The Whisper Before Breath

the hush holding the first word unborn

Photo © Benjamin James Freeman

The Whisper Before Breath

I am the whisper before breath,
the hush holding the first word unborn,
before wind tasted its own motion,
before the eye opened
to divide what it saw,
unstruck,
unshaped,
the silence inside the bell.

I am the whisper before breath,
let them wander,
mapping stars,
chasing truth
through corridors of thought,
tilling fields of questions
until handles splinter
in knotted hands.
Their hunger is sacred,
but I have no place at that table.

I am the whisper before breath,
drinking the sky’s sweetness
before questions ever fell.
I move through the orchard
of unspoken things,
where fruit ripens without name,
and silence swells into fullness.

I am the whisper before breath,
wisdom arriving
like winter to the forest,
pressing cold hands
against the bark of things.

I am the whisper before breath,
the root beneath frost,
the seed recalling spring unseen,
the dark that never awaited light.

I am the whisper before breath,
names pass over me
like mist on still water,
unable to stay,
unable to stain.

I am the whisper before breath,
a door to the place
you never left.

I am the whisper before breath,
I wear no face,
claim no ground.

I am the whisper before breath,
the flame that needs no fire,
the warmth before warmth,
the presence untouched
by coming or going.

I am the whisper before breath,
embracing dawn’s cool air,
walking barefoot through dew soaked grass,
hands brushed with the juice
of nameless fruit,
resting where no one prays.

I am the whisper before breath.
I do not seek.
I remember,
I remain.

I am the whisper before breath.

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Before words, before breath, there is a stillness, an eternal whisper that underlies all experience. This poem is an invitation to rest in that unchanging presence, beyond seeking, knowing, or becoming. Here, the Self remembers itself as the source and the silence that holds all things.

This piece has been written in parallel with a longer reflection/contemplation that I’ll post later this week, both pieces taken from Vol. I of The Dissolution of Self

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