tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-64711862012-01-19T02:56:54.249Zcrushed, fermented, bottled, and cellaredAum Dadanoreply@blogger.comBlogger16181100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-2878773557568631372010-10-01T17:10:00.002+01:002010-10-01T17:14:04.727+01:00

this blog has been officially retired (as well as reverted back to its original name and kept online for posterity's sake). all future poetry and poetics will be posted at sonrivers. com (aka http://sonrivers.blogspot.com/ ). spirituality and poetry cannot be separated: into the mystic!

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-24136816454479045322010-07-13T11:07:00.000+01:002010-07-13T11:07:00.339+01:00

Sitting in the shade,I look acoss the riverat a wall of easternpines; it could be severalhundred years ago.The sun is shining thereand not a motor boathas been invented yet.And I remain unborn.~Kokoro Sonzai 2010 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-87955208397769472172010-07-12T11:13:00.000+01:002010-07-12T11:13:00.505+01:00

this is not a zen-like poem;there is no zen within these words:in fact there is no poem at all.~Kokoro Sonzai 2010 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-91737634218243813232010-07-09T22:57:00.001+01:002010-07-09T22:57:51.458+01:00

Two years ago I crossedthe southwest desert thinkingabout a drop of truththat's totally undrinkable.Now it's hot and humidin New England andI'm drinking cold green teait's true--but sweetly unthinkable.~Kokoro Sonzai 2010 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-27989873742344437012010-05-29T03:01:00.001+01:002010-05-29T03:07:31.988+01:00

the sea is me before there was being.being the sea is like sighting first landwithout seeing. i sit on that landunderstanding the sea is but nothing.now a wave is rising and the sea is me, being.~Kokoro Sonzai 2010 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-65095362012708413052010-05-28T03:30:00.007+01:002010-05-28T03:50:21.740+01:00

nothing but the moon tonight—and cotton-like clouds in burnished shreds...above a ragged wall of black pine treeslining the narrow road sporadically lit—where I and this form of a shadow split.~Kokoro Sonzai 2010 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-18947023579931212302010-05-27T01:36:00.001+01:002010-05-27T01:38:46.984+01:00

the river magnifies the smallest event.one duck chases another in flight.an osprey flies toward the opposite shore.a fish rolls over and touches the sky.i feel the wind as if i weren’t even here.~Kokoro Sonzai 2010 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-52541950699157836592010-03-03T02:39:00.001Z2010-03-03T02:39:00.240Z

high tide full moonthe howl of waves like mein love withinthis manifesting tune~Kokoro Sonzai 2010 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-90461050087319984962010-03-02T02:38:00.000Z2010-03-02T02:39:27.964Z

howling windsounding like the ghost oflights out!~Kokoro Sonzai 2010 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-31981852061065633902010-02-12T01:37:00.000Z2010-02-12T01:38:09.844Z

in the empty harborthere’s low tide momentumtowards a white line of chaoswhere the never-ending sea is breakingon an ever-changing river~Kokoro Sonzai 2010 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-69380293344371344982010-02-11T03:05:00.002Z2010-02-11T03:06:43.190Z

the forecast was for heavy snowbut nowcasting had changed its mindto almost nothing: just enough to fillits spot in space~Kokoro Sonzai 2010 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-46074029797998667242010-02-10T02:09:00.001Z2010-02-10T02:10:57.314Z

I rested atthe Old Man of the Mountain viewpointto look at ledges where the Profile formedbefore collapsing but behelddense fog instead.~Kokoro Sonzai 2010 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-90035770942748841192010-02-08T23:59:00.001Z2010-02-09T03:33:23.741Z

like stained glassplates of ice are floatingdown the steeple river inthe holy resurrection of returningsun so let us play~Kokoro Sonzai 2010 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-20731144520693682972010-02-07T14:57:00.003Z2010-02-07T15:01:48.187Z

super bowl sunday isn’t supererthan any ordinary day this winter:empty chilly mostlysunny with a kissof space-time being bliss~Kokoro Sonzai 2010 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-31279225205540773362010-02-06T19:11:00.000Z2010-02-07T15:00:37.778Z

