Prayer of the Pandemic (new poem)

 

Prayer of the Pandemic

by Tim Kavi

tonight there is no hiding

from the terrible truth

there is much suffering in the world

in India, Brazil, and here in the US

there is so much loss

all over the world

no other words matter

and may not for some time

but, may the heart of compassion

seek the earnest prayers

and intercessions

from all who will pray

and state with all sincerity

what matters the most

is the cessation of this suffering

my prayers and I hope yours too

is for the healing balm

to be applied to this stricken world

and that relief may flow

and comfort all those afflicted

and strength to those applying that balm

our prayers are with you

our chants and mudras

our entreaties and intercessions

our two hands lifted

our souls united

from all faiths

and corners of the world

God be with us all

and may the arms of those that pray

move among us, Durga, or GuanYin

be around all of those who 

cannot be comforted by touch

finding the many arms of compassion

still surround you

and an angel's wing

still brushes by you

touching you

the hugs of absent brother or sister

mother or father,

friend or lover,

spouse or child,

the kisses of our love 

and compassion

goes out to the world

to be healed,

and to not be afraid!

we will live!

we will recover!

we will be remembered

and we will never be forgotten

in the hearts of those that love us

and walk with us in this time

of darkness, let there be these

lights in the world!

of ever redeeming love

and the healing memories of what

who and where we have loved!

until the scourge is one day forgotten

and the hope of life is redeemed

by our mindful turning

and reflections upon lives

lived!

In the face of this, we live,

we breathe, and have our being!

4-22-2021

gentle crossings (new poem)

 

gentle crossings (Poem)
by Tim Kavi

oceans apart

with undersea caverns

and trenches of hope

breaking through

to the surfaces

woke up

I searched for the radiance

of understanding

compassionate dreams

a beam in darkened night

beckoning, no, calling

across the tides

of recognition

I am seeking Her

She that guides me

prayers, mudras

esteeming my quest

my heart turns West

where it seems She

is not present

will it be Kali or Aphrodite?

no, it is a gentle one

touching my heart

healing my soul

in her shy, healing light. 

Holiday Prayer (new poem)

 

Holiday Prayer (New Poem)

by Tim Kavi

in my heart

rises a prayer for the world

it is not just from my heart

but on my lips

as no prayer

has ever been uttered

as no longing

intercessory yearnings

flew to a heavenly throne

not just for peace

and good will

not just social justice

for all

not just for love

to those who feel unloved

joy to those

who are sad or feeling lost

but for health

and safety

a yearning, for those 

who have cried out

may angel's wings

carry you to the place

where eagles soar

far above 

from all life's troubles

where they will look small

and finally are brought low

in the new year

and to the plague's own demise

we say to the world

as humankind

we will rise

we will rise!

In Times Like This (new poem)

IN TIMES LIKE THIS (New Poem)

by Tim Kavi

in times like this, we feel so afraid

but then I come home to your love

and feel the comforts you've made

while the lights of the universe

shine so bright; in this darkened night,

when I see you, my fears disperse

there need not be any fear

when the love of my life

is so near 

in the gentle repose

there is a stillness of peace

in memories of those

many nights of your kisses

bringing sudden healing

to all the world's remisses

hope in your arms tonight

where all troubles forgotten

all wrongs are made right

asleep in your arms tonight.

Author's note: while the coronavirus ravages the world, this song arose from the kisses of my lovely wife!~~TK
Psalm 91:5-6

Mission of Mercy (New Poem)

"Mission of Mercy"by Tim Kavi

what was needed

in the faded arms

of age

was a mission

purposeful embodiments

out among the stars

yet the blood dripping

down the sleeves

into the snow

turned the world into blood

such hatred

evil hearts mistreated others

where almost forgotten

a new life

was born

into the glistening

hope of a thousand

songs and smiles

a promise

a yearning

a deeply felt love

for all there is

there was

a verse that brought meaning

the tenements

the earthy streets

stained beats

of a million names lost

of a young one

looking for old

an old one looking to be young

long lines, lined up in the cold

She moved gracefully

bringing peace

seven loaves and fishes

to the dying

the lost

the cold

the sick

the frail

the small child who never made it

to shore

She took it

brought it

and sung it

a mission of mercy

to a dark, speckled world.

