Wednesday, March 29, 2017

a small green island






There is a small green island
where one white cow lives alone,
a meadow of an island.
 
The cow grazes till nightfall, full and fat,
but during the night she panics
and grows thin as a single hair.  "What shall I eat
tomorrow?  There's nothing left!"
 
By dawn, the grass has grown up again, waist-high.
The cow starts eating and by dark
the meadow is clipped short.
 
She's full of strength and energy, but she panics
in the dark as before, and grows 
abnormally thin overnight.
 
The cow does this over and over,
and this is all she does.
 
She never thinks, "This meadow has never failed
to grow back.  Why should I be afraid
every night that it won't?"
 
The cow is the bodily soul.
The island field is this world where
that grows lean with fear and fat with blessing,
 
lean and fat.  White cow,
don't make yourself miserable
with what's to come, or not to come.
 
 
 
~ Rumi
translation by Coleman Barks
 
 
 

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