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 sixteenth installment.

Wolfkus 1501 – 1600

— 1501 —

Body Bound

Anything that
  anchors you
  to a body
is simply
  defilement        


— 1502 —

Not-Knowing

An unclosed mind:
  I don’t know
  that it’s true
I don’t know
  that it’s not true


— 1503 —

Ignorance

We remain ignorant
  by not looking
  too closely
at anything

Our reacting mind
  serves to make sure
that we never look
  too closely

And to keep us
  bewildered
  and scattered
and thinking
  thinking
    thinking

Then again:
  we shed
  our ignorance
by truly looking
  and seeing


— 1504 —

Unionizing

Dear God
We’d like to
  unionize
  if you don’t mind
Said God:
  I do mind


— 1505 —

Time

Emptiness is
  the thread
that stitches
  moments
  together
into time


— 1506 —

Perceptions

Perceptions
  of the present
are echoes of
  the immediate
  past


— 1507 —

Perfect Stillness

Perfect stillness
  does not lean
in any direction
  it just is—
  knows


— 1508 —

Clairvoyance

Clairvoyance is
  future echoes
swimming upstream
  singing
silent songs


— 1509 —

Perceptions

A perception is
  a mental image
of the immediate
  past

The sole difference
  between perception
  and memory
is vividness


— 1510 —

Heathens

India, said Mommi
  is full of heathens
We have to save
  them all

India, said Mommi
  is full of idols
We have to crush
  them all

In Swedish, an idol
  is an “off” god
God, of course
  the one “on” god


— 1511 —

Nerds

Only real nerds
  know how to spell
  Nietzsche
without looking it up


— 1512 —

Clairvoyance

Clairvoyance is
  future echoes
floating upstream
  telling telling
  tales


— 1513 —

Stillness

The ego is
  what separates
inner stillness from
  outer stillness


— 1514 —

The Songest Song

The day
  the fat lady sang
  her swan song
I mixed my last
  metaphor


— 1515 —

Pinnacle

All things considered—
  Modern man’s
  greatest achievement:
Toilet paper


— 1516 —

Attention

Attention is
  constant intention
a lasting
  though timeless
  willing


— 1517 —

Pit Stops

Too many pit stops—
  Either I’m pregnant
or my prostate
  is growing


— 1518 —

Orion

Orion does not
  think of itself
  as Orion
For how could it?


— 1519 —

Tiredness

Of course, I’m battling
  my age
Of course, it’s a race
  against killer time


— 1520 —

Distance

The only thing
  between me
  and Orion
is a bit of
  distance


— 1521 —

Delusion aka Fooling Self

It’s all about not
  letting left hand
in on what
  right hand
  is up to


— 1522 —

Divine Trouble

God has tied himself
  in a trillion trillion
Earthly-Heavenly
  knots


— 1523 —

Sunlight

These glorious
  little ego deaths
letting the sunlight
  in again


— 1524 —

Miniscule

I am the golden
  ego angel
dancing on
  the head
  of a pin


— 1525 —

Karma Police

Karma would
  simply
have to be
  Self-policing—
There’s no
  other way


— 1526 —

Precision

The feeling of air
  upon nostril
so much more
  precise
than these words


— 1527 —

Just Be

Just Be means
  Just Be
Timeless
  Spaceless
Beyond Survival
  Beyond Life


— 1528 —

Ailing Gaia

Mother Earth
  this Queen
of gentle balance
  Never foresaw
Human Greed


— 1529 —

Senior Decisions

Antecedent decisions
  rear their
  insistent heads
forcing my hand


— 1530 —

Sweet Stillness

These truly
  wonderful
perhaps not
  thought-free
but language-free
  sittings


— 1531 —

Creator

Sex was created
  And its Creator
was not fucking
  benevolent


— 1532 —

Final Tap

Yeah, but our
  Nirvana
  goes to eleven
says Mahayana


— 1533 —

My Spinning Life

My life as electron
  busy spinning and
  jumping layers
and such

It is a childless
  thankless task
Fuck these
  ungrateful
Protons
  Neutrons

When I die
  forty billion
  years from now
I’ll come back
  as a fungus


— 1534 —

Life, Language, Death

Life is a lot smoother
  than language
less jagged
  finer increments

Death is a lot smoother
  than life
No steps or landings
  no increments


— 1535 —

Mental Pain

My experience—
  Mental pain
always concerns
  ego survival


— 1536 —

No Death

If you stop
  drinking water
  you’ll die
If you stop
  having sex
  you won’t

(Though the
  species might)

