A Bodhisattva
She knew nothing of the Buddha
or of buddhahood, held no distinctions
sacred, thought no condition permanent,
no truths or laws transcendent, no glory
but the glorious aftermath of chance
and change, no consolation but the gift
and precious grief of losing, no compassion
to extend or be withheld, nothing certain
but the unrelenting weight of ignorance,
no presence but her sense that being here
is always coming after, no thought
but what arrives as joy, no voice
but what wells up in laughter.
DB Jonas is the author of four collections of poetry: Tarantula Season and Other Poems (2023), Flight Risk, Poems and Translations (2025), In Dubious Terrain (2026) and Ut pictura (forthcoming in 2026). His work has appeared in over 70 journals internationally, examples of which can be accessed at jonaspoetry.com.
