The Holy Aged

By "OBSIDIAN!!!" [Excerpt from "Zen is Now" c. 1990]



Out of the thick black smoke of a tempestuous fire!
I
Was born
Ah, long ago, when the universe was young
And the newborn lamps yawned within the cosmic throng
Up! Up! Into the constellation's clearing
Down, down, into the world
I
Was thrown
I
Woke up to the world in a flood of lights
Crying without a name
I
Walk through the crowded streets of mankind dying
Naked, but yet clothed in shame. When
I
Look up to the stars at night
I see
Stars spread out into infinity
And the dome of a lonely universe enshrouding me. If
I
Spread my arms out
I
Would fly, high over the expanse of a cloudless sky
High over the depths of a fathomless sea
High over the smog of a crowded city street
Up! Up! Into the zodiacs burning
High over the dome of the universes turning. And as
I
View the scene while my stomach's churning
I
Consider all I've done and who
I AM