H e a r t   S o n s   &   H e a r t   D a u g h t e r s   of   A l l e n   G i n s b e r g

N a p a l m   H e a l t h   S p a :   R e p o r t   2 0 1 4 :   A r c h i v e s   E d i t i o n

 

 

MARC OLMSTED

 

 

Karmapa In America ‘08

 

Touching the Void mountain

climbing book read by Berkeley intense young man

void opens from tunnel over concrete veins of highway

FORTUNE COOKIE fast delivery ghetto

red motor chair Granny diabetes taking a spin

portly East Indian man, buzz flat top cocks eyebrow corny wrestler

daring action (in deeper fear)

eyes locking w/ me –

he thinks the world bullies him – perhaps right –

but this wrestling match already lost

“& the winner is…Decay!”

 

Earth Bearing Witness 8 centuries of the Buddha

glass case statues on the way into security

airport checkpoint I pause – look at them all

“Crowned Buddha”

Black Crown Karmapa for sure

on my trip to Seattle to see his new 17th face

Whisper Transmission Tibetan lineage Head

 

clear, unlocatable, nondiscursive,

naked emptiness-awareness

 is the authentic lama”

        Jigdral Yeshe Dorje

 

Virgin America’s purple–lit air cabin reading

William Gibson’s latest cyberpunk novel –

which happens in the present –

electronica music in the toilet – a

trumpet doing a mediocre stab at Miles –

I could be frightened in this Bardo

Distance to go

73 miles – red jet on USA map –

Google journey graphics back of the

heardrest in front of me

 

In the bathroom mirror I am shocked that I’m old

 

But the smell

\in the airporter bus is the same

from last century

 like a pink chip in an old urinal

 

-          Karmapa in America

-          Panic in the Disco

-          Return to Forever

6

6

6

-          - Paramount Theater marquee 5/31/08 Seattle, WA

 

Later in the Seattle bar

back of seat sticker

crossbones dakini?

skydancer”?

DAKINE

Hawaii islandspeakthe word you use when you don't use the word”

But the waitress did have a Buddha tattoo

giving me sugarless Red Bull –

in 2 weeks 2 days sober 23 years

3 times w/ 17th Karmapa

3rd time by invitation only

he acknowledged he was

back will be back

“like Groundhog Day” movie said

Dzogchen Ponlop –

over and over

(“But he does it for us”)

Bill Murray actor returning

vast space Karmapa

in Seattle of the skateboard

homeless punks of

gloomy sky

every 3rd on crank

I’ve heard though already

apparent their

harsh energy

 

Exploring the night by myself

mad professor in the all ages club

where The Melvins played

The Black Angels

I am a Black angel

of the Black Crown Karmapa

I wrote Black Leather Tantra

and was old even then

1992

but I still like this dark planet

 illumined black light

glowing purple

in a dream

in a skull

 

Skywalking night

Space Ghost Coast-To-Coast

 

Soon I leave your physical form

O Karmapa

less soon I leave mine

talking to the 20 year old w/ Dharma parents

born in Halifax saw Trungpa Rinpoche when he was 5

He pieces together my Naropa U. backstory

“You knew Allen Ginsberg?” he guesses

“Yes.”

“You’re old school!”

Gave him my card after we sat

took Chenrezig empowerment together

OM MANI PADME HUNG – later

looked at my ticket – I’d sat in wrong seat, wrong row & nobody’d come

Over and over we come back for us

I’m the Black Angel of the Black Crown

over and over

I’ll eat less meat

though skull cup runneth over

Over and over 

like Groudhog’s Day he does it for us

and the world needs help

 

Black angels unite

coast to coast

10 directions

black light poster

peace sign skateboard

down from the sky

 

 

5/29-6/2/08

 

 

[Originally published in NHS 2008, http://www.poetspath.com/napalm/nhs08/Marc_Olmsted.htm.]