There’s a life in Latourell Fallsgreener than day glowand wetter than rainwear,alive with that essence speakingthe language of my body.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-42596433537568397542010-02-06T18:11:00.000Z2010-02-07T15:00:12.389Z

While in Seattle,we visited the first Starbucks.In the beginning, there was caffeine,and the gods said it is good.But make me a skinny.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-46262376364483369802010-02-06T17:11:00.002Z2010-02-06T17:11:00.123Z

Do all the footprintsand handprintsat Grauman's Chinese Theatre haveBuddha Nature?La!~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-21670022321593652682010-02-06T08:11:00.000Z2010-02-07T15:01:06.717Z

We pass the road for the monastery.I stop and turn.Soon we’re high abovethe sea at Big Sur.But really we’re on a long & winding road.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-66539465801852781252010-02-05T16:59:00.001Z2010-02-05T17:12:42.045Z

Walking alone, I found half a sand dollarat Sand Dollar Beach.I gave it to her, and it turnedto pieces in her pocket.Voids of interest!~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-40024891591783089262010-02-01T15:46:00.000Z2010-02-01T15:46:00.691Z

The sea is nothing.The sea is everything.The sea is seen.The sea is hidden in Monterey Submarine Canyon depths.The sea is not the sea.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-47262320122962387202010-01-31T15:45:00.000Z2010-01-31T15:45:00.144Z

Morro Rock must have been an illusion,an impossible peakself-contained by the shore.I know I never could have seen it.I was transfixed.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-81527986032262472412010-01-30T15:44:00.000Z2010-01-30T15:44:00.742Z

Passing by the amusement park in Santa Cruz,I didn’t stop.It seemed so less amusingthan all the sights andsounds we had seen so far.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-22912324278926621882010-01-29T15:43:00.000Z2010-01-29T15:43:00.632Z

Before the Pigeon PointLighthouse isa field of wildflowers.Both lights point the way.No way!~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-10787066734339748962010-01-28T15:41:00.000Z2010-01-28T15:41:00.048Z

On the plane to Portland,my seatmate, Mr. Hunt,told me of a monastery high above Big Sur.It seemed tantamountI pursue passing by to LA.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-71861638401594511462010-01-27T15:38:00.001Z2010-01-27T15:41:48.073Z

Why do we gather at Elk Prairieto watch and take pictures ofa herd of elk?They are merely grazing, insensible to our existence.Ah!~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-81169754492473529252010-01-25T01:39:00.001Z2010-01-25T01:39:00.122Z

Mulholland Drive hugsa ridge above LA dealingviews of the rich & famous teeteringin their hillsideabodes. This construction is faithful.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-49289703141914242312010-01-24T01:38:00.000Z2010-01-24T01:38:00.414Z

There are likely mythological creaturespetrified in the seastackson the Oregon coast.They’re likely to populate my dreamwith likenesses.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-17035338766884737882010-01-23T01:36:00.000Z2010-01-23T01:36:00.381Z

From Sausalito,San Francisco risesacross the bay like the White City.It costs $6 to cross the Golden Gate to get there tho.Cheap dharma.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-80794936811116061702010-01-22T01:35:00.002Z2010-01-22T01:35:00.342Z

Vineyards in Sonoma Valleylook like crucifixionsas far as the eye can see.Beyond that lies the resurrection of our wine.A votre sante.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-62890660085972739682010-01-21T01:34:00.002Z2010-01-21T01:37:33.194Z

Sitting by the road at New Camoldihigh above Big Sur,I see I’m the bubble,and Spirit, that unknowable knowing nothing without no, enters.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-73539721168940660072009-11-20T03:58:00.001Z2009-11-20T03:59:17.644Z

