So, in this post I am including a scan of the original poem for friends who know or are studying Tibetan as well as the English translation. Tashi is a fine poet and his calligraphy is beautiful so even if you can’t read Tibetan perhaps you will appreciate the beauty of the script. He wrote this poem using a popular Tibetan poetic device in which each line of the poem starts with one of the letters of the Tibetan alphabet, in chronological order. We were, of course, unable to employ this device in the English translation except for in the last stanza where the final letters of the alphabet are used as emotional utterances that seem to correlate in meaning in both languages.
Alphabetical Poem about Recent Feelings
Hi friend–listen to me young girl
These words come from my heart, not just from my mouth
I want to tell you the truth, Perfect Girl who has taken my heart
This is how I feel recently
In general, I wanted to be a great meditator, live in a peaceful place,
And to be a qualified monk
But due to my attachment to desire
Now I feel like a fish caught in a small pool.
If from the Great Buddhist Teachings I stray
I will be full of sorrow.
So if I don’t practice Dharma from now on,
Before the arrival of old age and death, I will regret it.
Without knowing what my parents think and say
People are looking with critical eyes
My Conduct is like that of an animal
No one else would involve in this conduct other than me.
Your body is like bamboo that grows on Tsa Ri
— (a Sacred Mountain in Tibet)–
Without doubt or hesitation you showed me affection
In a rush I accepted
Clearly I am now a layperson.
I am not disabled
So I am not worried about my livelihood
However if I don’t seize this urgent moment
I will be left single and alone without you.
My fatherland is surrounded by peaks of white
Many hills and valleys separate me from there.
This long distance from my parents, brothers and sisters
Is the result of my previous karma.
Ha, Ha, He, He! How you are leaving, girl!
Ah! Ah! This boy’s mind is like freezing water.
Ha! The possibility of a new life stands before me.
Ah! Ah! Foolish I would be to throw away my future path.
amazing!!! So glad you found it!
I love this!
How beautiful. It gave me chills.