Monday, December 31, 2012

Technology versus Techknowlogy


Technology                                 

big population = more technology          
unhealthy people = more technology         
multitasking = more technology               
competition = more technology                 
medication = more technology                   
big army = more technology                        
trip to Mars = more technology                  
virtual friends = more technology               

 Techknowlogy

  small population = more techknowlogy
  healthy people = more techknowlogy
  unitasking =  more techknowlogy
  cooperation = more techknowlogy
  meditation =  more techknowlogy
  big peace =  more techknowlogy
  bow to moon =  more techknowlogy
  real friends = more techknowlogy


human being or robot?
time to decide = always now.

Sunday, December 30, 2012


the nature of the game:

move
change
adapt.


.......

Saturday, December 29, 2012

geminids

slept
through
another
meteor
s
  h
    o
      w
         e
           r.




......

Friday, December 28, 2012

do not wear watch
time becomes now.
do not wear shoes
feet touch planet Earth.
do not wear ego
anger disappears.
do not wear religion
entire Universe is sacred.
do not wear anything
everything just is.


.....

Thursday, December 27, 2012

when in Hong Kong
eat with chop sticks.
when in Afghanistan
eat with fingers.
when in Paris
eat with silver spoon.
when in America
eat with plastic fork.
when in Nirvana
eat without eating.

chew thoroughly.


..........

Tuesday, December 25, 2012

Monday, December 24, 2012


record all sounds
in Universe.
mix together -
Om.

(for Alan Watts)

Saturday, December 22, 2012

Buddha says,  "All is flux!"
Lao Tzu says, "Knowing is not knowing!"
Lin Chi says, "Kill the Buddha!"
Yun-Men says, "Shit stick!"
Ikkyu says, "Call me at whore house!
Tofu Dog says, "Woof woof!"

Master Kong says, "Too many talking heads!"

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Coyote Buddha


Coyote Buddha

world becomes very serious
many suffer from shooting own foot.
depression number one people disease
followed by addiction to depression drugs.
planet toxic for 1 million species
even rocks feel effects of pollution.
many say end of world is near
build spaceship to escape apocalypse. 
cities full of confused souls 
search for meaning on every TV channel.
earthquakes shake ocean floor
tsunamis crash into coastal villages.
tornadoes worm across landscape
trees land 200 miles away from roots.
frogs and bees check into hospital
rhinoceros dies from lack of horn.
gangs roam streets
gun in every pocket.

only one hope for planet earth -

Coyote Buddha! 

eats bones in bed
laughs in church
talks to clouds
dances in street
feeds cats and dogs
flies with birds
swings in trees
hangs like bat
waves at flying saucers
flows like water
sheds skin like snake
100% alive this moment.

Coyote Buddha saves planet
helps all beings
steals everybody’s lunch
disappears into River of Stars....


Monday, December 17, 2012

mu-zique 4 today

Rhomboid makes surprise return to planet Earth. Listen here.

Sunday, December 16, 2012

Saturday, December 15, 2012

every bird
knows location
of
nearest
cat.

Thursday, December 13, 2012

Wednesday, December 12, 2012

ink spot
blinks
yellow eye -
black cat.

Tuesday, December 11, 2012

36 views of Hokusai.
100 views of Hiroshige.
750 views of Utagawa.
1,300 views of Nantenbo.

so many views,
so little time.

Monday, December 10, 2012

man wakes up, looks out window
sees vast Universe.
man goes to sleep, has dream
sees vast Universe.
when cutting off awake and asleep
what
 happens
   to vast Universe?


Sunday, December 9, 2012

good news -
you can't forget
what
you don't
remember!

Saturday, December 8, 2012

Master Kong's Instructions for Eating

when eating rice
chew 50 times
when eating wheat
chew 60 times
when eating hamburger
chew 75 times
when eating galaxy
chew 1 million times.

brush teeth between meals
avoid acid indigestion
limit salt intake
don't pile dishes in sink.

say thank you
for living
in edible Universe.
geese fly
through morning mist
whistling ghosts.

Friday, December 7, 2012

art begins
from
belly button.

Wednesday, December 5, 2012

when waisting time
remember
to pay
attention.


Monday, December 3, 2012


wordle art
tinnitus

can you hear
the
crickets?
a world without doubt
is doubtful.

Sunday, December 2, 2012

Saturday, December 1, 2012

squirrel hops from limb to limb.
deer mows herbs with teeth.
goose flies with whistling wings.
monkey practices to become human being.
sun shines without blinking.
Master Kong laughs and makes tea.

Friday, November 30, 2012

Animal Control

man walks outside, talks to birds.
blue jay flies across field, talks to other blue jays.

next day -
man walks outside, sees 1,000 blue jays.
man says, "good idea to acknowledge
ineffable law of cause and effect!"

next day -
man walks outside, sees 10,000 blue jays.
man says, "what goes around comes around!"

next day -
man walks outside, sees Animal Control.
"I am teaching birds law of causation," man says.
Animal Control says, "too many birds, need reduce population."
man says, "blue jays very smart, might eat galaxy."
Animal Control points big gun at birds.