In the name of quantum particlesI've become this wave that crasheson the shore of possibility.And love is breakingeverything around me.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-40532248820296218832009-11-19T11:29:00.000Z2009-11-19T11:29:00.308Z

It’s darkbut I know the riverflows out there becauseI feel it flowingin my soundless veins.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-20791600622889522162009-11-18T21:03:00.001Z2009-11-18T21:05:51.792Z

The low November sun is nothingbut a skipping stoneupon the waters of my beingbut still I ripple every timeI feel it.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-24185979765085413052009-11-08T01:30:00.002Z2009-11-08T01:30:00.608Z

On the shore, I think,boats are like thoughts on the river.November is a timefor such clear meditation.Only the river!~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-60712047912569732982009-11-07T01:29:00.001Z2009-11-07T01:29:38.108Z

On the dark bluewaters of ten thousand waves,one white swan.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-76368427322338835552009-11-04T03:06:00.000Z2009-11-04T03:20:36.734Z

when a single silent wavecrashesa crescendo of ten thousand worlds appear~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-64820660788305588372009-10-27T15:57:00.001Z2009-10-27T15:57:16.662Z

Winter approacheslike the long shadowof a breathtakingly great prehistoric birdflying overhead. It flaps its wingsand leaves scatter.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-71007773151101942492009-10-13T00:35:00.002+01:002009-10-13T00:37:47.678+01:00

eternally fallingwitnessed the eternal falling leaf today:an orange leaf floating stationary in mid-air for minutes on end—on closer analysis, it was attached to the end of a spider's thread.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-6394787946463190132009-10-10T02:00:00.000+01:002009-10-10T02:00:01.023+01:00

Busybeneath the sky often-thousand stars,busy replacing the outdoor light~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-10730482409180236832009-10-09T01:58:00.000+01:002009-10-09T01:58:00.404+01:00

Veilsthe silver veils of rainthat mute the autumn colorare these words describing rain~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-12174736821130005092009-10-08T02:42:00.000+01:002009-10-08T02:42:00.140+01:00

Chirpsyou are the silenceand those thoughts are tiny cricket chirpsdecreasing as identification lowers~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-45001623546873890712009-10-07T02:34:00.000+01:002009-10-07T02:34:00.683+01:00

Voiddoes that black dog knowbeyond the rock he's pissing on,an oceanic void iscrashing on its other side?~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-6775479478083482332009-10-06T02:32:00.000+01:002009-10-06T02:32:00.072+01:00

Going Outthe tidal chart can tell methat the tide is going outbut Who knows wherein the world it's going~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-31920478620173160622009-10-05T02:30:00.001+01:002009-10-05T02:30:00.757+01:00

Beyondbeyond a gray utility poleand it's microwave transmitter,this slate pale-hued Atlantic glows~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-74591681711326719622009-10-04T02:28:00.001+01:002009-10-04T02:28:00.147+01:00

Uprighta man is putting on his wetsuit;his surfboard rests uprightby his car in a puddlefrom the heavy rain last night~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-30636117309018928322009-10-03T02:14:00.000+01:002009-10-03T02:14:00.906+01:00

Emptyno seals are restingon the empty rocksjust off this silentPulpit Point;no winter has arrived as yet~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-39241355551267564972009-10-02T01:56:00.003+01:002009-10-02T02:00:24.612+01:00

Formsin the autumn-colored marsha snowy egretforms a question markdespite the exclamationof the northwest wind~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-87890587457093798832009-10-01T02:13:00.001+01:002009-10-01T02:15:43.734+01:00

What Fallsthe last leaf takes one lookout at the emptiness aroundbefore it falls within it too~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-33018306843884599592009-08-28T02:29:00.000+01:002009-08-28T02:30:16.352+01:00

Late August cool and nowMid-April sun appearingin a slant of visionprophesizing earth’simpermanence is onlysomething seasonal.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers) reformatted from original twitter for twitterku

