Homage to you Refreshing Earth Bodhisattva
Mother of this world with its many species.
We want to turn to you with respect,
Beautiful green planet in the midst of the sky,
You who have given birth to countless species,
Produced so many wonders of life,
Loved in the ultimate sense of non-discrimination,
Embraced all species not barring a single one,
Loyal and reliable, tolerant and stable,
The mother who bears all species.
Countless bodhisattvas spring up
From your fresh green lap.
Mother you embrace and transform
Sweeping away the hatred of humans,
Creating new life day and night,
Helping the earth to bloom with the flowers of heaven.
You are open to thousands of other galaxies,
Sharing your joy with the trichiliocosm,
By seeing that your true nature is interdependence.
Conserving and protecting so that nothing is lost,
Not being, not nothing, not eternal, not annihilated,
Not the same, not different, not coming, not going.
Your love knows no limits,
Your virtues no shortcomings.
Your nature is the Four Immeasurable Minds
Like the four great oceans they never dry up.
Whenever spring returns you wear a new robe
Of red roses, the green willow, beautiful and fresh.
When summer comes the vegetation displays its bright colours,
Wholesome seeds, sweet fruits are to be found everywhere.
How brilliant are the colours of the autumn forest
Until winter comes and snowflakes fill the sky.
The afternoon tide chants like the roll of thunder
The morning sunrise paints an incomparable picture,
Making visible all the splendours of the universe.
You are the most beautiful flower of the Solar System,
The wisdom that lights up the ten directions,
The mind that is open to all places.
Mother, you are the Paradise of the Present,
Making possible the future for all species.
We come back and take refuge in you,
With nothing to run after, accepting the unfavourable
as also favourable, Seeing that you are always in us and
Seeing ourselves in you for all of time.
May we follow your good example,
And live every moment with true peace and joy.
Homage to the Refreshing Mother Earth Bodhisattva

In Praise of Mother Earth
~ by Thich Nhat Hanh