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Buddhism
Light
 Many days, I spent in
wonder:
Who am I? Where do I come from?
Where am I going?
This writing is the result of my meditation.
It is by no means truth.
The truth, can only be realized within.
These words interpret
What I have found within my own heart.
We are body.
We are mind.
We are heart.
We are spirit.
We are light.
The body is what does.
The mind is what thinks.
The heart is what feels.
The spirit is what lives.
The light is what is.
The body is sustained by food, water, and air.
The mind is sustained by truth.
The heart is sustained by joy.
The spirit is sustained by purpose.
The light is sustained by its source.
The light is what was before being
and remains after being.
Yet being is not separate from what is,
for it is light taken shape and form
and coming into being.
Everything is light and born of light.
Even the shadows do not exist without light.
Examine the ten thousand things,
beyond form,
and find its only being
is the shape of its light.
The difference between the living
and the non-living
is that the sentient tend to the light.
The rest are like lamps without oil,
cold and still.
The world of being
is a world of suffering,
a world sustained by shadows.
It is created by our mistaking
this body, this mind, this heart and this spirit
for what is.
In forgetting our light
we forget what sustains us,
draw away from the source,
and we begin to grow dim.
We hunger
and desire is born.
We consume the light
of what surrounds us.
Our fulfillment is always short lived.
A desire fulfilled is replaced with another.
Fire must always be fed to be.
Suffering is born.
In the world of non-being
the flame is no longer fed.
It is losing self,
it is being no longer,
it is the flame put out.
Neither be
nor not be.
Instead,
be without being.
Like the bright star
in our corner of the universe,
that does not let go
of what she protects,
the source of our light
keeps us near.
Close your eyes
and see the shapeless form
that embraces us
within and without.
Close your ears
and hear the whisper
of the music that calls us home.
Find your original face.
Find the Way back home.
NOTES
Light: The energy which is the essential ingredient of all existence.
The world of "Being": Existence which is commonly referred to as the
illusion of self that abides in Samsara.
Non-being: The extinction of being, non-self which is commonly referred
to as nirvana.
Be without being: Abide in Tao.
Bright star: The sun, whose pull keeps the planets in our solar system
from spinning away and out of control.
Home: I don't know where I come from, but I know I shall return. What I
do know within my heart is that the light from the source is untainted
and pure, and I call it divine love. In my humble opinion, love is what
sustains all and love that is without measure is eternal and
everlasting.
Namaste' : The light within me bows to the light within you.
– Ch'onsa Kim
December 19, 2000
 Articles by Ch'onsa
Kim
Awakening to Peace
Conquering Life - An essay on Karma
Generosity
Light
Precepts of a Peaceful Warrior
The Eight-Fold Path
The Oceans of Tao
The Way of the Wise
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