Autumn Heart

Last night it rained—
Dawn’s air is full of dew.
That small path covered in ebony gravel—
Stepping on it,
The crumpling sounds are silenced.
Every piece, as if saturated with water,
Gently cradling every footstep.

Little forest is quiet,
Without a wisp of wind,
Maples, with their fiery-red leaves
Quietly unfurling within a sea of green.
At times, all yellow
At times, red meets yellow
Resplendent, amidst such tranquility.
Unceasing beauty—
How may we guard you?
Who can capture this moment?

The walnut trees
Along the path
—When was it—
That three became bare?
Yet still, there is one standing proud and tall,
Leaves, splashes of greens and amber—not a hint of withering.
The same type of trees,
Yet drastically their leaf-falls differ.
And so it is with humans—rich with emotions,
Lifespans differ, long and short
Some strained beyond their means,
While some pass seventy with vigour, vitality and piercing bright eyes.

The lake before the window is most wondrous.
Its recent experiences with the ebbs and flows of autumn.
Surprisingly, the green fabrics floating atop the lake through the summer
All vanish.
The surface of the lake
Returns to clarity.

Trees by the lake are cast onto its water-mirror.
Trees on the Earth and trees on the water,
Dancing in perfect unison.
Myriad of colours on the water,
A closer glance catches soft ripples of the trees' reflections.
Occasionally, a sound—
A long goose honk,
Accentuating the calm.

Autumn days,
Calm and beautiful,
All creations showcasing a harmonious symphony,
Maple leaves, a kaleidoscope of colours strewn across the green grass.

Maple leaves may accompany a letter,
Mailed to comfort those in longing,
Or crafted to become exquisite gifts.
But today, they lay calmly, scattered across the earth,
Spreading autumn’s glory.
All of this—each and every piece—embodies
Tranquility in equanimity,
Gratification in simplicity.

Fall waters, vast skies
Maple trees, wild geese
Those far away
May yearn for their roots,
Craving home.
Within nature’s meditative garden
The practitioner intuits:
Coarse and subtle impermanence,
The law of karma,
All things as interdependent,
And the beauty of all things without even an inkling of intrinsic essence—
Facets of the heart’s wisdom, for all to see.
Autumn sky, if it could ponder,
Would marvel:
There is a heart out there
—one that can discern—
Currently experiencing the beauty
Of all phenomena never arising or ceasing
And yet karmic forces, flowing without pause.

The Śūraṅgama Sūtra says:

“I began with a practice based on the enlightened nature of hearing. First I redirected my hearing inward in order to enter the current of the sages. Then external sounds disappeared. With the direction of my hearing reversed and with sounds stilled, both sounds and silence ceased to arise. So it was that, as I gradually progressed, what I heard and my awareness of what I heard came to an end. Even when that state of mind in which everything had come to an end disappeared, I did not rest. My awareness and the objects of my awareness were emptied, and when that process of emptying my awareness was wholly complete, then even that emptying and what had been emptied vanished. Coming into being and ceasing to be themselves ceased to be. Then the ultimate stillness was revealed.

“All of a sudden I transcended the worlds of ordinary beings, and I also transcended the worlds of beings who have transcended the ordinary worlds. Everything in the ten directions was fully illuminated, and I gained two remarkable powers. First, my mind ascended to unite with the fundamental, wondrous, enlightened mind of all Buddhas in all ten directions, and my power of compassion became the same as theirs. Second, my mind descended to unite with all beings of the six destinies in all ten directions such that I felt their sorrows and their prayerful yearnings as my own…¹

¹The Śūraṅgama Sūtra, published by the Buddhist Text Translation Society, translated by Śūraṅgama Sūtra Translation Committee, pg. 234-235.

Reciting these lines,
Within them the heart quietly
Immerses.
Repeated repetition,
Continuous contemplation,
In autumn’s light
We aspire for
The Buddhas’ wisdom.