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Author's Note: 100 word drabbles inspired by a daily meditation from the dailyzen website.

July 14, 2008

In samsara, which is like a dream and illusion, 

Sentient beings roam like blind lunatics. 

Not realizing the truth that confused

Appearances have no essence, 

Those who cling to the false as true get so exhausted. 

To the serum of youth, which is like a flower, 

The young are attached like witless bees. 

Not recognizing this is impermanent and fading, 

Those who wander in endless lower

Realms get so exhausted. 

After word knowledge, which is like a mirage, 

Teachers wander like smart wild beasts. 

Not recognizing that there’s no connection 

Between term and meaning, 

Those who wander in endless jargon get so exhausted. 

To the pleasure of experience, which is like a rainbow, 

Meditators are attached like faithful children. 

Not recognizing that it’s an enticing dead end, 

Those who hope for a result of spiritual warmth 

And signs get so exhausted. 


- Godrakpa (1170-1249)

She rolled quietly out of the bed, digging for her clothes. She ran water into her hands, over her red-rimmed eyes. Sex and alcohol didn’t count – no one would test her piss for alcohol.

As she let herself out into the bright dawn light, she darkened her vision, blinking behind protective lenses.

She answered a call on the radio, hardening the steel in her voice so no one would know the demons she had lost to.

She drove to his house, and felt tears overwhelm her eyes, and wondered if someone who had known hell could seek the light.