10,000 blue jays fly into sky, turn into giant Thunderbird.
Thunderbird flaps wings, entire Universe is swallowed by black hole.

no more Animal Control.



ji bo

Thursday, November 29, 2012

dragon


Karma Blues


sitting like pretzel bad for knees.
shouting like Ma-tsu bad for throat.
chasing red thread bad for reputation.
attaching to emptiness bad for karma.
bowing to Buddha bad for back.

blink and miss it.
relax.

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Nothing holds still in this ongoing process of sincerity. What happens never happens enough. It is, instead, possessed always of a restless hunger. Fact feeding hungry fact, occurrence opens into its own directions, all appearance vanishing into appearance pregnant through and through. Sincere, generative, hunger-driven - this is what the ancient Chinese understood to be the nature of our Cosmos.

David Hinton: Hunger Mountain

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

when eating fish
beware of bones.
when eating hamburger
beware of fat.
when eating egg
beware of shell.
when eating apple
beware of worm.
when eating watermelon
beware of seeds.
when eating mushroom
beware of poison.
when eating time
beware of black holes.

when eating Universe -
beware of self.

Monday, November 26, 2012

to build house, use hammer.
to turn screw, use screwdriver.
to steer boat, use rudder.
to fly plane, use propeller.
to cut grass, use lawnmower.
to find nirvana, use mantra.
to find self, use mind.

when self is found -
lose self.


ji bo.

Sunday, November 25, 2012

"Technology, in particular, is our collective attempt to control the conditions of our existence on this earth. We have been trying to remold the earth so that it is completely adapted to serve our purposes, until everything becomes subject to our will, a 'resource' that we can use. Ironically, though, this hasn't been providing the sense of security and meaning we seek. We have become more anxious, not less. That's because technology can be a great means, but in itself it's a poor goal."

David R. Loy (in Tricycle magazine)

Saturday, November 24, 2012

poet of the day

John Brandi.
worse than a drunk
mosquito -
toothache.

ji bo

Friday, November 23, 2012

What was right yesterday
is wrong today.
In what is right today
how do you know it was not wrong yesterday?
There is no right and wrong,
no predicting gain or loss.
Unable to change their tune,
those who are foolish glue down bridges of a lute.
Those who are wise get to the source
but keep wandering about for long.
Only when you are neither wise nor foolish
can you be called one who has the way.


Master Ryokan

.........
waitingwaitingwaiting
    waitingwaiting
        waiting -
          for what?

Thursday, November 22, 2012

on Thanksgiving Day
be sure
to bow
to Universe.


ji bo

Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Rx zero

those who know
do not speak
did Lao Tzu know?

no reliance on scriptures
10,000,000 words about Heart Sutra.

"from the first, not a thing"
1,000,000 books about Zen.

without a sound
inhale the Universe
exhale
repeat as needed.


ji bo

Tuesday, November 20, 2012

haicoo

circle
not yet complete -
autumn leaves.


ji bo

Monday, November 19, 2012

The Flower Is Not A Flower

The flower is not a flower,
The fog is not fog.
Midnight comes,
Dawn goes,
Coming like a spring dream, it does not stay long;
Going like the morning clouds, there is no place to meet it.

Bai Juyi (772-846)

Sunday, November 18, 2012

Coming, all is clear, no doubt about it.
Going, all is clear, without a doubt.
     What, then, is it all?


Hosshin (death poem, 13th Century)

Saturday, November 17, 2012

passing through
dialects
I don't understand


Taneda Santoka



"I see a vision of a great rucksack revolution thousands or even millions of Americans wandering around with rucksacks, going up mountains to pray, making children laugh and old men glad, making young girls happy and old girls happier, all of 'em Zen lunatics who go about writing poems that happen to appear in their heads for no reason and also by being kind and also by strange unexpected acts keep giving visions of eternal freedom to everybody and all living creatures"

Jack Kerouac, The Dharma Bums

Friday, November 16, 2012



What is Tao?
It is just this.
It cannot be rendered into speech.
If you insist on an explanation,
This means exactly this. 

Lu Tung Pin

Thursday, November 15, 2012

beetniks

counter culture
now main culture
new clothes
gray hair
volvo wagon
life insurance
golf clubs.

need new deep root culture:
no habit energy mind
dirt between toes
tea over wood fire
homemade sake
talk to earth worms
listen to sparkling stars
swim in creek
feel wind on skin
laugh at wrinkles
write poems for root vegetables.

name for new movement?

the beet generation!




girl sings
in shower
shower sings back!

Wednesday, November 14, 2012

in 400 years
everybody is famous.
in 800 years
everybody is genius.
in 1600 years
everybody is billionaire.
in 3200 years
everybody is robot.
in 6400 years
everybody is bored.

to avoid becoming robot
talk to plants, animals, and clouds.
then listen.

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

when lonely, visit friend.
when happy, visit dance floor.
when sad, visit therapist.
when thirsty, visit water fountain.
when hungry, visit noodle shop.
when ignorant, visit school teacher.
when enlightened, visit Universe.

when zero?

corn grows by itself, no education.
when corn is ripe - time for big picnic!
everybody invited.


ji bo

Monday, November 12, 2012

when cloud walking
in misty mountains
always have safe place
to land.


ji bo

Friday, November 9, 2012

hello, Tofu Dog

Tofu Dog looks at moon,
moon looks at Tofu Dog.
Tofu dog barks at moon,
moon remains silent.
no problem.

