Not a God

from The Mother Poems by Shambhavi Sarasvati at Kindred 108. We're all kindred here.

Titan Realm - detail from the Six Realms of Samsara, artist: Erik Jacobsen

Not being a God  
is a problem  
only for those  
who feel small.

Enjoying yourself  
as you are  
reflects the divine state.

The face of immodesty  
sneers when 
others fall short
of some invented ideal.

Convinced you are failing,  
you sting  
with the poison 
of outrageous demands.

Do you want to become a God or  
bring the Gods down?  
Both.  
You carry on with your
fantasy, skepticism, and  
contempt.  
This is the harm  
peculiar to our age.

I sit on the ground with the learners,  
the apprentices  
not the Masters,  
we who fall easily  
on knees  
of curiosity, tenderness,  
and prayer.

Call us by any name.  
Doubt our sincerity.  
Cut us down to measurable size.  
Beat us with the sticks of your
outrage and grief.

We are the friends of the Friend.  
Our lineages cross
time and place.  
We give to anyone   
kind enough   
to let us in,  
anyone at all
until the cycles turn  
until more beings kneel  
beside us to receive  
this infinite outpouring  
of natural gifts.

from The Mother Poems by Shambhavi Sarasvati