Short Breaths, Long Breaths
I sit breathing, feel the breaths in and out,
know the breaths long and short, wish the peace
for heaven and earth, wish for soothing seasons
of rain and wind, and wish for all to have
enough food and clothing.
I sit breathing, feel the breaths short and long, know the breaths in
and out, spread the breaths through my sitting body, and see me sit
with me sitting. I sit breathing, feel the breaths long
and short, see some breaths out short and some in long,
wish the peace for heaven and earth, wish for
soothing seasons of rain and wind, and wish for moms and sisters
and brothers to have food and clothing. With tears in eyes and
heavy karma on shoulders, I sit breathing...
I stand breathing, and breathing I stand. Feeling the breaths short,
I know the breaths short; feeling the breaths long, I know
the breaths long. I see that all the springs,
summers, autumns, and winters are hiding in
my breaths. This breath is long, carrying a warm
spring; the next is short, rushing the summer
sun. My body moves along with short
and long breaths, carries away the sorrow of
autumn’s falling leaves, and soaks in the chilly breeze
of winter amid which we shiver and miss each other.
Breathing I stand and feel the breaths in and out, and wish the
peace every day for the world, and wish for all children
to have their happy schooldays...
Breathing in me is the vastness of heaven and earth, where
the breaths flow in and out and short and long, where the clouds
fly in my lungs, where the wind blows past my lips,
where the forest clatters in front of my eyebrows, where
the sea whistles along with the short and long breaths,
and where the ocean rages through my rushing breaths.
I sit, I stand, I walk, I lie, I run and I feel breathing in me
the surprise of heaven and earth, where the trees
and the hills stand for me and for mom and for you, where
the Tibetan forest whistles for thousands of years, and where
the wind still echoes the songs that Lao Tzu tapped on the ox horn.
Breathing I feel the breaths short and long, and wish the
peace for heaven and earth, and wish for all children
to have enough food every day...
Breathing I feel the long and short breaths; breathing I feel
the short and long breaths -- seeing the red breaths,
seeing the blue breaths, seeing the yellow breaths,
seeing the black breaths, and wishing for the world’s suffering
to soak into the breaths. Thus I sit and endure the world’s suffering;
thus I stand and endure for that you and mom and sisters and brothers
would be peaceful.
not a self I see;
I see not a self.
only breathing,
only the breaths...
By Phan Tan Hai
Copyright © Hai Phan | Year Posted 2022
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