in the presence of the poet,
all is poetry;
in the presence of the lover,
all is love.
come to the banquet hungry
and ready to dance.
there is no sound
but music and singing;
there is no life
but celebration and gratitude.
has your invitation been misplaced?
have your ears been plugged?
you cannot remain dry
in the pool of devotion;
you cannot remain rigid
in the wind of the divine.
come to the celebration-feast hungry
and with dance in your heart.
God offers you soup.
you say,
“I’m not hungry.”
“I’m not cold.”
God offers you a seat.
you say,
“I’m not weary.”
“I’m not talkative.”
are you ashamed to be honored?
are you ashamed to admit
your true hunger?
your true weariness?
the preparation of food is God’s work.
and the service of food is God’s work.
the eating of food is devotion.
the offering is God’s work.
acceptance is ours.
all here is illusion.
this disease is not me
and will not go with me when I leave.
this loneliness is not real.
I am held in the constant embrace of the divine.
there is celebration in my soul
though there is heartache in my body.
the vast emptiness of my purse
and the vast fullness of yours
are distraction:
there is no need;
there is only grace and joy.
I do not need shelter
for God is my home.
I do not need food;
I am eating God like a glutton.
I dress in fine cloth
for the great gratitude of the gift
knowing well the sun and the wind and the rain
are my truer garments;
the stars in heaven my truer jewels.
understand that all here is grace and joy
because grace and joy are the only things that are real.
illness is temporary.
Truth is eternal.
where is your devotion?
suffering is temporary.
God is eternal.
where is your devotion?
where is your church?
and what is your altar?
abandon your religion of despair
and convert to bliss.
the hunger in your heart is the grand illusion;
the banquet of the soul is laid out before you.
the weariness with your life is a bad dream.
wake up! and run in the field of reality.
the black and the white is not true.
it is not you.
and it will not go with you when you leave.
