Because we have divided all that we seem to experience
into polar opposites founded on mistaken notions of "them" and "us"
We trade ever-present satisfaction
For temporary dreams
believing in the illusion of happiness and gain.
When, from the lust for independence
in this world of interdependence,
we selfishly cut open the earth's veins
I pray we remember the planet's wounded waters
and how, from ignorance, we injured all beings in and around them
The shores that map our aspiration for water and earth
do not delimit primordial perfection
which is spacious and profound:
by resting in one place
radiant blessings reach beyond the idea of boundaries
It is not for the inhabited waters alone we pray
but for the wild places we do not always remember to see
this great ocean of misery that seems to come and go
when we close our eyes, when we open our eyes
Instantly evaporated when we open our hearts
May mistaken notions be tamed,
May always possible perfection be realized
May peace born within us heal the damage we have done
May life be comfortably sustained for all sentient beings who suffer
By the merit of our clear awakening
By the power of truth,
May there spontaneously come an end to the disharmony of the elements
in the Gulf of Mexico
