This re-post is in reply to the images of samurai posted above by AHH;

A meditation on the “Way of the Warrior”. Events described are derived from the
Genpei War – circa late 12th Century in Japan, and specifically, the fierce “Naval
Battle of Dan-no-una” where the warring clans, the Minamato, aka the Genji, and
the Taira (t-EH-ee-i-ra), aka the Heike, fought their final battle. With the Minamato
triumph, the Shogun era (essentially military dictatorship) was ushered in to last for 700 years.

https://www.artelino.com/articles/naval_battle_dannoura.asp

The Way of the Warrior

They fought like lions, paying their dues,
With no place to flee and nothing to lose.
Expecting no quarter, giving none in return –
The way of the warrior, of fire interned!

By noon that riptide had begun to relent,
The fury of the Heike was all but spent;
The drunken tiger lay on the seabed –
His fleet in disarray, the Emperor dead!

“A fortress I’ll build, a sturdy redoubt!”
The Empress mother swore at her army’s pullout;
“Where the mountain meets the waters that churn –
At far Kobe we shall adjourn!”

As night closed in on that battered old quay,
A company of horsemen had gathered at the scree;
Nestled in that bluff and surrounded by sea –
That demon lay hobbled for all to see!

When fire began to rain from above,
The fates foreswore that labour of love;
Neither rain, sleet nor hail could begin to quell,
The flames that engulfed the citadel!

The Taira elite once again stayed fate,
Scooped up by their armada anchored in the strait;
But the Genji and the Heike would once again meet,
In the waters off Shikoku in dawn’s red heat!

They fought like lions paying their dues,
With nowhere to run and nothing to lose.
Expecting no quarter, giving none in return –
The way of the warrior, of fire interned!

Holding him close in her watery descent,
Through the bodies and the blood and the excrement;
That jiji maddened and the boy foredoomed –
His breath expelled, his life consumed!

By noon that riptide had begun to relent,
The fury of the Heike was all but spent;
The drunken tiger lay on the seabed –
His fleet in disarray, the young Emperor dead!

As night closes in on those forced to flee,
Ill omened or cited by destiny;
A samurai true, when called to the task,
Does not hesitate, nor does he ask…

Drunken Tiger: samurais were referred to as drunken tigers, ie; drunk with righteousness (here referring to General Tomomori, who, mortally wounded, tied an anchor to his waist and lept overboard.

jiji: an affectionate term for grandmother, referring to the Emporer, a boy of six, and the moment his grandmother committed them both to a watery grave, death being preferrable to shame.

scree: a rubble of stones at the bottom of a cliff

“That demon lay hobbled”:  this is a reference to the great fortress built by the Taira, “furrowed into a mountain and surrounded by sea”, which, in spite of a violent storm, lit up like a bonfire after the young general Yoshitsuné rained flaming arrows onto the fine woodwork of its rooves, ramparts etc.

The final stanza refers to the great Minamato general, Yoshitsune, who, having bee the brilliant strategist behind the Minamato victory, was then condemned to death by his elder brother, Yoshitomo, to death. Yoshitomo would go on to become Shogun.

Yoshitsune fled with his family, (he had taken a Taira noble as a wife, hence the decree from the Shogun), and, seeing no chance of escape, murdered his entire family, before committing hara-kiri himself. And all this before the age of thirty!

I couldn’t resist adding this reply from ioan, not to aggrandize myself, but to hear his voice again;

ioan; What a history poem, Dimitar… And your explanations as a crown to it…beautiful! Dimitar as I told you, you have a great talent, your poetry will be better and better.

The Contemplative

the light of reason
dispels the darkness of night
enveloping soul

mountains of passion;
the heart must become as
firm as a diamond!

lopping off the branches
and cutting through the roots
of the tree of evil;
the sword of wisdom!

the contemplative;
scattering the clouds that veil
the celestial light of the moon

neither gold nor jewels
sway the man who is master
of his destiny

What Will It Be?

what will it be;
fear or love?
it’s up to you!

there are those who build
and those who destroy;
be a builder and not a destroyer!

the golden heart;
dispelling darkness as it
lights the way for all

the key to understanding
the Spirit of Life; letting go
and letting God!

dreaming your dream;
building the bridge to your outer world
one day at a time

an invisible summit
on an invisible mountain,
only you can see!

healing depends
upon the individual;
how conscious is Soul?

one with the one
within the one; your atoms
teach my atoms!

and when,
on that fateful day, the
question had been posed
to all of God’s creation, from
the depths of mud and fire,
to the arc of the Empyrean –
“Who hast forgotten?”,
a tiny voice spoke up;
“Not I”, said the fly!

Thanks for the beautiful poem, Sudhi; I couldn’t resist this reply… Happy New Year!

I decided to try and elaborate a little on what I’ve written in my previous post, re: the memory of a Golden Age, which in and of itself, is, in my belief, the memory of the eternal world that Soul sprang from and is destined to return to. That is why I say confusion arises when Soul tries to contain the memory in the form of an idea or precept that is fixed or amounts to someone’s “idea of heaven”, rather than the living, breathing “I am” that we are, the sense of which is constantly changing in a subtle way, and is never quite what it was, yesterday. The Golden Age therefore cannot be set in time and space, but lies in the very nature of Soul Itself. Attachment is Soul’s greatest trap. Soul must always keep a “modicum of distance” therefore, between Itself and whatever It is experiencing in order to not lose Itself or become overwhelmed.

To break down the mechanics of what I am saying further, we can think of it in the following way; Soul is the living, moving occupant in the vast panorama of fixed states of consciousness which may be thought of as “rooms” or “mansions” in the House of God. Entering these states of consciousness requires agreement with the ideas and feelings associated with each, and conversely,  departure from them requires a “new set of ideas of feelings” superseding the former set of accepted ideas. To move to another state or room – consciousness as it is generally known – necessitates a change in faith and beliefs. In this way Soul gradually takes control of Its destiny eschewing the “terms and conditions” that govern any and every fixed state of consciousness, in favour of new states of consciousness, that reflect Soul’s ever greater understandings, freedom and ability to accept God’s will.

Sara Bareillies – Goodbye Yellow Brick Road – this takes Elton’s original to another level, imo.

This beautiful Salon provides a chance to make up, using ready art to say more than words can say.

Feel free to access anything here if you ever feel the need, AHH; the result of one artist’s lifetime (so far) journey…

http://valenis.net

forgiveness;
the balm that enables one
resurrection after another

creativity;
the secret is to not take
anything for granted

define and cleave
unto your need; without need
God gives nothing!

The Inner Child

He moves in silence through inner space,
Just beyond the mind’s embrace.

Swift on his feet and shy as the deer;
Don’t even try to get too near!

Subtle and smart and wise as the owl,
He patiently waits beneath his cowl.

And if you’re tender or hurt or sad,
He’ll appear out of nowhere and make you glad.

When skies are dark and you’ve lost your way,
He’ll invent some game and start to play.

Before you know it you’ll be playing along;
You’ll be laughing out loud and singing his song.

What is his secret, where does he live?
                                                                                                                          All that he has, he’s ready to give!

Where does he come from, where does he go?
Only the heart and the soul may know!