Introduction

Some years back, I grew interested haiku. Initially, because these short gems struck me as the perfect match for Twitter—a marriage made in digital heaven, as it were. Besides, how hard could it be to write a seventeen-syllable poem.

As I normally do when my interest alights on something, I read several books on the subject (that this time included Higginson and Harter’s wonderful The Haiku Handbook) and from there proceeded to immerse myself in several well-known haiku masters, such as Bashō, Buson, Issa, Shiki, et al.

Meanwhile, I began trying my hand at these things, initially strictly adhering to the five-seven-five syllable format, which, I soon came to find out (from online self-proclaimed haiku gurus), was quite a crude adaptation of that principle seeing that Japanese syllables do not necessarily correspond to English syllables (which are, by expert reckoning, quite unwieldy by comparison). Also, reading a lot of (published and respected) English language haiku I soon realized that both the five-seven-five and the seventeen-syllable “rules” had long since been abandoned by the better (and more creative) haiku poets.

As a result of seeing things in this particular light, I soon began taking liberties with the five-seven-five rule but for some odd reason the seventeen-English-syllable statute remained on the books, refused to leave, had found a home in me—if for no other reason than that my little haikus (which I soon named Wolfkus for an obvious reason) seemed to percolate to the surface fully grown and just about always in a string of seventeen-syllable creations. And when they did not, say they surfaced as an eighteen-syllable Wolfku, or a sixteen-syllable one, well, then I discovered that when I sand-papered the longer ones into seventeen, or added some air into the shorter ones into seventeen: the meaning seemed clearer, more definite—besides, this was a fun exercise (I love language and its many words and their bendable uses).

Struck by something, an image, a feeling, a thought, before long this seventeen-syllable raft came bopping to the surface (having been let go of by some curious and creative, though shy, deep-sea Wolfku deity). During a morning’s walk by the Pacific, three or four or sometimes five of these Wolfkus might surface, and it was all I could do to remember them all until I returned home to a pen or a keyboard.

Sometimes I did forget them, memory like a sieve these days.

Before not so long, many of these Wolfkus arrived more as aphorisms than true haikus, as little containers of distilled perhaps philosophical reflection. Well, since many of them struck me (the creator, or recipient might be a better word) as both unique and insightful, who was I to call a halt to this quite enjoyable, if curious, phenomenon.

A phenomenon that still flourishes and seems to have no intention to do otherwise, for I rarely return from an hour’s walk without some seventeen-syllable epigram or other.

Seeing, though, that the earth from which these Wolfkus sprung (and still spring) was replete with impressions and sometimes micro-epiphanies, I thought that perhaps it was time to revisit these Wolfkus and examine this fertile soil for what else it might hold. What, indeed, I wondered, gave birth to them, what carried them from darkness to light? And where did they, in turn, carry me? This is what gave birth to the idea of Wolfku Musings—a collection of Wolfkus and the soil that sprung them.

I have published Wolfku Musings, Book One, and will soon publish Book Two, to be followed by Three… Four… et cetera.

Meanwhile, I realized that I really should assemble a sort of archive of those Wolfkus that I have posted online, by now running into the several hundred, and also publish future Wolfkus Archives as I write and post them.

Lately, say over the last many months, I’ve begun to give my Wolfkus titles as well, just for, well, I don’t know why really, just felt right. As I now compile these Wolfkus from oldest to newest, I’ve also added titled to those who never had one.

All this said, here then, the fifteenth installment.

Wolfkus 1401 – 1500

— 1401 —

Perception

The brain
  speaks
  Vibration
The stillness
  vibrates
  colors
  reifies


— 1402 —

The Birth of the Universe

God sneezed


— 1403 —

Realizes Brahman:

Flesh and blood Atman
  a trillion, trillion lives
Oy, that gun was loaded


— 1404 —

Consequences

No more food
  kills you
No more air
  kills you
No more sex
  kills the species


— 1405 —

Corruption

All these decisions
  and expectations
adulterate the air


— 1406 —

Sand and Snow

High tide swept sand
  onto the road
Spreading before me
  like childhood snow


— 1407 —

Sizes

Why does God
  make atoms
  so small
and stars
  so big?
Just because
  She can


— 1408 —

Indulgence

Common wisdom says
  don’t overindulge
I say don’t indulge
  period


— 1409 —

Karma

Karma is older than
  and senior to
Catholic confession


— 1410 —

Perception

The way to
  fully see
  the image
is to
  fully be
  the image

In fact
  that is the
  only way
the spirit
  ever sees
  anything

  ever hears
  anything

  ever feels
  anything

  ever smells
  anything

  ever tastes
  anything

  ever knows
  anything

  ever loves
  anything


— 1411 —

Sanskrit

Deepest meditation
  is like learning
Sanskrit from
  the inside out


— 1412 —

Anapanasati

Softly in
  Softly out
Sweetly anchored
  in the air’s
Streaming
  Stillness


— 1413 —

Constant Doing

Is it not
  the constant
  constant mental
  doing
that binds and
  blinds us


— 1414 —

Regarding AI

The computer
  will never
  be concerned
about its own
  survival


— 1415 —

Pandemic

Our planetary
  life-to-life
  amnesia
is our true
  pandemic


— 1416 —

Dream and Karma

In dream
  thinking is
not only saying
  but it is
also doing


— 1417 —

Wings

This bones and flesh
  and skin I’m in
crushes and constrains
  my angel wings


— 1418 —

Contract

Why do I cling
  to my body?
Some sort of
  contract or
agreement?


