While gallery sitting
amidst colorful paintings,
jeweled and sculpted objects
I chatted with fellow artist,
Jeff Filipski

Always on the edge, raw, bleeding
and alive!
Jeff does not mince words, tells it honestly
like it is...
beneath the dark blue rumblings
brilliant electric flashes of intuition
a loving Soul flowers on the
world pond

During a rare glimpse of the Truth
not given to many
Jeff's words struck my Soul

As he lay in the verdant arms of Nature,
gentle currents caressing his spirit,
swooning under the vast blue kiss
of the sky

His heart cracked open
gazing upward
with a raspy voice, tears streaming,
and a choir of infinite echoes
he declared:

I KNOW YOU!

Bluejay gliding across my path
carries the celestial sky
in its wings

Crow raising a racket
squatting on the
telephone pole
has night shimmering
in its wings

Cat bird bursting with
nectarine melodies
carries Pakriti, Mother earth
aloft in its wings

We "Humans"
unaware of our
subtle essence
pulsing eternally
carry Divinity
and the vast cosmos
in our wings

I sent You a love letter
Dearest
dipped my pen
into the red ink of my heart

How my soul pines for You

Fly fast scriptures of love
My Lord must appear now

This lonely balcony
Will not remain vacant

The garden looks s-o-o-o in love
azaleas in pink frilly bonnets
dance arm in arm
inviting purple iris with
golden leopard skin
to come join the fest
soon the whole garden is
whirling in ecstasy
Grandfather Ott in all his
amethyst Glory
bows and takes the
white gloved hand of our
beautiful gardenia bride
waltzing through
blushing sunrise disney roses,
past capricious cape may
and little boy blue plumbago
who can resist a whirl with
the bewitching red
damsel hibiscus Rosa

eyes beneath
emerald lakes gazing upward
breath rippling green gills
mermaids don't travel in schools
but we see stars in another
fathomless, fabulous universe
and play hooky with dolphins in
the moonlight
sometimes the alluring world
of men beacons like a lost lighthouse
bobbing in the soft whale gray mist
and for a brief moment... we touch
souls

The tempest in your
Soul
the gale in your
heart

even the frailest robin
finds rest in the
open arms of a
solitary tree

Let me lay my head
on your rain-drenched bough
feel the flowers bloom
watch the stars shoot
across your eyes
once.....
again

The doctor rubbed my sore shoulder
spraying copious amounts of analgesic compound
to freeze the area
from the side of my eye I caught the
silver glint of a 6 inch needle poised
to penetrate my quivering shoulder
with cortisone
intense pain exploded through my consciousness
as the syringe fracked into the deeper regions of
my shoulder

Afterwards, while reflecting on this incident
I thought about polarities and Newton’s Law:
“For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction”
The pain I had just experienced did not occur in a vacuum
Somewhere along the time continuum I’d set up that opposite
swing of the pendulum

I recollected all the intense moments of extreme and dizzying
sense enjoyment, lust and gratification
my mind has sought and indulged in with rabid satisfaction
always wanting more, restless, never content or at peace

When we examine this world, and its quintessential duality
we are confronted with extremes at every angle
Hot, cold, up, down, win, lose
We can’t have birth without death and so on
hmm…. I thought as the enlightenment bulb
went off in my head
This is why many great sages and saints
fostered a way of life that
transcended duality

Lord Buddha extolled the “Middle Path”
He described the middle way as moderation
between the excesses of carnal indulgence
and self mortification

Aristotle gave us the “Golden Mean”
“every virtue is a mean between two extremes, each of which is a vice.”

Sathya Sai Baba states:
“The object of meditation is equanimity,
the object of equanimity is samadhi (enlightenment or self realization)"

This beautiful quote by Bhagavan Baba is redolent with wisdom
and sublime beauty:

“Surrender to God and to life means the absence of duality
and being of the same nature as God.
But such a state is beyond man’s will.
Surrender is when doer, deed and object are all God.
It comes naturally to a heart filled with love for God.
God is as a spring of fresh and sweet water in the heart.
The best tool to dig a well to that inexhaustible source and
savor its sweetness, is Japa (Chanting God’s Name)

When I fall into your arms
at last,
when I merge with You
at last,
when the beginning of me,
and the end of You
are infinite,
at last,
I will know
who I am

A spray of sparrows
ascend from the seed splashed
garden floor
perching high in the delicate branches
of my heart
together we warble our
Ode to Spring

