rose crystal mala
one hundred eight
pre-revolutionary China
hand-blown crystal beads
a string of rose light
blessed by lamas
tiny bubbles of
space and time
move through glass
cool beads clink
breathe
warm in fingers:
om mani paymay hum
om mani paymay hum
om mani paymay hum
sometimes simply
held–
no chant of mani's
no hum's or om's
just sit with the beads in
black night
their weight
in still hands
and move into
irreducible crystal
silence