Why Disappear Into Formless Trance? Poem by Ramprasad Sen

O wavering mind,
awaken your upward-flowing awareness.
Become the sublime warrior Goddess Kali,
who moves with graceful power
through the vast landscape of the body.

Her divine form, like a black storm cloud
illumined by the sun,
she stands unveiled,
her long hair falling free like monsoon rain.
Be lost in awe of her, O mind,
for you will never comprehend her.

She dwells as the primal lotus of conscious energy
and also as the thousand-petal blossom,
complete enlightenment.
She is none other than primordial bliss,
this great swan ever swimming
through the lotus jungle of the subtle body.

Gaze intently into the blazing heart of joy
and you will perceive my blissful Mother,
matrix of all phenomena.
The vision of Kali
kindles the fire of unitive wisdom,
burning down conventional barriers,
pervading minds and worlds with light,
revealing her exalted beauty
as universal flower garden
and universal cremation ground,
where lovers merge with Mother Reality,
experiencing the single taste of nonduality.

This ardent poet of the Goddess cries:
'Every lover longs only
to gaze upon the unique Beloved.
Why close your eyes?
Why disappear into formless trance?'

[Translated by Lex Hixon]