As a God-realised spiritual Master, Sri Chinmoy the poet also expressed his deep identification with the aspiring human condition:
A little joy have I of ceaseless joy,
A little day of timeless day.
Yet knows no bound this empty show of mine;
I march along a goalless way.
O Love! A desert within me ever pines.
Do turn it into a song of dawn.
I know not in what hour of evil night
Thou art, my Lord, from me withdrawn.
Life now must reach Thy Breath of Bliss supreme,
Make Thee the one and only Guide.
Thou art the Bridge between my death and birth;
O let my longings in Thee abide.
Sri Chinmoy, My Flute, Agni Press, 1972
Whether his prayer/poems are expressing a deep bliss and spiritual height, or a sorrowful awareness of separation with the Beloved, Sri Chinmoy’s poems have a wonderful warmth, affection and love for God that melts our human heart. Many of his prayer/poems are a dialogue between the devotee and His Lord, between the lover and the Beloved:
Before I Pray
My Supreme Lord,
Before I pray to You
For a possession-night,
May I pray to You
For a renunciation-flame,
May I?
My Supreme Lord,
Before I pray to You
For a renunciation-flame,
May I pray to You
For an acceptance-lamp,May I?
My Supreme Lord,Before I pray to You
For an acceptance-lamp,
May I pray to You
For a oneness-column of light,
May I?
My Supreme Lord,
Before I pray to You
For a oneness-column of light,
May I pray to You
For a surrender-sun, May I?
Sri Chinmoy, A Seeker Is A Singer, Agni Press, 1987
Included in this CD is a selection of Sri Chinmoy reading from his book, “Everest-Aspiration”. This is a collection of poetic prose, in which the devotee sometimes reflects on his own spirituality and aspiration, and in others a dialogue between the devotee and God is expressed in illumining, instructive fashion. In his writings, Sri Chinmoy sheds light in what I call the “inner dynamics” of the spiritual life, the very nature of the relationship between man and God, between the finite and the Infinite. It is a relationship based on love, and full of oneness, sweetness, soulfulness and tenderness. Again, some of these beautiful poetic prose essays are written from the point of view of the Master, offering advice to the seeker, for the seeker’s own benefit in his/her journey to the ultimate Goal.
These recitations by Sri Chinmoy are very conducive to meditation. We hope that you will enjoy them as much as we do.
– Kamalakanta
Artist: Sri Chinmoy
Name: Before I Pray, CD I
Composer: Sri Chinmoy
Release Year: 2012
Duration: 1 hour 15 minutes
Acknowledgements: Sri Chinmoy
Tracks uploaded and published: Kamalakanta Nieves and Tejvan Pettinger
Format: Advanced Audio Coding
