Notes to Poem: Meditations on 96

NOTES TO POEM: MEDITATIONS ON 96

By Peter Y. Chou, WisdomPortal.com

Line in Poem Literary Sources

O sing unto the Lord a new song—
Sing a lofty song to divine streams
bathing by shores of washed-up pebbles
as a bright light enlightens the earth—
King David, Psalms 96.1 (1023 BC)
Rig Veda, VII.96 (1500 BC)
Homer, Odyssey, VI.95-96 (800 BC)
Book of Enoch, XCVI.3 (105 BC)

a great beam of light flies to the height
and everywhere— the gentle breeze
surround those tranquil in word & deed,
such is the sage who's not this nor that.
Pistis Sophia, Ch. 96 (150 AD)
Setcho, Hekiganroku, Case 96 (1052 AD)
Buddha, Dhammapada, VII.96 (240 BC)
Astavakra Gita, XVIII.96 (400 BC);

With propriety, we shall be free—
plagues come not to those with humility,
there's nothing higher than love for God,
the warmth of prayer brings divine grace.
Chu Hsi, Reflections on Things at Hand, II.96 (1175)
Evagrios the Solitary, On Prayer, Text 96 (399 AD)
Mark the Ascetic, Righteous by Works, Text 96 (400 AD)
St. John of Karpathos, On Watchfulness, Text 96 (680 AD)

Self-cultivation to rid selfish desires,
being constant and we will awaken—
All needs fulfilled living in the centre
with vertical mind in the Now-moment.
Wang Yang Ming, Instructions for Practical Living, I.96 (1518)
Subramuniyaswami, Merging with Siva, Lesson 96 (1999) Paul Brunton, Notebooks, XV.96 (1988)
Wei Wu Wei, Ask the Awakened, Ch. 96 (1963)

Clear thorns growing in fields of the mind
to see the breadth of Eternal Goodness—
the splendour bright of that display in
the mind with a hundred thousand gates.
Su Tung-p'o, Poem 96 "Drinking Wine" (1092)
Dante, 96th canto is Paradiso XXIX.142-143 (1321)
Pearl Poet, Pearl, Line 96 (1400)
Kabir, Sakhi, Verse 96 (1448)

No right or wrong in an empty mind—
No grieve when abiding on nothingness.
A dream in a dream needn't be told
like fragrance from a withered flower.
Ch'ing-hung, Zen Works of Stonehouse, Talks 96 (1352)
Hafez, The Divan, Verse 96 (1389)
Wu Ch'eng-en, Journey to the West, Ch. 96 (1518)
Thomas Cole, Thomas Cole's Poetry, Poem 96 (1848)

Within us is a universe as well—
Basho's boat crosses the Milky Way,
an unknown body in fields of blue—
I am merely a shadow of the air.
Goethe, Lyrist: 100 Poems, Poem 96 (1832)
Basho, Basho's Haikus, Haiku 96 (1678)
James Joyce, Finnegans Wake, Page 96 (1939)
Wallace Stevens, "Man with the Blue Guitar", Line 96 (1937)

Building the Bird's nest in the snow,
limitless are leaves in the fields,
you walk alone, so mild in the forest,
leaves falling in my sleep— Wake up!
Emily Dickinson, 96th Poem (1859)
Walt Whitman, "Song of Myself", Line 96 (1855)
Tomas Tranströmer, Selected Poems, Poem 96 (1987)
Jack Kerouac, Desolation Angels, Ch. 96 (1965)

There is a wind or ghost of a wind
when the earth is freshly washed,
first white heron to the ocean—
seven notes in the song of the flute.
William Carlos Williams Paterson, page 96 (1958)
Pablo Neruda, 100 Love Sonnets, Sonnet 96 (1960)
Mary Oliver, "Evening Star" Line 96 (2000)
Jane Hirshfield, Women in Praise of the Sacred (1994)
cites in 96th poem, Mirabai's "Song of the Flute" (1565)

