A Tsunami of Love: Contemplation on a Thich Nhat Hanh Poem

A beloved friend reminded me of this poem yesterday at the most opportune time. As I read it, I wonder, I dream. If each heart were able to truly hold this sentiment, this inclusivity, this beauty- would love not take us all as a Tsunami? Would all become still? Wars pause. The agitated take a breath and lean in. Into God, into Her Love. One of my favorite names of the Divine is I AM. Pure presence.

I invite you to enter into this contemplation on a Thich Nhat Hanh poem with a practice of lectin divina. Start by grounding yourself in a comfortable quiet place and taking a few deep breaths. Connect. Take your time pausing at each stanza and reflect with the questions at the end, reread the poem with each question in mind.

The Universe in a Bubble from Shutterstock

Please Call Me By My True Names

By Thich Nhat Hanh in October 2004

Don’t say that I will depart tomorrow—

even today I am still arriving.

Look deeply: every second I am arriving

to be a bud on a Spring branch,

to be a tiny bird, with still-fragile wings,

learning to sing in my new nest,

to be a caterpillar in the heart of a flower,

to be a jewel hiding itself in a stone.

I still arrive, in order to laugh and to cry,

to fear and to hope.

The rhythm of my heart is the birth and death

of all that is alive.

I am a mayfly metamorphosing

on the surface of the river.

And I am the bird

that swoops down to swallow the mayfly.

I am a frog swimming happily

in the clear water of a pond.

And I am the grass-snake

that silently feeds itself on the frog.

I am the child in Uganda, all skin and bones,

my legs as thin as bamboo sticks.

And I am the arms merchant,

selling deadly weapons to Uganda.

I am the twelve-year-old girl,

refugee on a small boat,

who throws herself into the ocean

after being raped by a sea pirate.

And I am also the pirate,

my heart not yet capable

of seeing and loving.

I am a member of the politburo,

with plenty of power in my hands.

And I am the man who has to pay

his “debt of blood” to my people

dying slowly in a forced-labor camp.

My joy is like Spring, so warm

it makes flowers bloom all over the Earth.

My pain is like a river of tears,

so vast it fills the four oceans.

Please call me by my true names,

so I can hear all my cries and laughter at once,

so I can see that my joy and pain are one.

Please call me by my true names,

so I can wake up

and the door of my heart

could be left open,

the door of compassion.

Contemplations on Thich Nhat Hanh poem, questions to consider:

Read the poem again with each question:

1. What is one word or phrase that Love impresses on you as you read this poem?

2. What emotions or sensations stir in you as you read the poem again? What specific situation in your life relates?

3. What is God/the Divine/Love's personal invitation to you in this poem?

I invite you beloved, to share your responses in the comments section.