Thursday, October 11, 2012

The Archer and the Light at the End of the Tunnel - an afternoon walk and 4 prose



Dogs for walks. I walked my dogs yesterday afternoon. Again. As the lunch crowd settled in the coffee shops, restaurants, kopitiams, bars and bistros around my neighbourhood, my dogs were restless for a walk.

No Light at the End of the Tunnel. The walk started heavy, because my spirit was weighed down. Have you ever felt kinda dispirited and lethargic, without really knowing why? I mean of course, we all have problems in our lives, but in some moments the moody blues cling to our heart, but with no specific reasons. Perhaps it is a general feeling of despondency and weariness - money problem, health problem, friendship problem, and a scary feeling that perhaps there is no light at the end of the tunnel for us…

But I shrugged aside this feeling and started my walk.

The Archer I
The purpose of life
Is to find the true aim
Of the Archer,
And not to waste time
Shooting your arrows
At everything that this world
Offers you as target practice…

I heard this from someone who knows…

Quite Nice. I made my way towards the nearby park, hidden and closeted on all sides by townhouses. And with each step I took, I left behind one milligram of my worries. And the further I walked, the further I left the cares and concerns of this world behind me. As before, the wind came, and beneath the green canopy of the tall trees, it was really quite nice.

The Archer II
The Lord of the Archers shows you everything,
And He lets you see everything,
But He guides those whom He loves
One step at a time, one flight of the arrow at a time
Flying from your blessed bows
To the blessed ends…

I heard this from someone who knows…

Chance meeting. The afternoon grew darker and me and my dogs ended our travel at the cornerside stall of Devi’s. There I wondered, if any friend of mine would drop by. And then he did. And then another fellow..

The Archer III
O’ my Prophet,
My arrow is in my hand,
And my bow is steady,
But if you look at me that way,
If you smile at me that way,
If you continue to say what you say
In that way…

How will I ever hit the target,
Swayed as I am
With happiness that poets
Write in their intimate sacred prose?

I heard this from someone who knows…


A storm. As we sat musing over a cup of iced coffee, suddenly the heavens broke and a tropic storm lashed down against the lunchtime crowd of people and cars that pass us by. Thunder and lightning played havoc with the Djinns as we sat sheltering under the flimsy zinc roof of the stall.

The Archer IV
Once you understand your real aim, o’ Archer
The target comes to you closer and closer,
One understanding at a time, one lesson at a time,
Till it rests upon the business end of your arrow head,
The arrow will not fly now,
It is the target that will fly to you,
Sitting, standing, running or lying down,
You are seeing the world as it is,
Transient and transparent like a ghost,
A dream within a dream within a dream…

I heard this from someone who knows…

Life is very fine sometimes, I think. Thank you for keeping me company in my almanac. I did not walk very far yesterday, but Heaven knows where our thoughts wandered to... May God forgive me and may He always bless you.

my dogs 

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam
Love will show the Way

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