Tanka Sequence
Five Bows
I bow to the monk
aspiring to the wisdom
of bygone sages,
perfecting incantations
of the gateless gate
I bow to the poet
rendering wisdom
garnered along the path,
lighting the candle
of self illumination
I bow to the wayfarer
seeking the wisdom
scattered by the winds,
wandering empty roads
in ten sacred directions
I bow to the warrior
disciplining wisdom
with early rising,
taming both mind and body
for the one illumination
I bow to the Buddha
teaching the Wisdom
attained beneath a Bo tree,
reciting wordless mantras
to the uninitiated
Tanka Prose
Thus Spoke . . .
He sat across
the table, slumping in his chair. Smirking. Who are you to
judge? he had asked. Someone who has lived much longer than
you, I thought. But I did not say it. We had been discussing
philosophy. Existentialism. This student liked in particular
the idea of creating his own essence. That the individual
ruled supreme. But he had overlooked some key points. And
humanism came much later on the syllabus.
from the
bank
of the murky pond,
a flat rock
destined to become
just a single step
I could no
longer delay. He wanted—expected—a response. I was after all
the teacher, playing the role of advocate and when necessary
of adversary. Like now. Young man, I began (though it was
too didactic; should’ve used his name), you have
unfortunately become a pawn to society. While you think you
are master of the universe, you have in fact no freedom. Not
where it counts. Here. I tapped the side of my head. And
here. I tapped my heart. We would be moving on to Nietzsche.
Though he now slouched even more deeply in his chair, he
would rise for the ideas of the Übermensch. But, I wonder,
would they provoke his own. Would Zarathustra speak to him?
And how would he respond?
waking
up to learn
it’s already December
and still no closer
to realizing
why the sun rises
About Matthew Caretti, US
Matthew has
lived in Korea, Austria, Switzerland and South Africa, and
has used those places to launch journeys to nearly fifty
other countries. His practice of Zen Buddhism, a product of
karma as well as the years in Asia, joins travel, cycling,
his home in the woods and human folly (mostly his own) as a
heavy influence on his work. He now teaches English and
directs the Writing Center at Mercersburg Academy, a college
preparatory school in south central Pennsylvania. He has
published works in Poetry Canada, Contemporary Haibun
Online, Contemporary Haibun Volumes 11 & 12, and
Haibun Today.
This is
Matthew Caretti's first appearance in Sketchbook.
