The Uncarved Blog

I just discovered a fine poet, Stephen Levine, on this wonderful blogspot, THE BEAUTY WE LOVE. He was an American poet, author and teacher best known for his work on death and dying. He drew upon the teachings of a variety of wisdom traditions. Stephen and his wife Ondrea were also grief counselors. His poetry offers much wisdom on this subject. Here are two beautiful poems that deal with the ephemeral nature of existence; its deathless, limitless source; and a grace that draws us to it, our ultimate destination — in the realm of the passing away and millennium blessing — both taken from his book, Breaking the Drought: Visions of Grace.

In the realm of the passing away

This is the realm of the passing away. All that
exists does not for long.
…….Whatever comes into this world never stops sliding
toward the edge of eternity.
…….Form arises from formlessness and passes back,
arising and dissolving in a few dance steps between
creation and destruction.
…….We are born passing away.
…….Seedlings and deadfall all face forward.
…….Earthworms eat what remains.
…….We sing not for that which dies but for that which
never does.

* * *

Millennium blessing

There is a grace approaching
that we shun as much as death,
it is the completion of our birth.

It does not come in time,
…….but in timelessness
when the mind sinks into the heart
and we remember.

It is insistent grace that draws us
to the edge and beckons us surrender
safe territory and enter our enormity.

We know we must pass
…….beyond knowing
and fear the shedding.

But we are pulled upward
…….none-the-less
through forgotten ghosts
…….and unexpected angels,
luminous.

And there is nothing left to say
but we are That.

And that is what we sing about.

* * *

Stephen Levine (July 17, 1937 – January 17, 2016)

* * *

Related posts worth seeing: Rainer Maria Rilke’s poem, Buddha in Glory, reminds us of our eternal nature within || John Glenday’s poem, Concerning the Atoms of the Soul, illuminates and nourishes the mind || The temporary paradox of death in life: writing a tanka for our family pet on his passing || A white owl hunting in and out of the snow helps Mary Oliver see death as spiritual transformation || When Death Comes, a poem by Mary Oliver included in this memorial post for her. || Two thoughtful poems by Rhoda Orme-Johnson: When We Are Insubstantial & When You Are Young || Colin Hay’s song—I Just Don’t Think I’ll Ever Get Over You—is so relevant during these tough times || Undifferentiated, a poem I wrote in India processing my final moments with Sali when she had passed around 7 weeks earlier in Fairfield, Iowa. It was a realization that came to me 5 days after spreading her ashes from a boat on the Narmada River during a most auspicious day.