The Incredible Need for Emptiness (Poem)

Inside the Palace of the King

…And somewhere, above in the sky, the King smiled.

And he remembered.

He remembered some of the laws He selected when He fashioned the earth and all that is within it. He remembered the laws of things and of people.

Because when the cup is filled up to the brim, it cannot receive anything.

And unless walls have been pierced, leaving holes like scars within the overall design, the building cannot receive any light.

And unless the rock and the soil have been perforated, they cannot allow the free flowing of waters.

And unless the land has been softened with ploughing and cultivating, it cannot be fertile.

Yes, the King remembered. He remembered some of the laws of things and of people he had selected out of His own benevolence.

What provides solace to the crown of His creation, the splendour of music itself is made possible only through…

…The artful hollow within the wooden frame of the violin.

…Or the tortuous pathway for air passing through the empty pipes of trumpets and organs.

…Or the harmonious power of the protected cavity formed by the bell.

(But the King forgot all about drums!).

The King then remembered how the splendour of human culture and civilisation as a whole would not have been possible without these same laws,

Because nothing has ever been written, drawn or painted on a support which had not previously been virgin and open to any possibility.

Poetry becomes just a heap of meaningless letters without their play with blank spaces between words, paragraphs and chapters. And also as margins.

The strength of the speech dwells in its silent pauses.

Science is helpless without the use of the mysterious number zero.

And there is no sculpture without the patient skill of the emptying and removal of matter.

Yes, the King remembered. He remembered the crown of His creation itself, and some of the laws which govern humanity often without its knowing.

There is no breath of life without the hollow cavities within chests.

There is no strength without the open paths offered to the free flow of life blood.

And no meaningful word has ever been pronounced, no song has ever been sung, without first passing through the clear emptiness of the mouth.

And the sweetness of the food and drink is often in the emptiness of the stomach and in the dryness of the throat.

Yes, the King remembered. At this point He even started to feel a bit dizzy. He remembered the ways He tried in His own wisdom to move and lead Humanity which so often remained deaf to His patient invitations.

Through the Holy of Holies as laid down by rules for worship, the Holy Presence itself was but an empty space.

Through a name which is not to be pronounced.

Through the holes in his precious hands, feet and side that He Himself offers, in order to show the way of love and redemption.

Through the joyful dance that in His amazing grace, He invites all to engage in, around an empty tomb.

Through the hope which is placed in a glorious Messiah, who is still to come, or to come back.

And the sweetness of the Word is often in the emptiness of the heart.

The King was becoming more and more dizzy, and now He was half asleep. It was time for Him to formulate some wish… If only…

Yes, if only some would remember as I do today, that unless the hand lets go of its weapon, it cannot receive another one to make peace.

If only some would remember as I do today, that creation itself and freedom were first gained through the formation of an empty space between the waters.

If only some would remember, as I do today, that somewhere up there, far, far, far away in the sky, right in the middle of the stars, there is the staggering enigma of the existence of some huge black holes that would not be evaded…

And on this, the King fell asleep…