(Eventually)


— 1537 —

Duration

Time does not
  really matter
for the moment
  of release
is timeless


— 1538 —

Wording

Thinking a word
  is being that word
aloft on the wings
  of meaning


— 1539 —

Jhana—
  Direction Correction

I don’t think
  absorption is
  stepping in
I think it is
  stepping out


— 1540 —

Synonyms

Delusion is
  simply
another word
  for spiritual
  blindness


— 1541 —

Cataracts

Delusion is just
  another word for
spiritual cataracts


— 1542 —

Being Air

Being air means
  every single
particle
  every single
instant


— 1543 —

The Brilliant Cynic

Gombrich not only
  puts words
in the Buddha’s mouth
  he puts thoughts
in his head


— 1544 —

Purification

The air purifies
  into mind
finer, finer
  finer, finer…
Light


— 1545 —

Digital Fame

It used to be
  15-minute fame
Now it’s down to
  15 seconds


— 1546 —

Herocide

To surrect the brave
  and true warrior
We first must kill
  the hero (aka ego)


— 1547 —

Noun-ing

There are no
  nouns
There are
  only verbs
For all things
  are activities


— 1548 —

Jailbird

Imprisonment—
  another word
for agreeing
  to limitations


— 1549 —

Ignorance

Primordial Ignorance
  created ego—
every single day

Ego now creates
  greed and hatred
  and so on
every single day


— 1550 —

Mind-ing

Mind is not
  a thing
mind is always
  (always was)
an activity


— 1551 —

Machine

The body is
  a very
  clumsy
sensation-
  perception
Machine


— 1552 —

Sublimation

In Samadhi
  Touch sublimates
to vision
  Air sublimates
to light


— 1553 —

Vedge

Wedge should be
  spelled Vedge
for V, not W
  has that single
  sharp edge

(Wedges would
  work though)


— 1554 —

No Game­

The universe would
  not be a game
if we could control
  all of it


— 1555 —

Spring Green

There is no greener
  than spring green
for the is no lifer
  than spring life


— 1556 —

Gaia Sizzles

Gaia sizzles—
  shedding
human folly
  human greed
humans period


— 1557 —

Sibilant Sickness

Egoitis inflames
  the soul
and swells
  the seed
of separateness


— 1558 —

Real Meaning

A words finds
  its real meaning
when it marries
  the experience


— 1559 —

Equanimity

Resist life
  at your peril—
Struggle springs
  and tightens
life’s hidden
  bonds


— 1560 —

True Present

As senses sense
  only the past
I strive to sense
  the sense-less
  present


— 1561 —

Letting Go

It seems I can’t
  let go of self
since I want to
  be the let goer


— 1562 —

Thomas Pynchon

You read
  Thomas Pynchon
without a seatbelt
  at your own
  grave peril

For any given
  Pynchon sentence
might morph into
  a strange magic

P.S. Bring a very
  good dictionary


— 1563 —

Two Crows

Two crows
  side by side
She’s going
  onandonandon
He blinks a lot


— 1564 —

Thomas Pynchon

One never reads
  Pynchon for plot
One only reads
  Pynchon
  for language     


— 1565 —

Allergy

I am allergic
  to pain—
I break out
  in all these
little hurtings


— 1566 —

This Life

My current narrative
  one of trillions
is but a trite bagatelle


— 1567 —

Release

Constructs
  never release
Logic
  never resolves
Let go
  all these words


— 1568 —

I’m not saying Kerouac

While Donna Tartt
  and Nadeem Aslam
paint murals
  with an eyelash
others vomit paints
  upon bricks
to see what stick