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-37053977790469287072009-08-26T15:56:00.002+01:002009-08-26T16:01:09.418+01:00

houseboat onthe dawning riverall its sunumbrellas openedfor the shockand now of day~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers) reformatted and revised from original twitter

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-52954823132723734992009-08-25T16:03:00.001+01:002009-08-25T16:05:29.661+01:00

yellow leavesnow interminglewith the green—the tree remainsas new as ever~Son Rivers reformatted from original twitter

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-17311415638892641522009-06-19T23:51:00.002+01:002009-06-19T23:52:11.630+01:00

In torrential rainsBashō stands in his boatfishing for hokku. ~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers) reformatted from original twitter for twitterku

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-29552068494066245842009-06-19T02:15:00.000+01:002009-06-19T02:16:11.480+01:00

Bashō watchesfireworks over the city:not cherry blossoms! ~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers) reformatted from original twitter for twitterku

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-17718312853296834352009-06-18T01:49:00.000+01:002009-06-18T01:51:00.554+01:00

Dreaming, Bashōwakes in Matsushima now:still Matsushima! ~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers) reformatted from original twitter for twitterku

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-10429235320624466682009-06-17T01:48:00.000+01:002009-06-18T01:49:11.132+01:00

Bashō stopped short,turning to Sora and sighed“no hokku when Zen.” ~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers) reformatted from original twitter for twitterku

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-59984370267200733492009-05-19T18:33:00.000+01:002009-05-19T18:35:14.180+01:00

Mount St. Helenscirca 1980:First there is a mountain,then there is no mountain,then there is.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers) reformatted from original twitter for twitterku

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-54119551124543947992009-05-14T17:14:00.000+01:002009-05-14T17:16:31.515+01:00

There’s a greenin the Columbia River Gorgethat’s like water come to life.In places, it’s pervasive and ubiquitous.I am that: green.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers) reformatted from original twitter for twitterku

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-24189721685960316012009-05-09T04:50:00.001+01:002009-05-09T04:54:30.559+01:00

Sitting by the road at the New Camaldolihigh above Big Sur, I see Spirit penetrate the bubble. Someone calls it God. The story begins.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers) reformatted from original twitter for twitterku

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-45570441054091641082009-05-06T13:57:00.001+01:002009-05-06T13:59:06.152+01:00

That Malibu is 27 miles longis mind-blowing.That Thomas Merton died on the 27th anniversary of his ordinationis mind-inhaling.Breathing!~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers) reformatted from original twitter for twitterku

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-14196486316041224952009-05-05T02:04:00.001+01:002009-05-05T02:08:10.001+01:00

The Olympic Mountainsseen from Seattlelook less like the home of the godsand more like maybe Alaska.None of them is real of course.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers) reformatted from original twitter for twitterku

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-13018174773440998672009-05-01T14:49:00.001+01:002009-05-01T14:51:42.872+01:00

Stuck in trafficon the freeway in Santa Barbara.With apologies to Kurt Vonnegut:there’s no damn free and no damn way.Just here and now.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers) reformatted from original twitter for twitterku

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-73115933645104371482009-04-27T14:47:00.002+01:002009-05-09T04:53:25.928+01:00

Seastacks of the Oregon Coastrise from waveslike thoughts of a continent.If seeing is truly disbelieving,then why does the sun set here?~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers) reformatted from original twitter for twitterku

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-58622306072495329702009-04-26T23:44:00.001+01:002009-05-09T04:53:02.644+01:00

Cannery Rowin Monterey is no longer the siteof sardine canning factories.It conspicuously consumes America instead.But where’s Charley?~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers) reformatted from original twitter for twitterku

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-29146873379801426542009-04-25T03:20:00.001+01:002009-04-25T03:22:44.090+01:00

The sea lions at Pier 39in SF posedan interesting question to tourists last week.No one answered with moos though.And I nearly got sick.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers) reformatted from original twitter for twitterku

