Monday, October 01, 2007

Wind Horses

I sometimes think that my whole life might be contained within the fluttering of these Tibetan prayer flags (also called the wind horse or lung-ta) out in the highlands. There they are, old and faded and frayed, doing their job cheerfully and dancing right along in the breeze.

When I returned to the village after hours in the cool autumn sunlight yesterday, I closed my eyes, and I could see the serene and tattered shapes silhouetted against the clear blue sky - I could hear their fluttering in the wind, and I remembered that their spirited movement was prayer in motion.

There are blessings printed on my prayer flags, and when the wind blows through them, it carries the blessings along with it, becoming blessed in its turn. All those who are touched by the wind in its travels are blessed too, and I wished that yesterday's brisk autumn wind could touch and bless all of us, especially my feathered migrating friends and the furry garden companions who are considering hibernation and making ready for it by consuming everything they can find.

I love this bright season of harvest and fruiting, but as the days grow shorter, winds grow colder, the leaves turn and the great geese begin their migrations southward, I am perhaps a little melancholy, or shall we say, in the grip of wabi-sabi? Whatever one calls this feeling, it is sweet, spicy and as fragrant as a Macintosh apple - sad and poignant too.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

We stayed at a tres fancy bed and breakfast in Eugene, Oregon a couple of months ago. Every detail was excellent. Top quality all around. Really first class.

Next door was a more humble home with a more eclectic approach to design and adornment. The yard was festooned with these wind horses. I loved the contrast! Just like all of that fine city, there was a blend of types, all getting along happily.

Lil said...

I also feel the pull of the season Cate...

I'm loving these last gasps of summer as I don both myself and my toddler in summer dresses, but I love snuggling up at night with cozy socks and feather duvets and candles now that the sun sets herself so much earlier than 3 mths ago!

...and I love these photos of your 'wild horses'!

PEace in,
Lil

Anonymous said...

Just what I needed to see today, thank you . . . I love the last photo the best, with the flags turned translucent, the prayers floating on the wind. Here in the NW we are in full-blown autumn, having just weathered the First Storm of the Season. Blessings.

julia said...

I was given some Tibetan prayer flags a few years ago but I never felt ready to hang them.
Now that I appreciate their beneficial effects on the people around me then I will find a good place, possibly near the bamboo in the top garden.
By the way, I see horses in the top leaves in those trees too, but then I often see horses in unexpected places...
namaste