dear mother earth
you were born from the dust of distant
supernovas
from the deaths of ancient stars
your manifestation is but a continuation
and when you cease to exist in this
current form
you will continue in another your true
nature
is the ultimate dimension of reality
the nature of no coming and no going
no birth and no death this is also
our true nature if we are able to touch
this
we can experience the peace and freedom
of non-fear
and yet because of our limited view
we still wonder what will happen to us
when our physical form disintegrates
when we die we merely return
to you it is only natural
you have given birth to us in the past
and we know that you will continue to
give birth to us
time and time again in the future
we know that we can never die
each time we manifest we are fresh
and new each time we return to the earth
you receive and embrace us with great
compassion
we promise to train ourselves to look
deeply
to see and touch this truth
that our lifespan is your lifespan
and that your lifespan is limitless
we know that the ultimate and the
historical
the nominal and the phenomenal are two
dimensions of the same reality
touching the historical dimension a leaf
a flower a pebble a beam of light
a mountain a river a bird or our own
body
we can touch the ultimate
when we deeply touch the one we touch
the all this is into being
dear mother we vow to see you as our
body
and the sun is our heart we will train
ourselves to recognize
you and the sun in every cell of our
body
we will find you both mother earth and
father son
in each tender leaf in each
flash of lightning in each drop of water
diligently we will practice to see the
ultimate
and realize our own true nature
we will practice to see that we have
never been born
and we will never die
we know that in the ultimate dimension
there is no birth
and no death no being and no non-being
no suffering and no happiness no good
and no evil we will train ourselves to
look deeply into the world of signs and
appearances
with the insight of inter-being in order
to see that if there were no death
there could be no birth without
suffering
there could be no happiness without the
mud
the lotus cannot grow
we know that happiness and suffering
birth and death lean on each other
these pairs of opposites are only
concepts
when we transcend these dualistic views
of reality
we are freed from all anxiety and fear
touching the ultimate we are happy and
at ease
we are in our element free from
all notions and concepts
as free as a bird soaring in the sky
as free as a deer leaping through the
woods
living deeply in mindfulness we touch
our true nature
of interdependence and into being
we know we are one with you and with the
whole cosmos
the ultimate reality transcends all
notions and concepts
it cannot be described as personal or
impersonal
material or spiritual nor is the object
or
subject of mind ultimate reality is
always shining
and shining on itself we do not need to
look for the ultimate outside of
ourselves
we touch the ultimate in the very here
and now