Balamani Amma’s poem, translated by Ammu Nalapat. Anger unleashed, unstoppable, Sinners all, these humans lost in greed they dare to contain me, appropriate me for selfish needs Dare to severe the very thread that sustains life on earth Isolating themselves in fortresses of ignorance they push the world into darkness Evil reigns intoxicated Battle cries…
Category: Inspire
Child is the father of man
Decades ago, when we lived in Hong Kong, I used to see an advertisement for some housing project on TV every evening. Because we neither had the desire nor the resources to buy property in Hong Kong, swan-like, we disdainfully ignored the salient features of the project, but were captivated by the tagline on…
Prayer
A reluctant moonshine gently lit the contours of his face. He stirred in his sleep. He was in the company of a pleasant dream, expansive like his mother’s love. It had ascended on him and rocked him in its benevolence. But then, a cloud aimlessly shifting in the night sky haphazardly spilled a handful of…
Words of Wisdom
If any one did his duty sincerely, whatever it is, and did not mind the result, if he practiced not to be elated at success or depressed at failures, he is following the way to God, and with his faith in God, he will be protected by Him. Do not try to be a man…
Possible histories, probable futures
1. river 2. bridge 3. man Bridge male river female / Bridge female river male Locals river people / Planters bridge people notes on Arulmani Bridge ( 1929 ? to 2011) and then some….. 1. riverrun Sleepy cars crawl up the mountain Light through shimmering trees A streak of silver in the wetgrey night. Oldbones…
Quotes
“I do not know much about gods,” T. S. Eliot wrote, who grew up along the Mississippi in St. Louis, “but I think that the river is a strong brown god.” “Under various names,” wrote Czeslaw Milosz, who grew up in Lithuania along the Neman, “I have praised only you, rivers. You are milk and…
A Question of Attitude
It is not the people or situations that waltz in and out of your life with not even a simple ‘May I’ that bring happiness, sorrow or the 4th state of consciousness called ‘turiya.’ The catalyst that decides the outcome is your attitudes to the particular time-slice specimen laid out on the slide under the microscope…
Inspiration
Inspiration is a spark that touches you and when it leaves, you are filled with a greater awareness, a bird’s eye view, a larger perspective. Your experience of people and nature and things that have touched you and inspired you, lifted you, and revealed to you a more expansive state.
The Stillness Project 