Spicy Concador lilies open
their fragrant parasols in
curly vernal tresses

Jasmine petals tucked between
the crease of her ample *****
wafts deliriously
making us all a wee bit tipsy

Sticky sap of love oozes
from secret orifices and
long slender tree limbs

Hibiscus donned in frilly
Easter bonnets and climbing
red swashbuckling Don Juans
dance around Her graceful ankles

The garden is suddenly
So alive
So very pregnant

Zeppelin shaped dragonflies
buzz softly past our upturned lips
Spring's milk and honey kisses
showers the earth blessing our
burgeoning Spirits

Clay circles that allows
my hands to almost touch
ribbed startle of your
Soul in flight

That permits my breath
snake's tongue
to probe inside echoes
of a time you weren't so
sad and mocking

Wing tips brushing
floating face down
in keenness
of memory
I join lines running rivers
of peyote
stretch skin across a
stone sphinx
silently relive the
enigma

Please share the warm embrace of my new Poetry book:
108 Bhakti Kisses, The Ecstatic Poetry of a Modern Day Gopi
http://amzn.com/0984787216

Pink spoonbills surprise our eyes
gliding through the blue yonder
Rarely, we see them
so they are a welcome sight

Pink plumes dipped in
colors of love
With a fancy flourish
they soar
penning love letters
across the airy, alpine scrolls

There is a peculiar lightness
I have observed that appears
to increase with age

On the anniversary eve of my
70th natal year
I glance towards the
Western horizon
stars all lit
stellar candles beckon

My breath, Pneuma
with gilded wings and
golden vessel
longs to explore the
vaster regions of self

Constellations dangle
Happy Birthday across
the Bright Unknown

I wait......

A vacant silk sari
fluttering, flickering,
in the fiery sunset dusk

How creative is the day
every morning Dawn
her face flushed in
shades of poinsettia pink
spreads golden wings
over the Earth
gently fanning flames of life

I plant my poem bush in
Her bright noonday rays
water flows from my
jeweled heart chalice
emotions, ideas, inspiration
flood lush fertile soil
soaking into a network of roots
reaching into beloved humanity,
this bustling world,
starry space and beyond

I poked my head outside
the temple door
scent of fading loquat blossoms
and damp wood reminds me
of nights in the forest

Green glades of the ashram
redolent with serenity and succor
infuse peace into our spirits
during  these stressful times

My hubby David
offers fresh plucked gardenias at
the goddess' altar  

Beautiful Shakti
pearls spilling, cascading
from the royal diadem
onto Her Divine brow
eyes glowing stars
pervade the candlelit atmosphere

David and I hold hands
as we leave the sanctuary
and orbit the blessed lake
sparkling with heavenly fish
We smile at each other
happy and content on the sacred shores
of Yoga Shakti Ma

Oooh a bouquet for me?
Thank you....
The Earth lovingly presented
an effusion of beauty
saffron blooms garland
the path on our way to the temple

Davidji and I tiptoed into the
quiet, serene sanctuary
majestic Murtis surround us
with dazzling eyes
as we prayed and
sang fervently

From the jeweled throat
of Durga Ma
To the Blessed ******
cradling baby Jesus
the parade of Deities
charmed our minds and
lifted our spirits

O Resplendent One
I wear an endless mala
drunk on your Sweet Names
Amrit fountains
flow incessantly

Red bottle brush blossoms
swirl in the steamy Florida heat
despite the sizzling temps
the ashram is always a
welcome refuge

Softly, I enter the
sacred premises
doing namaste to all
the hallowed murtis

Soon songs decorate the
tranquil atmosphere
Smiling inwardly waves of
euphoric bliss well up from
a Divine spring

The sweetness is Non-Stop
truly my heart is a honeycomb
dripping with holy Love

I break off pieces of this
nectarine prasadam
an offering for you

Woodlands by the ashram
inhale and exhale
sweet incense and prayers
I gaze up at tall pine tops
waving in the breeze
like celestial steeples
and tell them how
fortunate they are to be
part of this holy terrain
if you listen keenly between
singing bowl chant of the wind
morning and evening Aarathi bells
you may just hear
the sacred eternal sound... Aum

Wonderful morning
to dance with the Sea

My skin smells like the silver sea
There's phosphorescence in my eyes
  
Waves leap into my arms
swirl and turn me about
all the while whispering
happy talk in my ears

Garlands of seaweed decorate
the festive marine blue
and green shores

Glittering fragments
of sunlight dazzle
the senses

And I imagine
dolphins and mermaids
are having a ball too

I spread my floral rose
and green leaf sheet
on the emerald shore

Divine mother it's been
quite a while since
I visited You
Here I Am
Your little mermaid

The beach is practically empty
one lone fisherman
hoists his fishing pole
into the sea
flocks of seagulls
skirt close to his head
a sandpiper dips
his beak like a pole
Into the burgeoning
white billows

Good morning seagulls, pelicans
denizens of the sea
this morning I'm an ocean creature too!

