From the Heart

Teacher and Students Share Their Poems

Photo by Brian HarrisFeatured below is a poem by Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche, Who Am I? that he read during a December 2019 Facebook Live broadcast, Poetry of Tibet, which included two well-known Tibetan poets who also read their work in Tibetan. You can see some of the translations into English on the CyberSangha website. We also have two poems that sangha members shared with us during this past winter retreat at Serenity Ridge. We invite you to share a poem of yours that has arisen through your connection to Bön. Just send it to our This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .)

Who Am I? 

I – who am I?
I am no one
I can be anyone
I am Kuntuzangpo, who cannot be seen by looking
I am the melody that cannot heard by listening
I am the truth that cannot be held by grasping
I am the energy that cannot be stopped by blocking
Do you know me?
I am no one
I can be anyone
I – who am I?
I am no one
I can be anyone
I am the space between thoughts
I am the joy between painful moments
I am the confidence between fears
I am the peace between wars
I am the light that sees the darkness
I am the ear of compassion that hears suffering
I am the warmth of the heart that generates joy
I am the power of mind that benefits others
I – who am I?
I am no one
I can be anyone
I am the source of everything
I am the expanse of the boundless sky
I am the radiant light that is everywhere
I am the wind that grants life force
I am the fire that enlivens the body
I – who am I?
I am no one
I can be anyone
I am the refuge that abides within you
I am the value that spontaneously manifests
I am the energy that arises naturally and ceaselessly
I am the activity that compassionately benefits others
I – who am I?
I am no one
I can be anyone
I am the mother who loves
I am the friend who can be trusted
I am the power that protects from enemies
I – who am I?
I am no one
I can be anyone
I am home for you who are homeless
I am the friend for you who are lonely
I am power for you who are weak
I am wealth for you who are poor

– Ababa (Tenzin Wangyal) September 24, 2019
(translated by Tenzin Wangyal and Steven Goodman, 29 September, 2019, Cafe Leila, Berkeley, California) 

*****

The Students

Seeds blown from the East;
Lying dormant of our potential;
Gently grounded with fertile soil;
Ceaselessly watered with wisdom and love;
Finally illuminated by his boundless clarity;
We grow.

–Scott Clearwater

*****

Sound Banquet

When I am dying I would like to hear
Grandchildren (or great-grandchildren) squabbling in the next room;
My children laughing, a tea kettle squeaking and someone taking it off;
The garbage truck, the early morning bus, birds,
My neighbors' voices in the hall;
The dog suddenly barking at nothing.
I would like to arrange for someone to play scales on the cello
As beautifully as I have imagined I someday would.
I would like to lie there and hear my two dead husbands snoring
(one at a time, of course),
Mozart, Blossom Dearie, and the click of Sally's claws
Walking across the hardwood floors of cat heaven.

Since I am already dying, I will listen to all of these as often as I can
And dream of Sally
And the husbands
And great-grandchildren yet to come.

–Mattie Scott