Arjuna

Many times-- in fact, almost every night, I wake up past midnight and, through the window, I always see that one bright star. I wrote the following poem with reference to this experience:

Past midnight, gazing at a lone bright star,
I name it Arjuna.
From the distant plains of Kurukshetra,
his cry echoes:
where is joy in the killing of men?

Let me explain a little bit. Arjuna is a character in the Bhagavad-Gita or the Song of God. The poem above refers to that opening scene in the Bhagavad-Gita, where Arjuna is having a conversation with Krishna, before warring armies, who are related in blood, engaged in the field of Kurukshetra. Arjuna posed a question which is very much relevant to post-modern times, in these days of terrorism and preemptive war.

Now, read this: one night, I saw the same (or I think the same) bright star. I just looked at it. Then, moments later, the star seemed as if it was withdrawing... until it's gone.

Along a Calm and Clear River

My favorite poetry site, Poemhunter, is experiencing technical problem, and it will not be accessible until September 22. I can't wait that long, so I created a poetry site of my own, and called it Along a Calm and Clear River, where I reconstructed all my short poems.

It didn't take me long to decide on the title for my new site. It just came almost instantly, like a lightning flash. Perhaps, my strong Taoist orientation could explain that. The tao is usually symbolized by water.

But water is also a recurring symbol in my dream. Many times, I dream of bodies of water, like a lake, sea and river-- even a swimming pool, and fountains.

When I got promoted to a new position and unit in the office, an office mate showed me some sort of a dictionary of dream symbols, which says that a body of water in a dream represents forthcoming opportunities and challenges.

But then, I also recall, a friend who is a devout Catholic interpreted the blue sea in my dream as "Mother Mary"!

Office Anniversary Mass

It was the 11th anniversary of our office yesterday. On this occasion, I wrote this poem entitled "Office Anniversary Mass", which I also posted in Poemhunter :

They turned the conference room
into a makeshift chapel:
through the glass partition,
I see the priest
probably giving his sermon.
I watch him from a distance,
but not hearing a word,
while I quench my thirst
with a cup of cold water.

Bless the Beast and the Children

There's a beautiful song by the Carpenters, way back in the 70s, entitled "Bless the Beast and the Children". It was also adopted as the theme song of a movie then, though all I can remember in that movie was the scene where the boys were playing with the buffaloes. I think somebody should make a revival of this song if only to remind us about the beauty of children, and our responsibilities towards them, as well as their rights as human beings. Today, children, like beasts, are being slaughtered or simply disregarded as powerless objects-- to be used as hostages by terrorists and criminals; sexual toys even by priests; as laborers; and even as soldiers. Millions of them simply suffer and die of sickness and hunger. The recent explosive and bloody hostage crisis in Russia involving school children was utterly sickening.

If you know the song, pass it on. Here's the lyrics:

Bless the beasts and the children
For in this world they have no voice
They have no choice

Bless the beasts and the children
For the world can never be
The world they see

Light their way
When the darkness surrounds them
Give them love
Let it shine all around them

Bless the beasts and the children
Give them shelter from a storm

Keep them safe
Keep them warm