More About Goddesses: The Greek Goddess Artemis (New Essay)

More About Goddesses: Artemis, Greek Goddess of the Hunt

By Tim Kavi

Artemis is the daughter of Zeus and Leto, and the twin sister of Apollo. Her bow and arrows that she would carry were made by Cyclopes and Hephaestus. She is depicted as goddess of the hunt, wild animals and many cities also worshiped her as the goddess of fertility. Artemis is often depicted with the moon above her head and was frequently depicted as being close with Selene, the goddess of the moon. More often she would be depicted as roaming the mountain forests with her nymphs by her side in search of panthers, stags, hinds and lions. In later myths she would assist these animals by protecting their overall well-being while fighting to ensure their safety.

Artemis is also seen as the goddess of chastity. Legend has it that when she was three years old, Artemis asked Zeus to provide her with eternal virginity. All of her close companions were virgins, and she would punish any man who attempted to harm the purity of herself or her companions. In one legend, Actaeon came upon Artemis and her nymphs bathing naked in a pool, and when she saw him watching Artemis transformed him into a stag and sent her hounds after him. She was also known to use her bow to kill those who were known to rape women, including Orion.

Because Artemis was born before her brother Apollo, her mother gifted her the island of Ortygia as thanks for helping her mother to cross the strait of Delos to give birth to Apollo. This legend made Artemis an idol to women going through childbirth. Some cities depicted her as a goddess and protector to those in the midst of  the hunt, a mass of contradictions as she brought sudden death alongside the birth of a new life. Because her twin brother was seen as a healing god, many would pray to Artemis for assistance in the healing of gout, rabies or leprosy in hopes that she would appeal to Apollo on their behalf.

These and other legends of Artemis would be honored with lively festivals. Festivals were held throughout Orthia, Brauron, Brauronia and most notably Sparta. As women became of age and reached puberty they would be initiated into the cult of Artemis, although they would be required to leave this cult once they became married. Artemis was not against the realm of marriage, but she chose to be surrounded by those who were pure, so those who chose to engage in marital acts would be required to return her paraphernalia as they took on this new role.

Updated Photo, Poet's Afterword--About the Photo: Artemis, the Greek goddess of the hunt, stands confidently in a moonlit forest clearing, her silver bow held loosely in her hand. Her attire is simple and practical, befitting a huntress. Nearby stands Persephone, the goddess of springtime and queen of the Underworld, holding a bouquet of vibrant wildflowers, a gentle smile gracing her lips. The scene subtly contrasts Artemis's wild, untamed nature with Persephone's softer, more nurturing presence.~~TK

Mantra, Mudra, Candle, Vow (New Poem)

Mantra, Mudra, Candle, Vow
by Tim Kavi

barely able to speak
I saw the coming of the light
It came through my windows
in the unconscious night

Speaking your Holy Name
you arose like the sweet mist
and dropped like cleansing rain
in your power, I am not the same

Shakti saving grace
orders and destroys all the same
until all is forgotten
no more blame
collapsing in sweet refrain
unendable expanding space

In mantra I speak your holy name

shuddering
as if under great cold
the heat of your love reached
from the furthest places
I thought you were removed
until in gentle assurances
I saw you teach me
the Ways of your graceful love

just a wave of your hand
laying on of hands
It was You healing the lost
the sick, dying embers
of once what was a living soul
made whole; lives again

my taught hands by you
move in the mudra
of your graceful appearing
in the school of love

they wave in your light
burning candles all through the night
tended by those that seek you
your flames never go out

shadows dancing on the walls
flickering across the street
across my mind
then the universe bends to the images
that travel throughout
instantaneously faster than the light
of your candles burning
in the great hall

they are slow
but You are not
You are everywhere at once
walking through walls

on bended knees
prostrated before your ordaining
there is only the calls
to answer to the vow
I just made.

