Written by two poets almost 700 years apart,
their words echo and resonate profoundly in this current moment.
The photos were taken in 2017 in Provence —
we happened upon this poppy field under Mont Saint-Victoire
and were in awe —
in the magnificence of our natural world.
Holding all beings in loving care.
In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie,
In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
Out Beyond Ideas by Jalal al-Din Rumi, 1207-1273
Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing,
there is a field. I’ll meet you there.
When the soul lies down in that grass,
the world is too full to talk about.
Ideas, language, even the phrase ‘each other’
doesn’t make any sense.
May we be well.
May we be at peace.
May we be happy.
May we be free from suffering.
May our practice be a benefit for all beings everywhere,
for our earth,
for our relationships,
for ourselves.
Shanti Shanti Shanti Peace Peace Peace Paz Paz
JUSTINE YOGA 