Photo: the rock garden (karesansui) at Kenninji Temple, Kyoto.

en hommage a Lew Welch (1926-71?). Poet Lew Welch (along with Philip Whalen and Gary Snyder) attended Reed College in Oregon. In 1971, he walked into the foothills of the California Sierra Nevada, never to be seen again. His collected poems is entitled “Ring of Bone,” where “ring is what a bell does.” “Suchness” (Tathata), in contrast to “emptiness” (sunyata). Photo: Lew Welch

2020 was the year of COVID-19. In 2021, vaccinations notwithstanding, the virus continues cripple the planet. Contrary to popular sentiment, we are not “all in this together”; the inevitable avarice and financial manipulations persist. Indeed, the accompanying evils and the prioritizing of profit over people appear to have worsened.

“Sharper than a serpent’s tooth it is to have a thankless child”—so says King Lear at the start of his madness (1.4.198). Photo: Anthony Hopkins and Florence Pugh as King Lear and Cordelia (2018).

The Buddha known as Amitabha or Amida, is the principle figure in Pure Land Buddhism and is considered a source of “boundless light.” Of course, the Pure Land (like the kingdom of heaven) is located within us and each individual is an example of infinite light. Hamlet claims that “conscience makes cowards of us all” (3.1.83). William Blake wrote that “energy is eternal delight” (The Marriage of Heaven and Hell). Photo: Toji Temple, Kyoto.

“Hark!” Cretins, trolls, goblins, ogres—corporate components necessary to sustain rapacious growth, accessories after the fact. The Greek word for sin is “hamartano” which means to miss the mark or to miss the point. Photo taken at a construction site in, of all places, Hiroshima.

The impossible is limited to existence, predictions, and “natural law,” whereas in art everything is possible. In zen, Mind, with its unlimited capacity for conception, contains all solutions to alleviate, as well as create, suffering. Hence, the perceived creation anxiety of artist, media, and art (fisher, gourd, catfish). satkayadristi: “separateness, a mistaken belief in the individual as distinct from the whole.” Photo: “The Gourd and the Catfish” by Josetsu (c.1413)

“The bell is still yet the sound resonates in silence.” Food, land, music, information—to engage with these elements requires a passage through delusions, an experience best managed with cautious respect. Kannon, or Avalokiteshvara, is the bodhisattva of mercy who hears the cries of all sentient beings.

Hylozoism* pervades the resurrection game / Suppressing the persistent glare of despair / Atman* claims there’s no title to claim / “I call myself Self and no other name.” *Hylozoism: the belief that all matter is alive; *Atman: Soul or Spirit, synonymous with breath.

One year ago my mother died. Writing, as is commonly known, is a way to explore, comprehend, manage, and accept grief. In the first poem I use the word remains as both noun and verb in order to clarify and transcend the ambiguity of death. The image is an enso circle that symbolizes universal unification. In memory of my mother (1925-2020).