Healing Rain (New Poem)

Healing Rain

by Tim Kavi

gentle woman

I see you sleeping

see you twist there

for you awaken many times

writhing in pain

your scars

are kissed by me every day

and your aches soothed

by my love

yet I line up your medicines

hold your hand gently

help your labored breaths

inject your pain meds

apply a wet rag to your hurting face

I pray and pray

and love you so deeply

as we sing together softly

and hold each other in love

I feel the teardrops falling

and I see they

have become a healing rain.

"Puny" Human Existence (New Poem)

"Puny" Human Existence
by Tim Kavi

the puniness
of our existence
in the vastness
of the universe

filled with
such arrogance
and self importance

it is no wonder
that ego is the source
of conflicts
internal and external
that leaves fleeting
moments of conclusion
that seem like comforts

but in our "puny" efforts
to love
and to heal
truly great things
get done

and in our search
for transcendence
is the humbling
journey of the soul
to new paths
of being

to new planes
of existence
to enlightenment
and beyond

and why is it that
it is only the dancing souls
that try to restore order
bring chaos
and are hated so badly
because they loved so?

we are not just
DNA programmed souls
that happen to think

but are beings
on the transcendent way
to meaning
purpose
fulfillment
and love

remember this
that in that is the kiss
of what some
call the Void

the freedom to be
is what beckons
and the freedom to be left alone
and exist in the face of it
comes at great price

for in love
there is never alone
but only the giving up of self
in selfless love

to be moved
by compassion
introverted will
is not the struggle of the weak
but those trodding the upward hill
the narrow ridge
between Self and Other

that once remarked
you are not my brother!

and once languished
in the crying sea

there is only that unknowing
which shall become
the surety of all that is.

Departing Winds (new poem)

Departing Winds

by Tim Kavi

departing winds

carry the silent sounds

of captured stories

in the gliding winds

as eagle's wings

are spread

I wont tell their secrets

but will respect

the dead memories

that can no longer hurt

them

as they suffered

in their own mind's truth

what a wasted youth

of their seeking

shattered young ones

battered old ones too

beneath my flight

was the wasteland

of unconscious night

made present

in their sighing

the eagle lit

with healing branches

in its beak

if I could only speak

knowing there is sorrow

but flying

I will go and come back

the eagle

says

to heal more of you

tomorrow.

Heal Each Other (New poem)

he"Heal Each Other"
by Tim Kavi

and in the gleam of the madness eye
there is a long table
of eternal recurrence
that has no end
and no soulful sleeping

for the Earth has shook

but even there
is a between
transfixed
as I see my suffering
brother
friend
mother

Gaia
knows no earthlike song

in the collapsing
chaos
of poisoned
darkened
earth

where nothing
grows
but the distaste for
each other

such bitter
seed
nothing can grow
from it

until
they bind
each other's
wounds

her love
her creation and I
heal each other

before it is too late.

Your Love Transcends (new poem)

Your Love Transcends
by Tim Kavi

from somewhere
we met
and yet
your love transcends
conventions

it is not my love
it is your love
empowered
it is your freedom
to say and to do

it is Your beauty
that instructs me
in the kind
gentility nature of love

it is your
sweet smile
that the composers
sung to

it is your fair eyes
that guides
the young
teaches
tyrants to bow down
the lame to dance
the tongueless
to sing

it is your love
that transcends

no other
love will do
or moves the poet
like the
love of you

remember
it is your love
that feeds the hungry
masses the weak
and makes them
strong
that frees the
chained ones

it isyour love
that transcends

carefully speaking
your name
your love
brings forth
the beautiful ones

seeks out
the vanquished ones
settles the unsettled ones
calms the crazy ones
walks the legless
ones
your love transcends all
whether troubles
distress
prisons
or even death itself

your love
brought us all One
to the place of peace
and the schools of
love
itself
Y
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