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-78577273972033901742009-04-24T03:27:00.003+01:002009-04-24T04:50:21.884+01:00

Watching surfers ridethe waves at Hermosa Beach is likewatching folks in wetsuits meditating:enlightenment is the wipe out,not the ride.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers) reformatted from original twitter for twitterkuspecial link to the Ventures Live: Wipe Out

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-81081860990203653202009-04-22T13:42:00.002+01:002009-04-22T13:44:46.790+01:00

Sitting by the roadat the New Camaldoli Hermitagehigh above the mountains and sea of Big Sur,I realized somethingabout bubbles and God.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers) reformatted from original twitter for twitterku

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-82098368668033687702009-04-21T19:57:00.002+01:002009-04-21T20:00:18.384+01:00

There’s somethingabout a Redwood forestno words or photoswill ever tell. Of course,that’s the way it is.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers) reformatted from original twitter for twitterku

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-83081857970779130822009-04-21T03:30:00.001+01:002009-04-21T03:32:56.833+01:00

The roughs at Pebble Beach are like Zentemples in Japan.Beautiful but utilitarian.I actually saw one golfer get out—the waves, the waves!~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers) reformatted from original twitter for twitterku

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-70899541975452577512009-04-20T14:23:00.002+01:002009-04-20T14:27:53.146+01:00

So what if I huggeda tree in Oregon!Clichés are just the dream-worldpetrified. And besides,it was a damned good-looking tree.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers) reformatted from original twitter for twitterku

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-2063383583472533322009-04-19T15:24:00.002+01:002009-04-19T15:27:14.121+01:00

From the Space Needle in Seattle,time is eliminated from the Continuum andvertigois just another wordfor Now.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers) reformatted from original twitter for twitterku

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-67227239909605263872009-04-18T13:41:00.001+01:002009-04-18T13:43:36.424+01:00

Watching it rainin Sonoma Valleyreveals the manifest meaningof Christ’s First Miracle:turning water into wine.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers) reformatted from original twitter for twitterku

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-54030184251371941202009-04-17T21:42:00.003+01:002009-04-17T21:46:08.208+01:00

From Portland,the white summit of Mt Hood isvision of the search for Truth;the lost summit of Mt St Helens isvision of that Truth found.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers) reformatted from original twitter for twitterku

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-70131523838614992412009-04-17T17:05:00.008+01:002009-04-17T17:11:52.224+01:00

Then I’m told to lookbeneath the HOLLYWOOD sign.I did; only found a tofu burritow/ organic beans & brown rice in a whole wheat tortilla.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers) reformatted from original twitter for twitterku

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-19557770761032122312009-04-16T16:13:00.001+01:002009-04-16T16:15:22.681+01:00

The ultimate truth is like L.A.No matter how long you drive looking for it,you’ll never find it.And when you do find it,it’s not there. ~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers, reformatted from original twitter for twitterku)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-81633797643184539572009-04-15T21:45:00.002+01:002009-04-15T21:48:09.272+01:00

I always think of the truthas something visionarybut I smelled itin North Beach last week:garlic!~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers, reformatted from original twitter for twitterku)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-90780804331974684452009-04-15T21:22:00.000+01:002009-04-15T21:23:43.335+01:00

If you can’t describe ultimate realitywith words,then why do so many try?Answer found in Seattle last week:the Public Market.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers, reformatted from original twitter for twitterku)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-84773030673684229422009-04-15T21:20:00.001+01:002009-04-15T21:22:10.533+01:00

Ten days away from the East Coastdriving down the West Coastpondering the truth of No Coastis quite the tripindeed.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers, reformatted from original twitter for twitterku)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-46985444802301606402009-04-15T21:14:00.004+01:002009-04-15T21:19:02.279+01:00

