Wednesday, September 19, 2007

Naming a Title

From Japanese Death Poems:

Nandai
Since time began
the dead alone know peace.
Life is but melting snow.


Kanete naki
mi koso yasukere
yuki no michi

No, I'm not morbid or obsessed with death. Rather, melting snow has some personal significance to me and I like finding poetry that mentions it. Rumi also has a poem that includes the line:

Totally unexpected my guest arrived.
"Who is it?" asked my heart.
"The face of the moon," said my soul.
As he entered the house, we all ran into the street madly looking for the moon.
"I'm in here," he was calling from inside,
but we were calling him outside unaware of his call.
Our drunken nightingale is singing in the garden,
and we are cooing like doves, "Where, where, where?"
A crowd formed: "Where's the thief?"
And the thief among us is saying, "Yeah, where's the thief?"
All our voices became mixed together and not one voice stood out from the others. "And He is with you" means He is searching with you.
He is nearer to you than yourself.
Why look outside? Become like melting snow; wash yourself of yourself.
With love your inner voice will find a tongue growing like a silent white lily in the heart.

1 comment:

wangniuniu said...

Really like the title of your blog. Though, 'snow' appears in it, rather than cold feeling, the title brings me a warmth together with greenness :)