---

 

This writing was accepted for publication in the 84 page perfect-bound issue of cc&d (v246) (the November / December 2013 Issue) You can also order this 5.5" x 8.5" issue as an ISSN# paperback book:

Order this writing in the book Art is not Meant to be Touched cc&d 2013 collection book		get the 374 page July - Dec. 2013 cc&d magazine issue collection 6" x 9" ISBN# paperback book:

Bad Buddhist

Emily Calvo

I am a bad Buddhist
as I was a bad Catholic
            indulging in sins of questioning
            asking if the Pope’s hat weighs on his brain.
I have no patience for deprivation,
            see no sense in Lent’s longings.
Orgasms unleash Nirvana
            with or without propagating the faith with progeny.
I imagine Paradise draped in vineyards.

I am a bad Buddhist—
as I was a bad Christian
            encouraging Jesus to forego my soul
                        enjoying life as his father intended.
            replacing macabre crucifixes with color—
            knowing parables are like rubber bands
                        of value only to stretch and bundle ideas
                        into bite-size half truths,
fighting fear’s grip because it is the one true source of evil.

As I’d be a bad Muslim
            opening to non-believers
            breaking Ramadan with mid-day feasts
            balking at rituals
                        that hinder springing from the moment.
            not fasting, chanting or rising
                        to meditate in dawn’s lemonade.
My soul flushes nonsense
            In night’s solemn solitude.
            
As I might be a bad Jew
            waving pork on a fork
            suggesting holy lands be shared
            requesting cremation
            passing up pilgrimages
                        to seek out “plain” people
                                    whose lives tell their own bible stories.

I am a bad Buddhist
            wearing the label as philosophical shorthand
to reveal leanings, however fragile.
Inward journeys trample paths
where I greet flaws,
commend virtues
and know they can be interchangeable.

Sensei’s wisdom mingles with poets and artists
            whose work is also divinely inspired.
Reaching, I tap energy some call “god”
Enlightenment flickers,
            feeds love and openness.
My prayers are born in moments for gratitude and desire.

I follow peacemakers and curse warriors
            for there is nothing so divine as love,
            nothing so sacred as smiles
            and no stronger victor than truth
                        —which is owned by no one.

 
Also published at chicagopoetry.com:
http://chicagopoetry.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=485&mode=thread&order=0&thold=0

Copyright of written pieces remain with the author, who has allowed it to be shown through Scars Publications and Design.Web site © Scars Publications and Design. All rights reserved. No material may be reprinted without express permission from the author.

Problems with this page? Then deal with it...