— 1419 —

Forgiveness

To let go of
  the defilements
you have to
  forgive yourself
  —a lot


— 1420 —

Ego Reified

Desire
  Aversion
Inertia
  Worry
Doubt
  reify Ego


— 1421 —

Trajectory

I know that
  air, aware
  discern, let go
  just be
is my
  trajectory


— 1422 —

Be Space

Be clear and
  living space
through find
  see, know, be
and constant
  clarity


— 1423 —

Tired

You know that
  you’re getting on
  in years
when every task
  becomes a chore


— 1424 —

As for this Universe

I live inside
  a live snail
fighting these
  amorphous
  infinities


— 1425 —

Silence

The air is cooler
  than the foghorn
  is loud
Though words
  are louder still


— 1426 —

Memory Soup

At times
  I find myself
in this gargantuan
  relentless
memory soup—

warm and thick
  and all pervading


— 1427 —

Coming and Going

At my age
  little pains
they come and go
  some are goer
  than others


— 1428 —

Dreaming

A little known fact:
  You do not dream
  your dream
You always
  are your dream


— 1429 —

Breathing

As for the end
  of our universe
One day God
  will inhale
  again


— 1430 —

Karma

Karma is an
  unforgiving
though
  always true
  always fair
Mistress


— 1431 —

Senses

Obviously
  all our senses
are but neural
  interpretations


— 1432 —

Safe Landing

Dying brings the body
  in for a safe and
comfortable landing


— 1433 —

Desperation

Decisions made
  from sheer
  desperation
seldom, if ever
  pan out


— 1434 —

The Truth

Awareness
  is Mind
Mind is
  Awareness

Consciousness
  is Everything
Everything is
  Consciousness

Consciousness
  is Emptiness
Emptiness
  is Consciousness


— 1435 —

Sex Elegance

Sex is not
  what one
  would deem
and elegant way
  of manning
  mankind


— 1436 —

The Dance

A still mind—
  uncolored air
dancing sweet
  nostril songs
air in—air out


— 1437 —

Indulgence

To truly wake up
  we must
  never indulge
much less
  overindulge


— 1438 —

Aging

Seems to me
  my prostate
  and bladder
are no longer
  on speaking
  terms


— 1439 —

Human Senses

Naturally
  our human
  senses
are neural
  interpretations


— 1440 —

Own Up

Karma is
  a lot less
  forgiving
than your
  Confessor
so own up


— 1441 —

Anapanasati

Breathing—
  At ease and still
I am but will
  Wide aware
I am but air


— 1442 —

Collusion

Memory and Fantasy
  collude to birth
to nurse
  precious ego


— 1443 —

Correct Verb

When it comes
  to finances
“think” is the
  wrong verb
it needs to be
  “know”