Line in Poem	Literary Sources
O sing unto the Lord a new song— Sing a lofty song to divine streams bathing by shores of washed-up pebbles as a bright light enlightens the earth—	King David, Psalms 96.1 (1023 BC) Rig Veda, VII.96 (1500 BC) Homer, Odyssey, VI.95-96 (800 BC) Book of Enoch, XCVI.3 (105 BC)
a great beam of light flies to the height and everywhere— the gentle breeze surround those tranquil in word & deed, such is the sage who's not this nor that.	Pistis Sophia, Ch. 96 (150 AD) Setcho, Hekiganroku, Case 96 (1052 AD) Buddha, Dhammapada, VII.96 (240 BC) Astavakra Gita, XVIII.96 (400 BC);
With propriety, we shall be free— plagues come not to those with humility, there's nothing higher than love for God, the warmth of prayer brings divine grace.	Chu Hsi, Reflections on Things at Hand, II.96 (1175) Evagrios the Solitary, On Prayer, Text 96 (399 AD) Mark the Ascetic, Righteous by Works, Text 96 (400 AD) St. John of Karpathos, On Watchfulness, Text 96 (680 AD)
Self-cultivation to rid selfish desires, being constant and we will awaken— All needs fulfilled living in the centre with vertical mind in the Now-moment.	Wang Yang Ming, Instructions for Practical Living, I.96 (1518) Subramuniyaswami, Merging with Siva, Lesson 96 (1999) Paul Brunton, Notebooks, XV.96 (1988) Wei Wu Wei, Ask the Awakened, Ch. 96 (1963)
Clear thorns growing in fields of the mind to see the breadth of Eternal Goodness— the splendour bright of that display in the mind with a hundred thousand gates.	Su Tung-p'o, Poem 96 "Drinking Wine" (1092) Dante, 96th canto is Paradiso XXIX.142-143 (1321) Pearl Poet, Pearl, Line 96 (1400) Kabir, Sakhi, Verse 96 (1448)
No right or wrong in an empty mind— No grieve when abiding on nothingness. A dream in a dream needn't be told like fragrance from a withered flower.	Ch'ing-hung, Zen Works of Stonehouse, Talks 96 (1352) Hafez, The Divan, Verse 96 (1389) Wu Ch'eng-en, Journey to the West, Ch. 96 (1518) Thomas Cole, Thomas Cole's Poetry, Poem 96 (1848)
Within us is a universe as well— Basho's boat crosses the Milky Way, an unknown body in fields of blue— I am merely a shadow of the air.	Goethe, Lyrist: 100 Poems, Poem 96 (1832) Basho, Basho's Haikus, Haiku 96 (1678) James Joyce, Finnegans Wake, Page 96 (1939) Wallace Stevens, "Man with the Blue Guitar", Line 96 (1937)
Building the Bird's nest in the snow, limitless are leaves in the fields, you walk alone, so mild in the forest, leaves falling in my sleep— Wake up!	Emily Dickinson, 96th Poem (1859) Walt Whitman, "Song of Myself", Line 96 (1855) Tomas Tranströmer, Selected Poems, Poem 96 (1987) Jack Kerouac, Desolation Angels, Ch. 96 (1965)
There is a wind or ghost of a wind when the earth is freshly washed, first white heron to the ocean— seven notes in the song of the flute.	William Carlos Williams Paterson, page 96 (1958) Pablo Neruda, 100 Love Sonnets, Sonnet 96 (1960) Mary Oliver, "Evening Star" Line 96 (2000) Jane Hirshfield, Women in Praise of the Sacred (1994) cites in 96th poem, Mirabai's "Song of the Flute" (1565)

Meditation Notes to Poem:

This poem was written in honor of my Cornell Professor Harold A. Scheraga's
96th birthday on October 18, 2017. He was my doctorate advisor in Physical Chemistry of Macromolecules (1963-1970). For the context of sources for the lines, consult my web page On Number 96 to see how this poem was constructed. Despite the difference in space and time of the composition of each line, what unites these writers quoted is the number 96. That is, the writer's words appeared in verse 96, sonnet 96, chapter 96, line 96, or page 96. This poem was arranged essentially in chronological order from King David's Psalms 96 (1023 BC) and Hymn 96 in Rig Veda (1500 BC) to Pablo Neruda's "Love Sonnet 96" (1960) and "first white heron" in line 96 of Mary Oliver's "Evening Star" (2000).