The Wise Man

The wise man tells you

Where you have fallen

And where you yet may fall —

Invaluable secrets!

Follow him, follow the way

Let him chasten and teach you

and keep you from mischief

The world may hate him

But good men love him

Do not look for bad company

Or live with men who do not care

Find friends who love the truth

Drink deeply

Live in serenity and joy

The wise man delights in the truth

And follows the law of the awakened

The farmer channels water to his land

The fletcher whittles his arrows

And the carpenter turns his wood

So the wise man directs his mind

The wind cannot shake a mountain

Neither praise nor blame moves the wise man

He is clarity

Hearing the truth

He is like a lake

Pure and tranquil and deep

Want nothing

Where there is desire

Say nothing

Happiness or sorrow —

Whatever befalls you

Walk on

Untouched, unattached

Do not ask for family or power or wealth

Either for yourself or for another

Can a wise man wish to rise unjustly?

Few cross over the river

Most are stranded on this side

On the riverbank they run up and down

But the wise man, following the way

Crosses over, beyond the reach of death

He leaves the dark way

For the way of light

He leaves his home, seeking

Happiness on the hard road

Free from desire

Free from possessions

Free from the dark places of the heart

Free from attachment and appetite

Following the seven lights of awakening

And rejoicing greatly in his freedom

In this world the wise man

Becomes himself a light

Pure, shining, free