Do not arouse
Or awaken him
Until he so desires
For on his chest rests a
Thousand shields of warriors
Once entrenched in endless battles…
.
DAWNING (For a New Disciple)
.
The warming sun rises.
It becomes obscured by mist.
The mist clears and white clouds billow.
An unseen wind disperses them.
His heart-rate lessens.
(A Blue Sky makes a good quilt)
.
He sits
Half Lotus
In view of a stream,
(Looking for delusion and
Truth at the bottom of his heart)
With Moksha he seeks to transcend
The world of Samsara…
.
MIDDAY…
.
Nearer the water,
He has attained Full Lotus,
But he is alienated from others,
His long hair now a tangled tapestry,
His Kasaya stinking of sweat and saffron--
Strewn about him - roots and tubers, heartwood,
And the wasting yield of jackfruit trees…
In a dream
He is shown that
silence is the language of Om.
(Oh Seeker, climb your mountain,
But slowly… s l o w l y…)
.
TWILIGHT (Utter Disillusionment)
.
Full Moon illumines the restless waters.
He sees,
In every wave,
A black dragon’s pearl,
But the moon is unsatisfied,
It is here in this wave and in the next,
And he finds no peace
In endless motion…
(What heaven bestows is perfect.
Looking for proof leads you astray)
.
The wind has settled.
Seeds and blossoms have fallen.
Birds sing.
The mountains grow dark.
He labors, eats, sleeps, and excretes,
Each week handing over another payment,
Daily pursuing a calm mind enveloped
In Enlightenment's Wisdom.
But it cannot be!
He knows that Bodhi is unattainable…
.
(The Teacher was a LIAR)
.
In a vision…
a hummingbird
alights his left hand and he
is shown the dark origin of Zen.
He knows then that Truth
Is found only in ONE,
The MOST HIGH,
Not the teachers fat man…
.
(Now His Sleep is Untroubled)
.
Do not provoke
Or judge him
For renouncing the lies,
For in his heart he still grieves for
Those monks who deceive for mammon,
Who have (all) lost their souls in endless intrigues…
.
© richard lloyd cederberg
4/2026
.
Enlightenment is like the moons reflection on the water. The moon does not get wet nor is the water broken. The moon can be reflected in one dewdrop on the grass. The mind reflects this reflection. The moon follows its arc, the reflection changes, the process ends and begins anew. Zen cogitation can be like a ping-pong game. One hits the ball to another who hits it back, this continues until one misses the ball. Still, the ball can be picked up and the game begins anew. This is meaningless. A chasing after the wind.
.
Kasaya - robe
Moksha – liberation
Bodhi – awakening or enlightenment
Samsara – an endless cycle of birth, suffering, death, and rebirth. The world as commonly experienced
    A NEW RACE OF HuMANS