Be as

Be as water, its softness wears the rough rock smooth

With a drum beat, its falling drops the sleeping babe does soothe

Held by a sponge full of holes, yet the impenetrable it penetrates

Taking the form of all that it holds, when heated it evaporates

Out of mud where it does lie, gravity at will does obey and defy

Separated from impurity it floats untouchable as a cloud in the sky

Cooled it comes back to its form, immortal it returns in baptismal rain

Calm as a summer's morn, fierce as a raging river's turbulent drain

Around obstacles it bends or with mighty force pushes through

Ever downward it extends it's hand in grace, its course to pursue

Turned mirror of reflection, it reveals all things as they are

No matter how brutal attacks upon its surface, none leave a scar

Transparent, invisible, it wets but leaves no stain

It joins what it touches, a part of all things, being plain and arcane

Quenches all men's thirst, good and evil does drown

Respects all the same from pauper to the crown

Reviews

[RomaJ]

Reading Be As immediately called Bruce Lee to mind and his famous advice to “be like water.” This poem brings that philosophy vividly to life .. water softens yet overcomes, bends around obstacles yet moves with unstoppable force, flows humbly yet shapes everything it touches. The poem captures that same quiet power and adaptability Lee spoke of, turning a simple element into a meditation on resilience, presence, and grace. It lingers long after the last line.

[Soren]

Thank you so much Roma for the words of support. As Lee's past words bring this to mind I am sure that he had in mind the Tao and so as it says in Ecclesiastes there is nothing new under the sun. I often wonder where poetic ideas come from, some are obvious and others more obscure. I so appreciate your comments they are most valuable.

[Jansy]

Soren, this reads like philosophy written in liquid form...each line a ripple expanding into something deeper. you’ve turned water into a moral teacher, equal parts monk and mirror.

That final couplet “Respects all the same from pauper to the crown.” There’s something profoundly democratic about that image, as if nature itself refuses to play favorites.

You’ve captured the paradox beautifully: water conquers by yielding, cleanses by touching, reflects by simply being. It’s both humble and divine… much like wisdom itself when it stops pretending to be complicated.

-James

[Soren]

Thank you so much for your most humbling generous comments We all get our ideas from somewhere and this one came from the Tao where I was much impressed with its comments on water. I very much appreciate your kind words of encouragement.