I Looked at the Stars / J'ai regardé les étoiles

I looked at the stars
while my dog took a pee.
Cassiopeia is low,
but so are we.
I stood naked in the warm, Gulf breeze,
Polaris is beyond the trees.
A moth flew at my ear,
we're here,
we're here.

J'ai regardé les étoiles
pendant que mon chien a fait pipi.
Cassiopée est basse,
mais nous aussi.
Je me tenais nu dans la chaude brise du golfe,
Polaris est au-delà des arbres.
Un papillon vola à mon oreille,
nous sommes là
nous sommes là.

Text © 2019 by Donald C. Traxler.

This Body / Ce corps

This body has a history.
Born of skinny parents,
it was too slight for war.
Now, at three-quarters
of a century,
it is probably
at its best.
May the soul,
for which it is the vehicle,
be able to say
the same
before it rests.

Ce corps a une histoire.
Né de parents maigres,
c'était trop léger pour la guerre.
Maintenant, aux trois quarts
d'un siècle,
c'est probablement
à son meilleur.
Que l'âme,
pour laquelle c'est le véhicule,
soit capable de dire
le même
avant qu'il ne repose.

Text and image © 2019 by Donald C. Traxler.

He Has Seen

He has seen
the forests of the night,
Alexandria at its height,
civilized savages,
the Black Plague's ravages,
the rebirth of science and art,
and how it falls apart.

He has seen
people bought and sold,
massacres for gold,
and victims untold;
gods and goddesses alike,
a naked woman on a bike.

He has known
the joy of love,
the power of a kiss,
but in all of history's range,
never a time more strange
than this,

than this.

Text and image © 2019 by Donald Jacobson Traxler.

My Body Is a Channel of Communication / Mon corps est un canal de communication / ᎠᏆ ᎠᏰᎸ ᎨᏒᎠᏎ ᎤᎶᎯᏍᏗ ᏗᏛᎪᏔᏅ ᎥᎿᎢमेरा शरीर संचार का एक चैनल है। /

My body is a channel of communication.
I listen, day and night.

Mon corps est un canal de communication.
J'écoute, jour et nuit.

मेरा शरीर संचार का एक चैनल है।
मैं सुनता हूं, दिन और रात।

ᎠᏆ ᎠᏰᎸ ᎨᏒᎠᏎ ᎤᎶᎯᏍᏗ ᏗᏛᎪᏔᏅ ᎥᎿᎢ.
ᎠᏯ ᎭᏛᏓᏍᏓᏎ, ᎢᎦ ᎠᎴ ᏒᏃᏱ.

Text and image © 2019 by Donald C. Traxler.

The Wind Blows Where It Will / Le vent souffle où il veut / हवा बहती है जहां यह होगा / ᎤᏃᎴ ᎠᎾᎩᏍᏓᏎ ᎭᏢ ᎠᏚᎳᏓᏎ

The wind blows where it will,
the spirit is forever free.

Le vent souffle où il veut,
l'esprit est à jamais libre.

हवा बहती है जहां यह होगा,
आत्मा हमेशा के लिए स्वतंत्र है।

ᎤᏃᎴ ᎠᎾᎩᏍᏓᏎ ᎭᏢ ᎠᏚᎳᏓᏎ,
ᎠᏓᏅᏙ ᎨᏒᎠᏎ ᎢᎪᎯᏛ ᎠᏚᏓᎴᏍᏓ.

Text, translations, and image © 2019 by Donald C. Traxler नग्न देवीदास

We Give the Breath / Nous donnons le souffle / हम सांस फेंकते हैं

We give the breath
to the lower fire.
The child born rises
to Sahasrar.

Nous donnons le souffle
au feu inférieur.
L'enfant né monte
à Sahasrar.

हम सांस फेंकते हैं
नीचे आग में।
जन्म लेने वाला बच्चा उठता है
सहस्रार तक।

Text and image © 2019 by Donald C. Traxler नग्न देवीदास

We Cast the Bija / हमने बीजा डाला

We cast the bija
into the yoni-fire
as a sacrifice
to all the gods,
to all life.
Swaha.

हमने बीजा डाला
योनी-अग्नि में
एक बलिदान के रूप में
सभी देवताओं के लिए,
सभी जीवन के लिए।
स्वाहा।

Text and image © 2019 by Donald C. Traxler नग्न देवीदास