old tree...
forgotten lovers
carved in bark

how wonderful!
summer rain
the smell of bitumen

stone Buddha
covered in birdshit...
nothing is sacred

I bowed
to the dog shit
on my shoe
as it displayed
it's buddha-nature
for me to clean

in a drop of dew...
the entire universe
is waiting

Realizing Genjokoan- the key to Dogen’s Shobogenzo by Shohaku Okumura

“In Zen teachings, “we are what we eat” has a deep meaning. When I hold a glass of water, for example, the water is there and I am here. But, wondrously enough, when I drink the water it becomes part of me. When I breathe, part of the air becomes part of me. We are what we eat, drink, breathe, hear, smell, taste, and see. There is no “me” that exists other than the things that make up my body and mind. We are intimately connected to things in our environment, so much so that they are actually part of us. We “are” all things that we experience; we are created by them. Without this relationship with all things, we could not exist even for one moment. In reality “I,” “you,” and all other beings do not exist at all; only relationships and interactions exist.”

Bloodstream Sermon by Bodhidharma

“Beyond this mind you’ll never find another buddha. To search for enlightenment or nirvana (heaven) beyond this mind is impossible. The reality of your own self-nature, the absence of cause and effect, is what’s meant by mind. Your mind is nirvana (heaven). You might think you can find a buddha or enlightenment somewhere beyond the mind, but such a place does not exist. Trying to find buddha or enlightenment is like trying to grab space. Space has a name but no form. It’s not something you can pick up or put down. And you certainly can’t grab it. Beyond this mind you’ll never see a buddha. The buddha is a product of your own mind. Why look for a buddha beyond this mind?” (Extract from The Bloodstream Sermon of Bodhidharma, translated by Red Pine)

The sound of one mind dancing

in a moment
of quiet
contemplation
all the stars
came crashing
down

in my hand
the butterfly died
...it's all so fragile

for Shunryu Suzuki

waiting for the frog
the old fly
sits in silence

Senryu

in this blank
sheet of paper...
the entire universe!