Eye

Direct your eye right inward, and you’ll find

A thousand regions in your mind

Yet undiscovered. Travel them and be

Expert in home-cosmography.

~ Thoreau, Walden

Only the Mountain

The birds have vanished into the sky,

and now the last cloud drains away.

We sit together, the mountain and me,

until only the mountain remains. ~ Li Po

You are That

Soul of all souls, life of life – you are That

Seen and unseen, moving and unmoving – you are That

The road that leads to the City is endless;

Go without head or feet

And you’ll already be there.

What else could you be? – you are That.   ~ Rumi

My Treasure

My treasure is the cloud on the peak
The moon over the valley
Traveling east or west
Light and free on the one road
I don’t know whether I’m on the way
Or at home.

– Muso Soseki (1275-1351)