The non-doing
is the winning-
all struggling
is the losing-

thinking
is inferior to
intuiting --

reasoning
is the confusing-

knowing
is the impeding-

letting
go
is superior
to holding-

in the self being nothing
is its self-discovering-

in the self-forgetting
is the intrinsic being-

emptying
is the unburdening -

the self-effacing
is its triumphing-

the self-silencing
is wisdom-breeding -

giving
is the receiving-

dying
is the home-returning

You've conquered
every empire
of the world
but are still empty
as you've failed
to conquer yourself

time rushes on
too soon you'll become old
and discover you've
nothing of value to hold

you'll sadly say then
'  All this is but a burden-
   will anyone take over
    from me?  It's free--a present!'

I'll not send you flowers
that's artificial love
I'll come only with my heart
to render all I have that you deserve-

would you prefer
my look or that of every flower?
Not a single one could speak
of the love which on you I'll shower!

How quickly will they fade
overnight they will wither
to love they do no justice
they can't take my place as lover-

Valentine's Day-- what a trifle!
In our hearts we've planted the eternal
love has no shelf-life nor dates
all else is nothing but ephemeral!

Be ingenious
(everyone can!)
that's a small sign
of being a commonsense 'genius'

The success-gurus
exhorted me to 'think big'
I was unmoved
by their carrot-stick-

what if I were
to remain small?
Would it affect
me at all?

Did they know me
better than I did?
Were they the seers
why me they should pick?

This would be my response:
Your bidding me to think big
wouldn't work on me
my thinking small does me neatly fit!

I had been right
more often, wrong
I learnt, reinvented
as I moved along

in life's varied terrain-
thousands of voices
I heard, as many of books
I had patiently read
but nothing of note
was comparable
to what I felt
and thought-
how I struggled
with myself
and how I fought
to make sense
of the best way
to live
with meaning

not to follow
the ways
of the lot
who sought
to educate
and guide me
to stop
me from
being my own
to draw me away
from my rock-solid spot-

life--
the meeting-ground
the endless encounters
of self and the others
the discussions
the dissensions
the differences
the setbacks and bothers

what will lead
me to my salvation
is to trust
and believe in myself
before my life
ends in oblivion

The self
is its own greatest enemy
not life, not anyone else
nor society-
for such
there's no redemption
nor remedy