1. Are you starving for love?

Are you starving for love?
My blue eyes shall feed you
    Without fail.
Just wait a second,
I need permission
From my Lord Supreme.

Are you starving for love?
My white heart shall feed you
    Without fail.
Just wait a second,
I need permission
From my Lord Supreme.

Are you starving for love?
My golden soul shall feed you
    Without fail.
Just wait a second,
I need permission
From my Lord Supreme.

2. Four realisations

My body-cage has realised
Freedom’s quick fame
Does not and cannot last.

My mind-cave has realised
Freedom’s quick promise
Does not and cannot last.

My heart-flame has realised
Freedom’s quick transformation
Does not and cannot last.

My soul-flower has realised
Freedom’s quick perfection
Does not and cannot last.

3. Thank you

My Lord,
I saw You sailing
In my dream.
How beautiful You looked!
I must say,
You are more beautiful than I am.
“Thank you, My child.”

My Lord,
I saw You as the only
Golden Shore.
How fulfilling You proved!
I must say,
You are more fulfilling than I am.
“Thank you, My child.”

4. Your God

Good stars met.
Therefore
    Horoscope became your God.
Who can forgive your foolish discovery?
    No, not even God;
    I mean the real God.

Good lines were born
    In your palm.
Therefore
    Palmistry became your God.
Who can forgive your foolish discovery?
    No, not even God;
    I mean the real God.

5. If you do not believe

I see God.
If you do not believe it,
That is your serious fault
And not mine.

God loves me most.
If you do not believe it,
That is your deplorable fault
And not mine.

God is going to make me
    Another God.
If you do not believe it,
That is your unpardonable fault
And not mine.

6. Freedom

Earth-freedom:
    Disastrous madness.

Heaven-freedom:
    Harmonious oneness.

God-freedom:
    Prosperous surrender.

7. O self-complacency

O self-complacency,
Be not unconscious
    Of your stark inferiority.
Lo, the phantom-hour
    Is mocking you.
Terminate your groundless
    Satisfaction.
Stop, stop your prolonged
    Clever navigation.

8. When I thought of God

Fear obeyed me
When I thought of God.

Doubt surrendered to me
When I meditated on God.

Failure gave me joy
When I loved God.

Ignorance left me
When I spoke to God.

9. One necessity

Believe it or not,
Heaven’s blue smile
Is my soul’s beauty.

Believe it or not,
Earth’s green cry
Is my body’s duty.

Believe it or not,
God’s golden Promise
Has one necessity:
    My surrender-reality.

10. If I love God

If I pray to God
    Daily,
My life shall grow
    Soulfully.

If I meditate on God
    Daily,
My life shall run
    Indefinitely.

If I love God
    Daily,
My life shall be fulfilled
    Eternally.

11. I challenge

Trance of the sky,
I challenge your beauty.

Trance of the night,
I challenge your ignorance.

Trance of God,
I challenge your Duty.

Trance of man,
I challenge your unreality.

12. Exiled

When I danced with doubt,
    I was exiled
From God’s Kingdom-Light.

When I sang with fear,
    I was exiled
From God’s Kingdom-Bliss.

When I spoke with jealousy,
    I was exiled
From God’s Kingdom-Love.

13. I climbed up

I climbed up
    The ladder of ambition
    Only to be caught
    By the frustration-giant.

I climbed up
    The ladder of aspiration
    Only to be embraced
    By my Realisation-Father.

I climbed up
    The ladder of surrender
    Only to be immortalised
    By my Perfection-Mother.

14. I live only for those

There was a time
When I lived
Only for those
Who told me
That they loved me only.

There was a time
When I lived
Only for those
Who told me
That they loved God and me equally.

But now I live
Only for those,
I repeat,
Only for those,
Who love God only.

15. They know not

Reason and passion
Know not how to converse.
    Therefore,
Each other they hate.

Reason and faith
Know not how to love.
    Therefore,
Each other they hate.

Reason and doubt
Know not how to look.
    Therefore,
Each other they hate.

16. I do not need you!

O black wings of death,
    I do not need you!
    Therefore
Don’t touch my body-temple.

O red wings of hell,
    I do not need you!
    Therefore
Don’t touch my heart-shrine.

O grey wings of ignorance,
    I do not need you!
    Therefore
Don’t touch my soul-child.

17. Celebrations

Yesterday I celebrated
My mind’s immortal extinction.
Satan was the witness.

Today I celebrate
My heart’s immortal cry.
God is the witness.

Tomorrow I shall celebrate
My life’s immortal surrender.
Mother Earth shall be the witness.

