I originally came to China
to transmit the teaching and save deluded beings.
One flower opens five petals,
and the fruit ripens itself.– Bodhidharma, according to Huineng
If evil flowers bloom in the mind-ground,
Five blossoms flower from the stem.
Together they will create the karma of ignorance;
Now the mind-ground is blown by the winds of karma.
If correct flowers bloom in the mind-ground,
Five blossoms flower from the stem.
Together practice the prajna wisdom;
In the future this will be the enlightenment of the Buddha.
– Huineng
Translation by Philip Yampolsky, taken from Zen Poems, Everyman’s Pocket Library Poets, 1999. Photo by Rosa Bellino