Sitting in the airportand wondering how I'll flywhile my body sitsand this consciousness goesnowhere at all.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009 (trans. Son Rivers, reformatted from original twitter for twitterku)

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-34289850517183041302009-03-26T23:50:00.000Z2009-03-26T23:51:28.764Z

March 26 2009The inflorescence of reed grasswaving by the tidal riverflowing swiftly upstreamdissolves to nothingas I stop thinking.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-58911763147101462342009-03-21T01:54:00.001Z2009-03-21T01:56:56.641Z

Peepers AgainLike a memory thawingafter seasons of bitter amnesia,the sound of peepers—drenched in the depths of fifteen years—singing the spring is always new now.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-69525057046300008642009-03-20T02:31:00.003Z2009-03-20T02:37:39.383Z

So many translations of the Basho Splash poem! And here’s another one, but now for something completely different, from Mathematical Poetry, a mathematical translation that goes like this:Frog = Splash(The Self – The Mind)/ The Old Pond + NoiseSo, I’d like to try my hand at this game using my own interpretation.Frog = (Old Pond (Enlightenment - Ego) / Splash) + The UniverseIt doesn’t equate in

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-15702946360578825492009-03-18T01:06:00.011Z2009-03-18T01:16:42.916Z

The snow has mostly melted. Now is the time to resume my walking. To that purpose, I strolled along the road, by the river, looking for whatever struck my fancy. I noticed a lot of broken branches on one of the lone white birch trees, too old to bend like the one of Robert Frost, but never too old to break. And so this winter’s ice storm took its toll. Several of its branches hung like so many

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-32739745407163504592009-03-17T00:46:00.002Z2009-03-17T00:48:14.656Z

American XanaduIn High Olana, Frederic Church,sitting on his green veranda,paints this Hudson River sliceof earth, Catskill streams of consciousnessdreaming up mists of paradise.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-68435405025509656662009-03-13T00:42:00.006Z2009-03-13T00:57:59.720Z

It seems like there was some kind of synchronicity going on with the Basho frog poem recently, translating it with one word per line.From the aforementioned tobikomu – 365 days of overdoing Bashō:pondfrogslurpAnd from the newcomer, Cultural Criticism From The Grocery Department:pondfrogwhateverSince the first two lines are the same, the difference resides in the 'slurp' and the 'whatever.' Both

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-29559860438720064802009-03-11T03:05:00.003Z2009-03-11T03:14:14.349Z

After ParadiseIn heaven, trees are lacquered with a diamondbark, and angel wings as white as cumulusclouds adorn their bejeweled branches ina cottony show. Come afternoon, when the earthreturns, all melt and fall like melting snow.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-31516114415351716722009-03-10T01:23:00.001Z2009-03-10T11:30:38.385Z

Daylight Savings SnowFrom dull morning skies,wet snow is falling plumbtowards spring-melt currents—geese are gatheringon rotting shore ice.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-44634130991902402342009-03-08T00:55:00.004Z2009-03-08T01:22:11.684Z

It's only Day 12, but Derek, on his blog, "tobikomu – 365 days of overdoing Bashō," is attempting exactly that: a Basho translation a day.But it's more than that.It's a translation a day of one Basho hokku, the famous frog poem.IMHO, the worst to date:antiquated pondamphibian leaping inaquatic soundingBut he knew that:The sounds are lovely...but those words don't sound right to the English ear,

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-58580572909564162422009-03-07T03:42:00.002Z2009-03-07T03:47:55.186Z

By Bartlett's Reach 3/5 ReduxTwo eagles, their strong wide wingsdiagonal and low to the ground,slowly fanning the morning riversurrounds, circling and hovering just abovefish guts on shore ice.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-27604113816278963982009-03-06T01:57:00.001Z2009-03-06T01:58:23.806Z

By Bartlett’s Reach 3/5/09Two eagles, wingsas wide as tidal currentsthey’ve been crossing. One river,waters as deep as skylight soundingtheir reflection.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-79251659867802294042009-03-05T02:03:00.001Z2009-03-05T02:08:41.790Z

