SONG OF THE WOODEN MAN
after “The Jewel Mirror Samadhi”
by Ch’an Master Tung-shan Liang-chieh
Because there is the base
there is house, cat, cow;
jeweled pedestals;
fine clothing.
The stone woman offers up the dance;
the wooden man begins to sing.
Excitement? doubt? – both pitfalls,
for nothing comes nor goes:
path and traveler merging,
you are not it; it is actually you.
Hiding a heron in the moonlight;
filling a silver bowl with snow.
Yi with his archer’s skill
strikes targets at hundreds of paces...
but arrow-heads meeting point-on? —
can this be caused by targeting?
The stone woman offers up the dance;
the wooden man begins to sing.
This is the host within the host:
a tethered horse, secretly whirling,
ecstatic rat, outwardly calm.
You have it now, so keep it well.
Hiding a heron in the moonlight;
filling a silver bowl with snow.
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