Plumeria in my hair

I followed footsteps of the Sun

to the Sea

I hear Krishna's conch

Om

Om

Om

He is calling me

I saw my Lord walking
along the shoreline
euphoric green waves
frolicked at His feet
racing towards
Him
they longed to touch
His splendor

Royal pelicans
flew above Him
like angels in divine formation
His wind tossed curls
Glittered with bits of
seafoam
and even the Sun
descended and knelt
at His holy feet

Who can gauge His Glory
We are all sacred echoes
inside a seashell
pressed to his celestial lips

Sea was wild this morning
tempestuous waves
toss their sage and silver manes,
galloping in all directions
nostrils flaring seafoam
They say there's a storm
brewing in the Caribbean....

My hubsy and I mosey
along the crystal shoreline
I marvel at the many footprints,
even a few paw and bird prints
I speculate there might even
be some fossilized footprints
beneath it all.

One pointedly I search...
for the only footprints
that really matter....
Your Silver Padukas
The only footprints that
can carry me across the
ocean of change
to a higher shore

Gazing out on the tumultuous ocean
salty air chafes my lips and face
my husband beams
his radiant Buddha smile
we hold hands
chanting Ommmmmm

Wind gently whispers
Your name in my ears
I hear the soft rustle
of sanyasi robes
heady scent of sweet jasmine
...and Your.Lotus feet
enters my heart...

Pranams to the seaside
to the ocean shores
and dancing sands

Pranams to the sapphire
throated One
seated on the silver horizon
Jai to His glittering steeds
galloping on white surf
towards us

Heavenly Pranams
Hail to the
Splendor in our breath
Radiance in our being
Jewel in the lotus

People were enjoying a respite
from the pandemic on
welcoming ocean shores
Paradise beach was polka dot with people
a pelican skimmed over the water
And a splashy boat surfed
across the aquamarine
waves frolicked gently
thankfully not too rough
David and I held hands as we
eased into the cool, healing waters
Queen of the Sea held us in her
buoyant, billowing arms
rocking us to and fro...

I must have written You
a thousand love notes
each stained with rouge kisses
and rose perfume
drowning in a sea of ink
ebony tears
O Dearest One
I have knocked on Your door
countless lifetimes
fragrant bouquets wilting
from warmth of my embrace

Still, the timeless treasure
of Your mysterious presence
remains bolted
beyond reach

Ocean currents are too strong
wrestling, they threaten to pull
the poor jivi under
Beloved
When will you rescue me?

Air thins
and so do I
as i wait for
His starry breath
to carry me aloft

my eyes swirling
milky way pools
have lost their boundaries
Ocean rushes
through my veins
while dolphins and sea lions
leap and laugh

Sun has left bits of
its splendor
I shoot across the
night sky in a flash

There is no you or I
either
lines blur
with soft pink hues
of the heart
and we melt into
each others arms
forever

Lifting the full moon sails
blowing across the
skeins of eternity
our hair tossed
with the fragrance of love
our eyes lit by a strange light
You hold me in Your
surreal embrace......

never let me go

We sat on hilly banks of the river
The sun nestled behind
a flowery spray of clouds
like baby's breath

Your enchanting smile
is contagious
all my worries vanish into
the splendor of that smile

Catching hold of my heart
we sway in utter adoration
far into the sky
stars and milky ways
swirl past us
there is never a time
you or I ever ceased to exist

We are luminous beings
splendor to the brim
spills over from your eyes
my sister
my brother
there is brightness in your footsteps
This light that we all share is eternal

How can I ever forget Your
starry embrace
beloved
wherever I turn
You are present
You eclipse my darkness
like a golden shadow and
Illumine me with unimaginable love

Sai
Deep into the
evening diamonds
everlasting well
of your eyes I fall
feels like I could
Free Fall forever into You...
You are so vast
catch me Lord in that
Absolute Oneness
no death
no rebirth

Divine city
in the stars...
in my heart
where my Lord
of Kailash, Sathya Sai
dwells
My Soul is a blazing comet
streaking towards You

Sai Bolenath

When will I know?

Grasp?

Realize?

That You are mine
forever?