— 1444 —

Letting Go

Renunciation
  is opening up
letting out
  and letting go


— 1445 —

Non-Duality

If I exist—
  you exist
and if I
  don’t exist—
you don’t exist


— 1446 —

Dimensions

Separation requires
  dimension
Thus: Ego
 requires space


— 1447 —

Letting Go

It takes strength
  to let go
It takes power
  of will
and peace
  of spirit


— 1448 —

Karma

Karma is a harsh
  unforgiving
though always fair
  and true
  mistress


— 1449 —

Requirement

Desire, Aversion
  Inertia, Worry
Doubt require
  a self


— 1450 —

Rise and Fade

Since all forms
  rapidly rise
  and fade
they are as much
  not here
  as here

We just happen
  to focus
almost exclusively
  on the
  here bit


— 1451 —

Survival

Inside this
  time stream
the overriding
  concern
is with survival

Ultimate survival
  would be
  permanence
though there is
  no such thing

For the only
  permanence
anywhere
  anywhen
is emptiness


— 1452 —

The Ear

Oh, I talk
  to myself a lot
I am a really
  good listener


— 1453 —

Nirvana

Knowing precisely
  how and when
you fragmented
  that is Nirvana


— 1454 —

Nirvana

Not a care
  in the world
is a smiling
  first cousin
to Nirvana


— 1455 —

An Aging Truth

True that—
  To quote
  Ursula K Le Guin
Old Age is not
  for sissies


— 1456 —

Story vs. Life

I find myself
  more alive
in the story
  of life
than in
  life itself


— 1457 —

Children vs. Parents

It seems like money
  is “only money”
until you have to
  earn some


— 1458 —

False and True

The small me
  is false
The vast me
  is true
The vast me
  encompasses

The caged me
  is false
The free me
  is true
The free me
  encompasses

The me me
  is false
The you me
  is true
The you me
  encompasses


— 1459 —

Story vs. Life

Story never hurt
 anyone
there was never
  anyone to hurt

Story never killed
  anyone
there was never
  anyone to kill


— 1460 —

Aware

Aware is
  wide aware
it is
  nano aware
and
  aware aware


— 1461 —

Discernment

Discernment
  is harnessed
focused
  unearthing
revealing
  awareness


— 1462 —

True Jhana

Absorption
  is Effect
While Liberation
  is Cause—
The True Jhana


— 1463 —

All Wet

Says boy to girl
  I am soaking
Replies girl
  Me too
I am so queen


— 1464 —

Story vs. Life

Between story
  and life
give me story—
  the fabulously
  realer


— 1465 —

Beyond Translation

The dance of air
  beyond
the dance of air
  —the dance
of pure neural light


— 1466 —

As for Meditation

Whatever you do
  is fine
as long as it’s
  the only thing
you do


— 1467 —

Our Prison

We forget
  the decisions
that still
  rule our lives
Just this:
  our prison


— 1468 —

Story vs. Life

The story of life
  preceded and
  surely will follow
life itself


— 1469 —

Aging

Seems
  my large prostate
  and small bladder
are no longer
  on speaking terms


— 1470 —

Pure Mind

To purify mind
  find and know
all self-imprisoning
  volitions


— 1471 —

Dreaming

A little known fact:
  You never dream
  your dream
You always
  are your dream


— 1472 —

Opinions

Everybody’s got
  a friggin’ opinion
That is my opinion


— 1473 —

Single-Tasking

Awaring air is
  all I do
Even unaware
  that’s all I do


— 1474 —

Food: In & Out

If you are what you eat
  then (says logic)
you are what you shit
  as well


— 1475 —

Not Nothing

Non-Existence
  does not exist
Whatever there is
  is not nothing


— 1476 —

Samadhi

In meditation
  to focus is
to cease doing
everything else

In meditation
  being air is
a non-dual
  activity


— 1477 —

Spit and You

You spit—
  at what moment
does it cease
  being you
to become
  just spit?


— 1478 —

Ignorance

Our basic
  ignorance
Our near eternal
  delusion—
Point of View


— 1479 —

Falling Through

To fall through time
  into empty
we have to
  stop connecting
  the dots


— 1480 —

Ascension

Being air
  is a non-dual
  activity
Ascending
  all else


— 1481 —

Into Stillness

Softly I slide
  off of rapid
into slow
  there is no
  place finer

Gently I slide
  off of slow
into stillness
  there is no
  place finer


— 1482 —

Dukkha

Samsara is Dukkha
  only when one
  desires
Continuance


— 1483 —

Awaring

The airer I be
  The meer I am
The deeper
  wider aware


— 1484 —

Survival

To truly survive
  you have to let go
the urge, the need
  to survive


— 1485 —

Survival

Survival
  as individual task—
Another word
  for Warfare


— 1486 —

1968

Nirvana—
  my home
beyond body
beyond mind
beyond
  point of view


— 1487 —

Enlighterment
(not as dark as before-ment)

While I cannot
  claim enlightenment
I can claim
  some enlighterment


— 1488 —

Time

Just as matter
  is mostly space
So time
  is mostly
  emptinesses


— 1489 —

Anapanasati
—in the Here and Now

Breathe just
  like a goldfish
where each breath
  is a brand new
  experience


— 1490 —

Solitude

She is my true love
  She is my ever wife
Her name is Solitude


— 1491 —

Into Empty

Softly I slide
  off of thinking
into air
  there is no
  place finer

Gently I slide
  of of air
into empty
  there is no
  place finer


— 1492 —

Single-Tasking

Awaring air is
  all I do
While ceasing
  all else that
  might surface

Awaring air is
  all I do
Unaware that
  that is all I do

Awaring air is
  all I do
Being air is
  all I am
In — Out


— 1493 —

Light Speed

Why does light
  travel, anyway?
It travels because
  we say it does


— 1494 —

Future Echoes

Premonition:
  Echoes
  of the future
sounding before
  I arrive


— 1495 —

Divine Indifference

God can hear you knock
  He can hear you scream
He just could not care
  much less


— 1496 —

Jhana

The airer I be
  the meer I am
the joyer the
  silent heart


— 1497 —

Inelegance

Sex is not
  what I would call
and elegant way
  of manning
  mankind


— 1498 —

Instincts

My body has its own
  survival instincts
not always that
  brilliant

My body has its own
  survival instincts
not bent on
  Nirvana


— 1499 —

Maya

If all this
  is an illusion—
whey then
  so worked up
  about detail?


— 1500 —

Thinking

The mind proffers
  endless hints
  and prompts
It is you who
  think them
  or not


— End —