Sunday June 27
*
A glimpse up toward
the base of the steep climb
to the leading light of my long day
patiently making her way
slight gentle beautiful determined bright one
firmly alone firmly herself
to quietly remind me
that not so far away
for she I we two
our warm and bright
future day
and to her then to say to tell
of two hills above the Nang chu valley
where Nang chu flows
on its way to Yalong Dza chu
and their names are Bonri and Dolmari
and of a day beneath the mountain sky
when Yeshe Tsogyel Padmasambhava
made their way up the hill of Dolmari
far had they come over great mountains
and coursing rivers
to venture to this hallowed place
At their feet the grass swayed
beneath sharp mountain light
ebbing and flowing before the eyes
as waves before the wind
and flowers rose into the sight
as glints of colored light here and there
to them the voice of Nang chu
rippled up above the stones
of its rocky path
and gawa and nawa mountain deer
grazed in quiet peace
to dart with swiftness
here and there
as thoughts before the gaze of mind
as herds of kyang wild mountain ass
and drong wild yak thundered by
Upon its slope they found a cave
wondrous place of refuge
and at its opening vines grew
with fruit in abundance
and herbs to sustain the weary traveller
accustomed to austerity
skilled in their use
There they stayed for a time
in this cave
Zangdrok Pelri Drupuk
Look beautiful one it is yet there
wondrous still is it
for from its rock a nectar flows
a healing essence
for those in need
many caves surround it here
each with its wondrous story
Kabgye Drupuk where Vajravarahi
she of beauty and fiery resonance
appeared within the very stone
before the gaze of
Gyeltsab Gyurme Pema Namgyel
to bring insight to his seeking mind
that sustained him through the years to come
when beneath the hill he founded
place of learning within the sight of the
Zhechen monastery of Nyingmapa fame
The Khandro Bumgyi Drupuk
wth stupa of red and white
where Tangtong Gyelpo sat in retreat
to emerge blinking into the day
in his mind already built
intricate in detail
to its very fasteners
gleaming beneath the sky
yet another great cast iron span
over the great heights
above raging cataract
to stand through the centuries
the elements
and the generations
of pilgrims merchants wayfarers
as a beacon of safe passage
Osel Drupuk where
the form of deity Rigdzin Dupa
grew from the very rock
to stand before us here
Amongst all these once stood
as if drawn by their sacred power
the monastery of Zhechen itself
so great its fame so renowned its teachers
that a hundred thousand once came from
all parts all lineages of Tibet among them
Nyingmapa Kagyupa Sakayapa
Kadampa Gelukpa
even the ancient Bon
to sit beneath its teaching throne
It was filled with wondrous sculptures
tangkha banners of brilliant color
hung from its high places
and murals graced its halls
everywhere the eye could see
even statues formed from the very places
where Yeshe Tsogyel Padmasambhava
once drew sustenance
though all this gone
to destruction of which we know
the herbs and grass yet sway in the wind
the caves yet beckon
the sacred power remains
All this not so wonderful
to my straining eyes
as your determined beauty
and swift uplifted grace
that endures with patient dignity
this that I see in you
beneath the open sky
on this morn
of our summer of working and waiting
Lotus blossoms rest
upon the window sill
and so we wait
two as one
we our effort
real and lasting
slight gentle
beautiful one
June 22
* courtesy of A Luminous Diamond (Bright) Crystal Show productions.
reference material for the poem is courtesy of the Footprint Tibet handbook by Gyurme Dorje.