MomentarilyLike islands in a rising tideor continents amid some globalwarming, skeletal sheets of iceafter a cold March midnightalong this sparkling river.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-5954443789481347992009-03-03T23:46:00.001Z2009-03-03T23:50:02.375Z

RevelationsDragging a bright red cartfilled with rods and other gear,a man is walking on the glitteringice, then disappearsbehind the verge of a rising island.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-27164606556243646642009-03-02T16:57:00.007Z2009-03-02T17:48:14.946Z

Thanks to Steven at the Golden Fish, I have just discovered a film called Winter Days, an animated version based on a renga (in 36 stanzas), the hokku of which was written by Basho (as well as 6 other stanzas), each section filmed by a different director.I'm not sure why the links aren't working at that ste, but here's a link to the first part from Youtube. Hopefully the rest will be discovered

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-22477101052438621632009-02-28T01:17:00.002Z2009-02-28T01:20:29.775Z

Spring Surrounding the Premises27-Feb-2009; 2:30PMThe sound grew unaware at firstfamiliar with this end of winter,then suddenly remembered it was goneuntil just now—a red-winged blackbird trillsupon a distant northern bough.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-15272582193615496762009-02-27T00:13:00.004Z2009-02-27T01:26:37.544Z

The blogger ZuDfunck on the site of the same name discusses a literary genre called the Six Word Memoir. Supposedly when asked to write a six word story, Hemingway offered: 'For sale: Baby Shoes. Never worn.'[note: upon further review, it appears this was actually something written by Rob Bartlett of the Imus Show and available here in its original.]Later in the post, after discussing some

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-18995185787581912822009-02-26T00:39:00.003Z2009-02-26T01:07:36.350Z

Not Now25-Feb-2009 4:30PMThe sun is nowso high in the westernsky, I’ve loweredthe blinds to blockits illuminating eye.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-5836342003016535772009-02-25T01:19:00.012Z2009-02-25T04:58:40.149Z

Reading the verse of Basho or his poetic ancestor, Saigyo, one comes across a transcendental vision, much like Thoreau or Emerson. There is a significant difference, of course. And it’s more than just that Japanese sense of wabi sabi, although that certainly is part of it. But it’s more than impermanence itself. As the selection below from a William LaFleur essay reveals, it’s a vision of nature

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-25189448393022934422009-02-24T00:13:00.005Z2009-02-25T05:06:53.033Z

From Reverend Tom of The Honest Bark:In writing about the poet Basho, Harold Henderson in his book An Introduction to Haiku writes "It is...worthy to note that whenever Basho uses the word "dream" he seems also to be thinking of human life; and perhaps it is even more noteworthy that to him the "illusion" of the world does not seem to mean that it is in any sense unreal, but rather, as with

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-34092615832890066542009-02-23T03:49:00.005Z2009-02-23T23:31:18.226Z

East Broadway 2/22Snowmeltwaters the roadsidenurturing signs of spring—roadkill skunkresurrecting one's awareness.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009revision 1: L4 "roadkill" replaces "a dead"revision 2: L5 "one's" replaces "my"

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-13872719476530355102009-02-22T20:10:00.008Z2009-02-25T05:12:51.000Z

Cherishing the memory of a follower of the poetic spirit, I resolved to see the moon over the mountains of Kashima Shrine this autumn. I was accompanied by two men, a masterless samurai and a monk. The monk was dressed in robes black as a crow, with a bundle of sacred stoles around his neck and an image of the Buddha descending the mountain placed reverently in a portable shrine on his back. Off

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6471186.post-29801898413859704862009-02-22T14:27:00.002Z2009-02-22T19:13:22.422Z

White Mountains 2/21Immortalmountains populatedin evergreens, nowvoid with last night’ssnowfall.~Kokoro Sonzai 2009

Aum Dadanoreply@blogger.com1