Stillness Archives - The Dewdrop

Mark Christopherson

Featured Poetry

Mark Christopherson – Interval and Slip

November 22, 2020November 20, 2020 Vanessa Able

Our days are so familiar, yet, unexpectedly at times, we slip loose from the narrative that is shaping our perspectives.

close up photography of brown wasp

Way-Seeking Mind

The Fly Antecedent

October 1, 2020September 30, 2020 Vanessa Able

BY PATRICK BURR After climbing to the top of Bulamsan, a small peak in northeastern Seoul, I sat on a boulder and stared out from among the trees at the ivory city below the smog.

Chinese Poetry, Chinese Texts, Poetry, The Masters

Chuang Tzu’s Action and Non-Action

October 23, 2019December 19, 2019 Vanessa Able

The true stillness that is at the root of human wisdom and the Taoist endeavor is a positive state, in as much as it is not the absence of anything nor a resistance to anything. Chinese philosopher Chuang Tzu, author of foundational Taoist texts, writes in this poem: "The sage is quiet because he is not… Continue reading Chuang Tzu’s Action and Non-Action

Pico Iyer – Coming Back Home

February 20, 2019February 19, 2019 Vanessa Able

Pico Iyer is a writer concerned with travel and the expansion of spiritual horizons. His book, 'The Art of Stillness: Adventures in Going Nowhere', is an exploration of stillness and movement, and an account of his relationships with his friends Leonard Cohen and the Dalai Lama. In this excerpt, he starts to talk about the… Continue reading Pico Iyer – Coming Back Home

Letting the Old Thrills Die: C.S. Lewis on Being Alive to New Joy
Holding on to what is thrilling to us can be stifling and prevent us from paving the way for new experiences.
Working With the Soul Nerve – Resmaa Menakem on Grounding Our Bodies
Starting with the damage done by racism to human bodies, Resmaa Menakem presents a pragmatic approach to healing through the body.
What is Meditation? Shinzen Young on How to Deepen Our Focus
Shinzen Young on the most basic principle of mindfulness meditation: the cultivation of focus that can be practiced at any moment of the day, during any activity.
The Most Beautiful Thing We Can Experience Is The Mysterious: Albert Einstein’s Living Philosophy
Albert Einstein lays out his living philosophy and the set of ideals that he held in his personal, spiritual and political life.
Joseph Campbell On Experiencing Mystery
Joseph Campbell takes on the notion of experiencing mystery and considers how religious narratives can actually stymie the expansive human experience of transcendence.

Tishani Doshi – Hope is the Thing
Tishani Doshi's poem pays homage to a twelve-year-old girl who died of exhaustion last year during the Covid-19 lockdown.
Anne Hillman – We Look With Uncertainty
Hillman's poem about uncertainty and regeneration acknowledges the vulnerability of human existence 'which is every moment / at the brink of death', standing, waiting, 'learning to love.'
Jane Hirshfield – All The Difficult Hours and Minutes
In Hirshfield's poem, calamity turns to calmness when things turn into themselves, a principle that goes to the heart of transformative practice.
Shangyang Fang – Chaconne
Fang's beautiful and complex poem addresses the questions of sin and redemption against the background of a young monk entering a monastery.
Jericho Brown – Bullet Points
Jericho Brown's poem talks to the weight carried by black Americans who live under the constant threat of police violence and injustice.