Ghosts of the Sun Dance-Part 1
Ghosts of the Sun Dance
1. The Path
A quest dating back through our history
Surpassing the flesh, a spiritual path
Human endurance, road to mystery
Dark trail winding through the gardens of wrath
It echoes through me, this deep ambition
Half century of miles, lifetime compressed
Much more than a race, a sacred mission
With light of hardship I hope to be blessed
To outsiders, an act of madness pure
What motivations could compel this feat?
Past limits of human strength to endure
Pushing the body well beyond defeat
Mind and sinews outlasting the firestorm
Transcendence, to shed our skin and transform
2. Sun Dance
Transcendence, to shed our skin and transform
Once, Plains Indians embraced the Sun Dance
Sacred solstice ritual to perform
Life’s rebirth to the sound of drums and chants
Young braves fasting in their preparation
A stout pole connects the lodge to the sun
Days of reveling unite the nation
Dancers’ exhaustion, they seek to outrun
Animal spirits drawn in by the rhythm
Forked tree with bison’s skull, hooks in their chest
Buffalo, bringer of potent vision
Delirious dancers complete their quest
The Spirit Quest resounds through history
Beyond mundane, to sacred mystery
3.To Endure and Transcend
Beyond mundane, to sacred mystery
Japan's “Marathon Monks” of Mount Hiei
The key to their spirit quest victory
To walk a Marathon one hundred straight days
Famed spiritual leader Sri Chinmoy
Believed hearts and spirits could be mended
Through self-transcendence, and he did enjoy
Countless long quests before his time ended
Chinmoy’s best, a fifty day epic quest
A journey thirty-one hundred miles long
Few are those who have ever passed this test
His famous Self-Transcendence Marathon
Darkest night, the gateway to a new morn,
Through painful trials, seeker’s soul reborn
4. The Spirit Is Willing
Through painful trials, seeker’s soul reborn
Deepest pain kindling the soul’s ignition
Follow the path supplicants’ feet have worn
Transformation’s crux, soul transition
Our defenses and walls cannot let in
Sacred blessings of the gods and spirits
Impenetrable, much to your chagrin
They cannot touch your heart if you fear it
Mortification, a tribulation
Humble display of the supplicant’s worth
A spiritual emancipation,
Pain always accompanies any birth
These transitions in few modern nations
Our world, rare rites of initiation
5. The Fall
Our world, rare rites of initiation
Deconstructed, traditions have been burned
Soulless life breeds infantilization
Perpetuating the puer eterne
To make our lives easier is progress,
Yet soft life an inadequate mantle
We can also suffer when life lacks stress
True transformation is never gentle
Safety, the goal of civilization
Eliminate risk, its increasing role
Safety’s bitter fruit is stagnation
Comfort cannot forge a resilient soul
Building true human vitality starts
With substance to satisfy questing hearts
6. Aimlessness
With substance to satisfy questing hearts
We dream to build greatness from the humble
Miseducation, meaninglessness start
Intrepid young souls questing for trouble
Drawn to drugs and gangs, tobacco and booze
No deep satisfaction do they contain
Oft mistaken for paying adult dues
But lead instead to spiritual chains
Youthful misadventures, trouble and blues
Sterile environment will generate
Tribal belonging they mark with tattoos
Clumsy efforts to self-initiate
Conquered world without initiations
Life’s road of genuine tribulations
7. Warrior’s Quest
Life’s road of genuine tribulations
Awaits our youth, whether they are prepared
Or not, we note with building frustrations
Future leaders, we see grow up impaired
The warrior within’s heartfelt yearning
A righteous cause in which to do battle
Meanwhile, the subway turnstiles are turning
Young champions doing time as cattle
Quests can be found for the searching young soul
Alas, the focus of education
Not on the development of the whole
But fashioning subjects of this nation
The challenge of living with one’s whole heart
Yielding to those who have mastered the art
5/19/16
Copyright by Author
For contest: Heroic Crown of Sonnets
Sponsor: Craig Cornish
Syllables confirmed by howmanysyllables.com
Copyright © Tom Quigley | Year Posted 2016
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