Don’t Lose Sight

I believe that a synthesis of Christianity and Buddhism would be a great way forward for the future of religion and humanity. This synthesis may not be easy from a theological point of view but shouldn’t be too difficult from a poetic perspective. I believe Poetic Faith needs to be taken seriously. It has no affiliation to any religion but can perceive the Ultimate – God – in everyday experience just as powerfully as any devout religious person can. Poetic Faith is simple as it does not get caught up in the search for a coherent system of thought to justify its existence. Poetic Faith demands no proof; living is proof itself. It does not ask God to justify why the world is as it is and seeks to understand God with its poetic heart and soul.

I wrote the poem below several years ago. I was trying to express the desire to achieve the inner peace and detachment of the Buddhist while continuing to engage with the love-story of the Christian West.

Don’t Lose Sight of the Yak

Emptiness is a great place
to fall in love: desire burns safely
without pain.

Gautama gave compassion
the thumbs-up as he melted
into no-self. Jesus bled.

The Son of God got himself
nailed to wood for the sake
of love laid open.

When I go walking in Tibet
I shall follow the middle way:

Attach myself to souvenirs, fall
in love with a local girl, talk
philosophy with a Lama. I will
walk far enough into the hills
of passion, but without ever
losing sight of the Yak.

One final thought: I don’t think our flesh and blood humanity has much of a future if it abandons religion and spirituality completely. Artificial Intelligence, robots, androids and uploaded-minds may manage to survive without the need for a relationship with God but not us while we remain anchored to our living and breathing reality. I hope our current way of being lasts for millennia to come.

My earlier thoughts on Poetic Faith