— 1569 —

Sexual Intercourse

Sexual Intercourse:
  Two spirits
  imprisoned
in the selfsame
  cage


— 1570 —

True Ego

Says Ego:
  Well, enough
  amount me
Here is
  what I think
  about you


— 1571 —

Regret

The moment you
  regret
you are forever
  trapped
in your lower self


— 1572 —

All Is Life

All is life—
  Every single
  particle
in each minutest
  space—All


— 1573 —

Miscalculating Amputee

To improve my
  spirit-to-body ratio
I’ve cut off my legs


— 1574 —

A Critical Question

Who intelligences
  the liver
motivates and
  conducts
  the heart?

Who compares
  and (wrongly) equates
present details
  with those of the past?

Who but life itself
  So wise as Brahman
So ignorant as Atman


— 1575 —

Distance vs Size

Distance is relative
  to size
To some, the Universe
  is tiny

So tiny, in fact
  one wonders
how evil
  could even
  fit in it


— 1576 —

Me, Me, Me

These rising
  thoughts
  and images
are nothing
  but ego
  proclaimers


— 1577 —

Solitude

Some say willow
  is our most
  beautiful word
I say solitude is


— 1578 —

Toward Home

Expand your
  personal
  universe
to incorporate
  all others


— 1579 —

Nibbana

The unconditioned
  The unconstructed
The uneverythinged


— 1580 —

Eternal Conundrum

Your awareness
  My awareness
Delimited yet
  Unlimited


— 1581 —

Respect Ladder

I swore—
  and slipped
a couple of rungs
  on her
respect-for-me
  ladder


— 1582 —

Running Interference

To keep me blind
  to what is
my mind is running
  truth interference


— 1583 —

Scientific Wonder

The dog Rosie’s brain
  a scientific wonder—
the perfect vacuum


— 1584 —

Sycophant

His daily
  ass-kissing
was so deep
  one could
  call it
colon-kissing


— 1585 —

Personality

Personality—
  an attribute
  we endow
an observed
  face with


— 1586 —

Egocide

Letting go self
  is much like
burning your
  one and only
  manuscript


— 1587 —

Preferences

Ruptured peace
  and meditative
  friction
have but one
  source—
Preferences


— 1588 —

A Spitting Question

At what point
  does this liquid
stop being you
  and start
  being spittle


— 1589 —

Viral

Memories are
  like viruses
They need you
  to imbue them
with life


— 1590 —

Rules

Here is one
  for the books—
Enough rules
  already
Therefore:
  No More Rules


— 1591 —

Resolved

There is no
  mind resolution
  to mind
other than
  letting it go


— 1592 —

Quite Possible

There is no reason
  why the Earth
  should not be
the seat of
  truth and light

For every place
  in the Universe—
our size—
  just as small
  as we are


— 1593 —

Thought Snares

Our potential thoughts
  are endless—
We choose and nurse
  those that
  ensnare us


— 1594 —

Initial Impetus

Dependent
  Origination
must have had
  initial impetus

This initial impetus
  we hide
  from ourselves—
Our true ignorance


— 1595 —

Purity

Air is cleaner
  than think
Light purer
  than air
Aware clearest
  of all


— 1596 —

Light Ladder

Body-think
  Mind-think
Self-think
  No-think
My fall ‘68
  Light ladder


— 1597 —

Attention

What delimits
  unlimited
  attention—
the idea of self


— 1598 —

Equal

Any other place
  in the Universe
our size—
  as small
  as we are


— 1599 —

Rebirth

Every rebirth
  requires
  (naturally)
a prior redeath


— 1600 —

Languages

My brain speaks
  Body
I don’t speak
  Brain
My mind speaks
  Brain
and I speak
  Mind


— End —