And there was a certain wise man
Who was learned of many things above that of the most men
Yet he desired to learn much more
And so he constantly set within himself
The goal to learn more of the mysteries of life
And why men behaved as men
And as he slept one night a vision came to him
And an angel descended and said to him
“Come and I will show you many things”
And he took him to a long highway
Where the pathways of many men met and crossed
And here it was that he saw these men
Busily engaged in what appeared to be matters of the greatest importance
Some of these men carried small sticks and straws
And often selecting certain places
They leaned these sticks and straws together and said
“See now what I have accomplished
Is this not a wonderful building
And is it not more beautiful than all the others”
And as the wise man watched
The winds of adversity descended upon them
And their houses were blown away
And there were others too
Who builded by stealing sticks and straws from others while their backs were turned
Even so and as he watched
Some of these men seemed to pass away and were no more
Others who were closest rushed in
And dismantled their pile of sticks and straws
Carrying them away piecemeal
And as the wise man watched in greatest wonder
The Angel said “Look”
And as the wise man looked he saw others of the men
Who had covered themselves with fine garments
And had cried out to other men saying
“Look I am greater than all men
I have been sent by the gods to be your leader”
And those who heard him believed
And began gathering together
A great pile of sticks and straws and stones
And over this heap they placed
The name of he who commanded them
Even as they did so he had passed from their sight and hearing
Yes there were even those
Who had set themselves up a guard
So that none could steal from this great heap
There were even others
Who dressed themselves in similar robes
And made the same claim and declaration
So that again there was much activity
More carrying of sticks and stones
Even creating other great heaps in different places
Wherein others with bright raiment were set up as before
And as the wise man watched, astonished
He saw these men coming and going
Yet always did their faces seem familiar with each coming
As he had seen them before
And as he watched a great storm descended from Heaven
And the earth was made clean again
The sticks were scattered
To the four corners of the world
And the stones were piled in the stream beds
And as the wise man awakened
He was much perplexed at what he had seen in his vision
For even now the mystery of life
Seemed greater than before
And as he walked forth into the marketplace
He saw before him the piles of sticks and stones
And as he looked into the faces of his townspeople
He saw the men in his vision
Yes there were even those in his temples and churches
which had donned the bright raiment
The kings and emperors who rode through their palace gates
In golden chariots or palaquined horses
And finally there came the day
He stood beside a pool and looked within
And mirrored on its surface were all the wondrous beauties of Heaven
So real indeed did they seem
That he reached forth his hand to touch
And as his fingertips reached the water
The Heavenly vision broke
Into a thousand distorted fragments
Dancing away on the ripples
Then suddenly the meaning became clear
For he a man among men
Must be as all other men
Holding to himself in his earthly world
All of the things of the world
And as they were so contained with each man
Yet within there must always be
The pool wherein he could see
The reflected glories of the Heavens
Yet this pool must remain untouched by earthly fingers
It must always remain apart from his earthly world
For there indeed within the mirrored pool
Was the world of spirit, the world to come
For the man who learned to live
In this Heavenly place
And for such a creature there would be
No sticks or straws or stones
Nor would there be need
To fear the winds of adversity
For this world was complete
In all things unto itself
And there were no men in this world
To clothe themselves in bright raiment
For all men appeared equal and alike
And without raiment of any kind
And it was here too in this Heavenly world
That no man could cry more loudly than the next
Or that he was greater
For there was an abundance of all things needed
Yet each one gave as freely
As they received
For in the giving and receiving
Was found the sustenance of their lives
Nor could they receive without giving
Yet there was more to this Heavenly abode than could be realized
For always so it seemed, the wise man must journey on
One great Heavenly world leading yet unto another
Each one comprehended differently from all others
And so the wise man said unto himself
“Now I have learned what life is all about
And that we as men cannot set up
Either one small or large part
Of this life for ourselves
Neither should we declare ourselves
Superior in any way
But live only as little children
Learning of that hour and of that day
And taking with us only the wisdom of that learning
Unto the tomorrow
In this way we shall not become burdened
With the falseness of any day or any world
Nor shall we become convicted against ourselves
And refuse to learn the wisdom of tomorrow
By refusing to give up today
I shall become convinced of only one thing
That there is yet more to learn which will make my yesterdays
Pass into the morrows
And as the yesterdays pass into the morrows
In this manner and form
Will I journey into the future
Will I be able to reach with my fingers of thought
Into the mirrored pools wherein lie many Heavenly abodes
And as my thoughts reach and touch them
They shall not be defiled nor broken
Nor shall they scatter
On the winds of adversity”
E.L. Norman December 1960
Submitted by: Gary on 02/09/2015
Add your Thoughts, Insights, or Comments below.
Tagged with: Voice of Muse
When I read this, I thought deeply about the things that are important to me, and I thought of them differently. So true, the “Treasures of Heaven” can’t be stolen or scattered by the wind! How wonderful I feel being in this Light. Thank you for posting this, Gary. It helped me remember where I am.
More Light
Thank you Gary for posting. This beautiful poem encapsulates for me the meaning of finding within oneself the importance of the inner life which is of heaven vs the outer life which is just sticks and straws and how we should be mindful that the sticks and straws of an earth life are just temporary while the treasures of heaven are permanent and that we must not let the earth life taint our treasures lest they disappear like the reflection in the pool and that we must remember this is an eternal process, not to get caught up in what we think of as our superiority clinging to this falseness forsaking what otherwise would be greater spiritual progression but to always be as little children in our quest for knowledge and greater understanding so that we may continue on an infinite pathway to greater revelations and integration with our higher self. This is how I interpret this poem or more appropriately lesson/teaching by the Moderator.
Beautiful poem by Dr. Norman! Gary, thank you for posting this. I especially love the verse:
“That there is yet more to learn which will make my yesterdays
Pass into the morrows
And as the yesterdays pass into the morrows
In this manner and form
Will I journey into the future
Will I be able to reach with my fingers of thought
Into the mirrored pools wherein lie many Heavenly abodes”
Such powerful imagery to guide us forward in our spiritual quest.
Madilyn
Dear Gary,
Very lovely and meaningful poem. Dr. Norman makes clear that the “Treasures in Heaven” should be our main concern and not treasures on earth! What stood out to me were the words ‘Winds of Adversity’. I could also envision this as Regeneration in Action. When we look back at long lost civilizations and their treasures of the past, which so many fought and died for…and for what? They’re gone! The understanding of the change these Winds of Adversity create, as Energy recycles, helps keep us on the Pathway to those “Treasures in Heaven”!! Thanks for posting….L&L…..Ken