|
THE NAMELESS CHILD
There is a mountain of gold. When the sun's rays strike
it, it is irritating to look at. It is surrounded by red, green, yellow
orange, pink and liver-colored clouds, wafted gently by the wind. Around
the mountain fly thousands of copper-winged birds with silver heads and
iron beaks. A ruby sun rises in the East and a crystal moon sets in the
West. The whole earth is covered with pearl-dust snow. Upon it a
luminous child without a name instantaneously comes into being.
The golden mountain is dignified, the sunlight
is blazing red.
Dreamlike clouds of many colors float across
the sky.
In the place where iron birds croak,
The instantaneously born child can find no
name.
Because he has no father, the child has no family line.
Because he has no mother, he has never tasted milk. Because he has
neither brother nor sister, he has no one to play with. Having no house
to live in, he cannot find a crib. Since he has no nanny, he has never
cried. There is no civilization, so he cannot find toys. Since there is
no point of reference, he doesn't know a self. He has never heard spoken
language, so he has never experienced fear.
The child walks in every direction, but does not come
across anything. He sits down slowly on the ground. Nothing happens. The
colorful world seems sometimes to exist and sometimes not. He gathers a
handful of pearl dust and lets it trickle through his fingers. He gathers
another handful and slowly takes it into his mouth. Hearing the pearl
dust crunch between his teeth, he gazes at the ruby sun setting and the
crystal moon rising. Suddenly, a whole galaxy of stars wondrously appears
and he lies on his back to admire their patterns. The nameless child
falls into a deep sleep, but has no dreams.
The child's world has no beginning or end.
To him, colors are neither beautiful nor ugly.
The child's nature has no preconceived notion
of birth and death.
The golden mountain is solid and unchanging,
The ruby sun is all-pervading,
The crystal moon watches over millions of stars
The child exists without preconceptions.
3 November 1972
Go to Next Page
|