Thursday, November 8, 2012

Wednesday, November 7, 2012

Master Kong's lesson No. 49


Habit energy mind very dangerous!

Mind buzzes like angry bees
going in and out
six cave doors.

Thoughts stomp like dinosaurs,
leave big footprints
inside poor mind.

Important to take vacation
from habit energy mind
starting right now.

Inhale, breathe in Universe.
Exhale, breathe out Universe.
Tao will be fine until vacation over.

No need for travel agent!





Tuesday, November 6, 2012

when traveling
good idea to leave
identity at home.


ji bo
making tea
requires
nothing special.


ji bo

Monday, November 5, 2012

happy-ness


eat eggs, heart attack.
eat rice, arsenic.
eat grapes, pesticides.
eat beef, hormones.
eat fish, mercury.
eat corn, genetic modification.
eat candy, cavities.
eat Universe, no problem!



ji bo



Sunday, November 4, 2012

10,000 monkeys sitting on island.
Big Monkey says, "Universe is like banana."
Little Big Monkey says, "Universe is like coconut."
Buddha Monkey says, "Universe is like empty space."
Tao Monkey says, "Universe is like flowing water."
Lawyer Monkey says, "Universe is like court room."
Doctor Monkey says, "Universe is like hospital."

Master Kong waves stick and island disappears.
"Too much noise," he says.


Master Kong's motto

"No Universe,
no problem!"

Saturday, November 3, 2012

Universe if Flux

"The principle of flux pervades everything from the macrocosm to the microcosm.... From this it follows that I am composed of a bundle of waves or flux." Tawara Yusaku 
monk throws bone to Tofu Dog.
Tofu Dog sniffs bone and walks away.
Master Kong picks up bone
hits monk on top of head.
monk barks three times.
Master Kong says, "Zen is one big dog show!"

Thursday, November 1, 2012

mind bombs

who taught
birds
to sing?

do trees
worry?

no ear
no sound -
no big bang?

how many thoughts
do seven billion people have
in one hour?

how high is
shortest mountain?

is end of beginning
a new beginning?



Wednesday, October 31, 2012

road from Cowee to Buck Creek

travel ancient mountains, alchemy of color, bear hunters return from day of work. sun falls behind rolling planet, leaves ignite. soon too dark to see sleeping trees.

last refuge
of summer -
autumn.



Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Master Kong turns on Weather Channel:
big storm causing rain, sleet, wind, and snow.
Master Kong turns off Weather Channel and walks outside,
sees one billion snow flakes covering world.
"Every flake an infinite universe; good time for infinite cup of tea," he says.
Master Kong walks back inside, closes door, and disappears.


ji bo

Monday, October 29, 2012

tiny pumpkin
on threadbare tree -
persimmon.

bocho 2012

Sunday, October 28, 2012

"The early Zen priest Daie is said to have suffered greatly from the fact that even the enlightened mind, which has mastered the illusion of reality, is still troubled by dreams of the vulgar world."

Natsume Soseki

Master Kong visits McDonalds


Master Kong and disciple go to McDonalds.
Girl at counter says, "Can I take your order?'
"Big hamburger, extra pickles," Master Kong says.
Disciple says, "We vow not to take life. How can you order hamburger?"
Master Kong says, "Hamburger becomes deep energy. Cow helps save Universe!"
Disciple has sudden awakening: all is One, ketchup is One, pickle is One.
Disciple very happy.
"I'll have cheeseburger!" Disciple says.

Saturday, October 27, 2012


to bake a cake
use flour.
to fry a chicken
use oil.
to run a car
use gas.
to poach an egg
use water.
to enlighten a mind
use nothing.



ji bo

Friday, October 26, 2012

we interrupt this program
to say -
now what?


ji bo
ask cloud: do you have self?
ask river: do you have self?
ask tree - do you have self?
ask dog: dog barks.


ji bo
Master Kongs says:
"Seeking enlightenment is to roll Great Ball of Doubt up big hill.
Be careful not to hurt foot!"

mind bomb

if tree falls in forest
and no one sees -
is tree invisible?

Tuesday, October 23, 2012


let feet do the walking
let mouth do the talking
let heart do the beating
let lungs do the breathing
let eyes do the blinking
let mind do the thinking.
when mind is operating spontaneously,
plenty of time for rest of life!


ji bo 

Monday, October 22, 2012

Sunday, October 21, 2012

Master Kong says:

"Don't seek enlightenment
without good flashlight!"
when in hurricane, watch weather channel
when in prison, watch back
when in movie theater, watch screen
when in meditation, watch breath
when Universe disappears - what will you watch?
where will favorite dog be
in one hundred years?
river of molecules
barking at shadows.

ji bo


autumn pond
North Carolina
2012

good poet
 must be
 good thief!


 ji bo

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

In every life, there comes a moment of absolute and utter confusion. Enjoy.

from "the innumerable sayings of tao jones"