18. He played

He played with
    His ignorance-neighbour.
    Therefore,
His name died
    Before his body’s death.

He played with
    His knowledge-brother.
    Therefore,
His name lived
    Long after his body’s death.

He played with
    His Compassion-Mother.
    Therefore,
Mother Earth claimed
    His unparalleled beauty.

He played with
    His Silence-Father.
    Therefore,
Father Heaven claimed
    His soul’s fulfilled duty.

19. God taught me

Before the first hour
    Of my sleep,
God taught me
    How to sleep.

During the second hour
    Of my sleep,
God taught me
    How to wake up.

In the last hour
    Of my sleep,
God taught me
    How to capture Him,
    How to possess Him,
    How to treasure Him.

20. Doubt

Three defects of doubt:
    Doubt does not see
    The beauty of Truth.
    Doubt does not declare
    The reality of Truth.
    Doubt is afraid
    Of the immortality of Truth.

21. My Mother

My ancient Father
    Told me:
My Mother was Compassion.

My present Father
    Tells me:
My Mother is Love.

My future Father
    Will tell me:
My Mother is
    The Universal Choice
    And
    The Transcendental Voice.

22. My Father

My ancient Mother
    Told me:
My Father was Silence.

My present Mother
    Tells me:
My Father is Sound.

My future Mother
    Will tell me:
My Father is
    Realisation-Height
    And
    Perfection-Light.

23. Cry, love, win

Although
Hell loves me,
I shall cry for Heaven.

    Although
Hell tortures me,
I shall love God.

    Although
Hell claims me,
I shall win God.

24. Myself

I saw myself
As nothing,
And beyond that nothing
There was really nothing.
I was proud of my self-discovery.

I see myself
As everything,
And beyond that everything
There is really everything.
I am proud of my God-discovery.

25. God-bird

O time-bird,
I want you
    And
    I need you.

O success-bird,
I need you
    And
    I need you.

O progress-bird,
Others may need you
    But
    I never need you.

O God-bird,
Where are you?
    Do you not need me?

26. O my hungry aspiring heart

O my hungry aspiring heart,
For you no jaws of death,
No mouth of hell.
In you is the silence
    Of the hoary past.
In you is the forgiveness
    For the world’s blind greed.
In you is the whirlwind
    Of the world’s transformation-life.

27. O lustre

O nebulous lustre,
O pastime of Infinity,
When will you shine
    In the heart of Eternity?

O Heaven-born lustre,
You can change
The inevitable yoke
    Of human life.

O God-illumined lustre,
Yours is the life
That shines through the muddy impurity
    Of the world’s burning insanity.

28. They clutch him

Fear clutches him
When he thinks of man.
    Doubt clutches him
When he thinks of God.

    Insecurity clutches him
When he thinks of God-love.
    Frustration clutches him
When he thinks of his self-transcendence.

29. When I saw, when I touched

When I saw
A flame of living love,
    My life of dole
    Became Divinity’s Smile.

    When I touched
The breathing Shrine of God,
    My heart of delight
    Became Immortality’s Pride.

30. Effort

With maximum effort
    I loved God
    And
    Realised God.

With minimum effort
    I revealed God
    And
    Manifested God.

With no effort
    I shall glorify God
    And
    Distribute God.

31. Surrender-life

He aimed at Peace.
    Peace came not.
He aimed at Joy.
    Joy came not.
He aimed at Power.
    Power came not.
He aimed at Surrender-life.
    Lo and behold,
    Peace came in unreservedly,
    Joy came in ceaselessly,
    Power came in measurelessly.
    And who followed?
    No human being,
    No cosmic god,
    But God Himself,
    The Absolute Supreme.

32. Power you need, power you get

Action-power
    Is needed.
Grace-power
    Is more needed.
Surrender-power
    Is most needed.

How to get action-power?
    Cry within.
How to get grace-power?
    Stay within.
How to get surrender-power?
    Fly within.

33. No one is without imperfection

No one is without imperfection.
No, not even God.
Am I not
    An imperfect manifestation of God?

No one is without perfection.
No, not even my worst enemy.
Who is my enemy
    If not God’s Manifestation-music
    of Soul-Perfection?

34. My thoughts tell me

My mind’s ready-made thoughts
Tell me
God is a far cry.

My heart’s love-blossomed thoughts
Tell me
God is nearer than my eyes.

My soul’s life-fulfilled thoughts
Tell me
God is my own illumined higher Self.

35. God and I love

God and I love
The white simplicity
    Of the soul.

