​Poetry & prose

Combining contemplative poetry with photographs or paintings to bring head and heart together to reflect on life and love
  • Basics
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  • Renunciant works
  • Early works
  • Photo Poetry
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The Big Picture

"so precious is life
yet most precious its natural passing
like the ripe fruit that drops
not life denying but death defying
as the spirit is flying"

A poem accompanied with watercolor and pencil art.

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Unfolding Dharma

"and it will come to pass that all of us,
having been so screwed up,
now, having passed the test
will come to rest
calmly on the window of Dhamma."

A poem accompanied with art.

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Aspirations

"following the star....
never mind the funky pop star
who is boring the next morning"

A short poem accompanied with drawings.

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A Few Favourites

A handful of selected poems. Accompanied by artwork and photography.

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The Planes of Existence

A short comic on the nature of existence and its different planes.

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The Trilogy on the Three Refuges

A Meaning Eternal

On refuge in the Buddha.

"​For each of us thought will play a
lesser or greater role in taking
us to spiritual realisation.
Ultimately, recognising
the limitations of language,
here can be a hope that
silence can contain
more than language can say.
Actually, this is true in the sense
that silence is the natural result of
realisation, there is no more
​need for thought."

Part one of the trilogy on the three refuges.

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Bringing heaven forever down to earth

On refuge in the Dhamma

"Everything we experience, although it has its origin in the world, is in our mind. All our experience
is subjective. The Dhamma concerns this subjective experience. The world of suffering (saṃsāra)
and the world of ultimate happiness (Nibbāna) are essentially not places but states of mind."

Part two of the trilogy on the three refuges.
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The Plough of the Mortal God

On refuge in the Sangha

"as waves of time crash on the shore
past meets present, the bell tolls
and he that knows finds a course, a thread
through the living and the dead"

Part three of the trilogy on the three refuges.


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The writing is on the wall

​marked in charcoal by the itinerant soul daubed in a dash in chalky white ash 
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Devoted to Luang Por

A collection of poetry written for Luang Por Sumedho throughout the years. Accompanied by artwork.

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A Keyhole in the Sky

"Twinkle, twinkle little star
How I wonder who you are...
Like a keyhole in the sky
To the key of wisdom's eye"

A collection of poetry with artwork

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Salvation

"The angels loved the sky
They loved to fly
But the Lord sent the fish
To tease them, swish, swish"

A poem in three parts accompanied with art

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Freedom

On the beauty and bliss of letting go of attachment to the body.

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The light of the heart

"The heavenly harp
Greets the meat
Even as it is lifted off its feet
For heaven was not so far"
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A collection of "text only" poems.

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Another Dimension

"There is a light
That is not a light
Like day entering into the night"

A collection of poetry accompanied by photography.

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Trilogy of Renunciant Poetry - celebrating the joys of the monastic life

The First Sermon

"The monk entered
Sure footed, centred
Senses composed
Yet never closed"

Part one of the trilogy

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Reflective Glory

"Dear friend,
If you love life and fear death, listen to me now. Try to suspend your doubt. The bones of the Arahants turned to crystals after their death. They are showing us that they have found the deathless"

Part two of the trilogy

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In the Face of Death

"Poor Roddy was dying,
forlorn and sluggish
Amongst the rubbish
Full of questions
he was desperate to know
How to let go"

Part three of the trilogy

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Other renunciant works

Defence Mechanisms

"Then one day it seemed as though a light had switched on inside (and things curiously began to glide)"

A poem accompanied with photography and artwork.

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Love's own executioner

"Eats the eater
What a terrible creature"

A short artistic poem

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Caring

"Sometimes when I hurry
I still feel that tightness begin to sing
In the throat of worry"

Collected early poetry.
Accompanied with drawings.

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Playmates

"Drawn by doves
With patience"

A small collection of early poetry.
Accompanied with drawings.

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The First Eye

"Why does simple stillness,
The sunset of the reclining eye,
Come only after such a long hard climb in the sky.
For it asks for no reasons why.
Perhaps it just takes time
For time itself to fly"

A collection of early poetry. Accompanied with art.

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Meditation in the Barn

"built from heart wood
before the war
​to shelter and store"
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The Day the Frost Offered Flowers

"For touching the earth
the spirit finds
​its true worth"
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Standing Still

"Simply coming and going..."
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Merging in the Deathless

"cool blue drops
and waves to the sky
calling purity
​from on high"
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The humble heart-house

"There are wise windows in the door..."
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Time will tell

"Time will tell

​​can we listen?"
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Snapshot Dhamma

"Welcome
To the wonderful world
Of the completely ordinary
Where everything is falling apart
Except the heart"

A photographic poetry collection in nine parts.

View Volume: 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9

Sunrise over the Sea

"crimson waters
reflect
what shores await?"

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Beyond the Inspiration

"​finds the inner path
beneath the feet
​just like everybody else"

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Prismatic photo poetry

"​He embraced the entire space
And the robot offices
Lost the pointless race."

A collection of eight pieces.

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