Knight of the Dungeon of the Rib Cage
I am, me,
myself,
my environments,
my projection,
my parallel,
my perpendicular,
and my principle.
That many I am.
And if all that many of me are not understood
not felt, not taken care of,
not loved and not put together,
I,ll just die as unknown mystery,
Unremembered and forgotten.
That is the story of every man or woman,
born in the rib cage,
the dungeon of karma.
In my ecstasy of consciousness,
I see the skies, I see the stars
and I know and I feel
the movement
and the magnetic field
and the infinity
and the light
and the darkness.
But, in that culture of so much happening
I still, I am
very, very, very extremely
very, very lonely
A slave of the dungeon of the rib cage.
I hear music,
I create music,
I know rhythm,
I know voices,
I hear the birds,
I hear even the fishes talking,
I am trying to see and feel
everything in the world I know
and I know the sounds
and the sounds which I can’t hear.
But, I am the slave of the rib cage,
and nearest to me is my heart
and I do not recognize its very sound.
So arrogant and so ignorant
and so much in duality I keep living.
Each day gives me the message
of beauty
of bounty
of prosperity
of flourishness
of blossom
I’m going, and going, and going, and going
on the path of infinity.
Cycle after cycle
prayer after prayer
grace after grace
rosary after rosary
feast after feast
and fast after fast,
I’ve gone through the passage of life
But still, I am the slave of the dungeon of the rib cage.
Many have called me human
Many have called me beast
Many have called me lower being
Some people have called me higher being
Sometime I do experience
the infinity of God
And the light of the heavens shed through me
And sometime I spoke the word of Truth
Which God gave me to be
I was channeled
I was channeled.
And many times I’m just lowest of the low
And the creature and the dungeon
of the dirt of the dirt
of the human caliber and behavior
and I, in that duality, keep on living,
But still, I am the slave of the dungeon of the rib cage.
Now I feel the touch of God
has touched me
and I am free.
In that freedom I feel the ecstasy of Light.
I’m polite
I’m good
I’m God.
Listen to Siri Singh Sahib, Yogi Bhajan reciting this poem at his lecture on December 6, 1982
Listen to the whole lecture from Siri Singh Sahib, Yogi Bhajan on December 6, 1982
Here is the “Knight of the Dungeon of the Rib Cage” as it originally appeared in Beads of Truth, based on a class lecture delivered by Yogi Bhajan in December 1982.
Click Here to view a larger image
This poem appears in the book Game of Love, by Siri Singh Sahib, Yogi Bhajan
The Game of Love is a very personal experience of the consciousness of the Siri Singh Sahib, Yogi Bhajan, the man, the teacher and the master, through his complete collection of poems in English.The book is filled with deep insights into how to have successful relationships, both with oneself and others. At its essence, it is a guide to living in the 21st century and beyond.Illustrated with his own drawings, and including an audio CD of The Dungeon of the Ribcage that was conceived and recited live by the Siri Singh Sahib. Available in hard and softcover.
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Kathy Wooten says:
God bless YOU. That that YOU may be my path, my energy to walk the path, my goal and reason for being. In front of me, behind me, to my right, to my left, above me, and below me – within me, and from me. A prisoner in duality – a prisoner in the dungeon of the rib cage – moving ever toward YOU.
OngKar Kaur Khalsa says:
Thanks for sharing, Kathy. :)
ravipal says:
Gratitude