God and I love
The green purity
    Of the heart.

God and I love
The blue immensity
    Of the eyes.

36. In themselves

Desire in itself is
    Hurtful.

Aspiration in itself is
    Fruitful.

Grace in itself is
    Success-might.

Surrender in itself is
    Progress-light.

God in Himself is
    Perfection-Height.

37. Beyond the sky

Beyond the sky
Of the puny, narrow life
    Fear-kite flies not,
    Doubt-dart flies not,
    Opportunity-door leads not,
    Man-dream breathes not,
    God-Reality ceases not.

38. Attractions

Yesterday
    The nothingness of things
Attracted me, my puzzled mind.

Today
    The earth-beauty of things
Attracts me, my helpless heart.

Tomorrow
    The Heaven-delight of things
Shall attract me, my illumined life.

39. A rare aspiration

A rare Indian aspiration:
    Power-manifestation.

A rare American aspiration:
    Peace-manifestation.

A rare earth-aspiration:
    Perfection-sun.

A rare Heaven-aspiration:
    Concern-sea.

40. You tolerated me

My Lord, You tolerated me
    Before I aspired.
    Therefore
    My vital-horse is all gratitude to You.

My Lord, You tolerated me
    Before I realised You.
    Therefore
    My heart-deer is all gratitude to You.

My Lord, You tolerated me
    Before I manifested You.
    Therefore
    My soul-lion is all gratitude to You.

41. They led the way

My faith led the way
With its universal acceptance.

My aspiration led the way
With its transcendental appearance.

My surrender led the way
With its absolute assurance.

42. Come to me

O morning of Infinity,
Come to me
    With your Infinity’s cry.
    My heart shall cry with you.

O morning of Eternity,
Come to me
    With your Eternity’s smile.
    My soul shall smile with you.

O morning of Immortality,
Come to me
    With your Immortality’s love.
    My Goal shall be in love with you.

43. They can never be mine

No coward soul
    Can ever be mine.
No foolish heart
    Can ever be mine.
No proud mind
    Can ever be mine.
No wild vital
    Can ever be mine.
No lazy body
    Can ever be mine.
No unmanifested God-life
    Can ever be mine.

44. Real and unreal

My desire-life
Made my earth-life
Unreal.

My aspiration-life
Is making my Heaven-life
Divinely and supremely
Real.

My realisation-life
Will make my death-life
Unreal.

45. Then and now

There was a time
When I was the sadness
    Of a saddening thought.

    There was a time
When I was the madness
    Of a maddening thought.

    But now
I am the vastness
    Of an unhorizoned thought,
I am the brightness
    Of the solar thought.

46. Easy to achieve

God-realisation
Is actually easy to achieve.
    You just cry
    Like a three-year-old child.

God-revelation
Is actually easy to achieve.
    You just run
    Like a young athlete.

God-manifestation
Is actually easy to achieve.
    You just love and become
    The divine Reality Supreme within you.

47. Love-flower, ingratitude-soul, depression-life

All things eventually fade
    Save and except
    A love-flower.

All things ultimately live
    Save and except
    An ingratitude-soul.

All things ultimately win
    Save and except
    A depression-life.

48. Where do you exist?

O Fountain of constant Love,
Where do you exist?
Do you really exist?
“I exist
In the body of your heart.”

O Fountain of constant Peace,
Where do you exist?
Do you really exist?
“I exist, I exist
In the heart of your mind.”

O Fountain of constant Delight,
Where do you exist?
Do you really exist?
“I exist, I exist, I exist
In the life of your soul.”

49. The inheritors

Believe it or not,
Doubt is the inheritor
Of the body-mind’s
Unfulfilled dream.

Believe it or not,
Fear is the inheritor
Of the body-vital’s
Unfulfilled dream.

Believe it or not,
Anxiety is the inheritor
Of the body-heart’s
Unfulfilled dream.

50. O heavy weight of today's hours

O heavy weight of today’s hours,
Tomorrow I shall meditate
And away I shall fly.

O heavy weight of today’s hours,
Tomorrow I shall meditate
And make God my heart.

O heavy weight of today’s hours,
Tomorrow I shall meditate
And Eternity’s bird will offer me
Its wings
To fly in the soul-sky
Of Infinity’s Immortality.

Editor's preface to the first edition

This book of 50 poems is part of a four-part series written by Sri Chinmoy in the 22-hour period between 12:01 a.m. and 10:01 p.m. on 2 February 1974. It was also printed on the same day by the group pictured in the photograph above the preface.