329 Haiku Poems For Your Spiritual Practice. Adrian Tanase

      Foreword

      I love Haikus. This short form of Japanese poetry can easily inspire and create images in our minds on which we can meditate upon. Sometimes, the image can bring about a realization, a short glimpse of satori, a window into Buddha-Nature, Enlightenment or emptiness. This book is for anyone who walks on a spiritual path, seeking the Truth and wanting to expand his consciousness.

      During the creation of this book, I felt the need of organizing everything in chapters. Eventually I came up with 29, all related to virtues, human traits and spiritual terms. The haiku poems are meant to generate perspectives, views of the world, landscapes, states of mind or states of being. As you read through, you can choose any of them for your practice throughout your day, or maybe to meditate upon. They are great little spiritual companions that can guide or help us on our path.

      The way I recommend reading the haikus is the following: choose a chapter, and start reading on them one by one, with a pause for meditation after each. You can take as much time as you want to meditate upon them, according to how much you resonate with the message in that particular haiku. They were all written with great attention and care, mostly in silence or in a meditative state, while looking for the deeper meaning of the chapter where they were included. May these poems that I wrote with much love, help you in your spiritual practice and guide your heart on the path of beauty and exquisiteness. Namaste

      Acceptance

      One of the most important spiritual tools in the hands of the spiritual practitioner is acceptance. Acceptance begins with letting go and surrendering to any aspect of our life that we reject or push away. By letting go, by surrendering, we become free of that which grasps upon us. We thus can go beyond aggression, sadness, rejection, hatred and so on.

      One of the most important aspects of acceptance is the acceptance of the present moment, just the way it is. Surrendering to what is, will soon create the space in our lives where we can start to manifest consciously in the present moment, anything that we wish, no matter what the circumstances previously were.

      1.

      The old patched blanket

       Resting on the hard wooden bed

       Is my silent companion in the night.

      2.

      I stir the food on the fire

       With steady eyes

       Of acceptance.

      3.

      Resting silent in my surroundings

       Nothing bothers me

       Cars passing by in the distance.

      4.

      Entering my room

       I leave all my troubles

       In the old days of the past.

      5.

      Eating my green soup

       That has almost no taste

       I salt it with the beauty of the days to come.

      6.

      In the silence of my hermitage

       I am letting go

       To all that I ever desired.

      7.

      In the twilight of the night's sky

       I see your eyes

       Glittering with forgiveness.

      8.

      I rest complete

       In the open sky

       Fireflies in the night.

      9.

      I love the way

       Everything shows me

       Its simplicity.

      10.

      Accepting everything

       The way it is

       My soul is liberated.

      11.

      I know in my heart

       That freedom is found

       In agreeing with the Universe.

      Awareness

      The importance of awareness in our spiritual practice is undeniable. In meditation, we practice being aware of our breath. In being present or mindful we are being aware of the present moment. Awareness is the most important tool that precedes mindfulness, wisdom, and contemplation.

       Awareness brings us closer to acting consciously; the more aware we are, the more we act in our best interest, manifesting what we desire and taking advantage of the time that has been given to us. By paying attention now, we also respond better in critical situations and we can be more focused on our tasks. Spiritual insight can only occur when we are aware of the space that is around us, because awareness connects us to the conscious plane of existence, which is in itself, basically, the spiritual realm.

      Once an old Zen master only said: "Pay attention! Pay attention! Pay attention!". This was his most valuable teaching, directing his students on the path of awareness, where one gradually learns more and more about his life and walks with steady confidence, on his spiritual path.

      1.

      On the quiet river

       There’s only one small boat

       Going downstream, gently.

      2.

      Wishes come true

       On the surface

       Of everlasting awareness.

      3.

      Alert stillness

       Springs from the core of my being

       In all directions.

      4.

      What is inside is also outside

       Who am I?

       I rest quietly.

      5.

      No thought and no action

       Seem to come from everywhere

       A circumstance that can never be explained.

      6.

      Insights come and go

       I rest effortlessly

       In the space of Now.

      7.

      Realizing I am not aware

       Quick illumination of the mind

       A small fragrant orange candle.

      8.

      The patience to see what's next