I'm running up the hill
Swami
high speed
towards You
I'm not looking back
past rocks, hail stones, pitfalls
so many lives...
stories
joyful and tragic
where are they now?

O Sai! what sweeter goal
You are at the summit

I'm running a swift current
up the mountain
over tombstones
freshly fallen tears
broken hearts
towards
Heaven's sea

O Sai! What sweeter goal
You are at the zenith

If I must return...
if I must return Lord
with bookbag strapped
to my back

Please afford me good
circumstances
where the knowledge
of You
blossoms early in the
fountains of my heart

to lose sight of You
for even a moment
for eons.....
is a death I cannot
bear

When the dove of my heart
flies towards You
with a rose and in it's sunlit beak
O my Swami
O my Lord
stretch out your hand
that I may alight on that silken touch
O to be the vermilion blossom
that kisses your Lotus feet

In early hours
I took the shape of wind
lithe and billowy
I blew across empty
city streets
not a soul in sight
the sky called to me
from it's alluring expanse
I floated a whisper of air
borne of breath
into a wondrous firmament
An Eye opened in the distance
as I floated nearer
scores of candles
numerous lights
surrounded this majestic orb
O Divine One
I bow to You
Namaste a thousand times
I bow to You
a thousand times

Namaste

Swami my head forever rests
on your lotus feet
having touched them once
my lashes and forehead
are singed with
unspeakable splendor

A candle burns brightly
on the windowsill of my mind
ever watching for
Your glorious return

So Vast
You are...Divine One
Yet
Inexplicably, intimately
close
Your breath
has married mine
Flash of Your
gold earrings
Chime of Your
anklebells
Divine lips as rose red as
This throbbing heart

Frogs croak in concert
deep guttural base drones
punctuate the morning silence
there's no one on the street
except a lone biker
pedaling towards me
we smile exchanging
a bit of radiance

with each healing breath
I remind myself
to count my blessings

Swami holds my hand
gently reassuring me
His hair ripples in
the tropical breeze
and the hem of His
paradise orange robes
rustle softly

"Sai Ram," I whisper, "I love you."

Road to infinity
opens up before us
the sweet trill of a cat bird
garlands the eternal moment.

I feel your spacious embrace
twinkling arms scoop me up
stars glow in our breath
from the deepest love
new worlds are born

Holy men say
we are all sparks
of the Divine
I feel that now
when I pass you
on the street
there is an
inexplicable radiance
in your eyes
and a bit of the sun
shines through
when you flash
a smile
Even before my
dark raven mind
tries to form a
story about you
I let that heavenly
light gush in
open the skylight
of my heart
where we meet
sparkling explosions
where kinship, peace
and true love
only exist

I clasp your feet
To my lips
red petals soaked
in Bliss
And a chance to
Know
Who I am

You have taken me
on this journey...

I creep up through
smothering darkness,
mud
million lifetimes ago
edge of an abyss
a tiny glimmer
moon beams
shimmering dew
green breath

Your Kind Face

This radiant universe
embracing, embracing

...And the Lotus opens
1,000 fold

I gathered bilva leaves
in the moonlight
Your crescent moon
illumines the dark mist
and fog
crowning my head with
an otherworldly glow

With every breath I chant
Your eternal name
Holy leaves cascade
over the Shiva lingam
Like incandescent prayers
kneeling at Your feet

O Bholenath!
Golden wedding bells
are ringing in the far heavens
O Divine Lord when will
Kailasa embrace the
pining Earth?

A flower fell from my lips
full petals like a
flying red lantern
all lit up with
golden kisses
from the sun

So much love
it pours like rain and sunshine
simultaneously
the dew of eternal life
has fallen on the
open petals of my heart

With garlands of roses I bow down
at your feet, Mother Earth

I bow down to King skies
and the one seated on
a Golden throne

I bow down to shimmering
stallion waves galloping
across shores of eternity

I bow down to the tiny ant
scurrying across my path

I bow down to creatures
big and small

I bow down
I bow down
I bow down
to you

On the Kailasa of my heart
The Unborn,
Beginningless
One
Waits for me....

I hold a bowl of bilva leaves
for the three-eyed one
in blue whiteness
of Your sacred solitude
I adore You with
emerald petals
Ivory doves fly from my lips
chanting Your precious name
Om Namaha Shivaya
Om Namaha Shivaya
Om Namaha Shivaya

There is snow all around us
and mountain peaks
stare with glassy glacial
silence
inside the red cavern of Your heart
I find solace and warmth
a fire that won't go out