Arjuna, the Archer, convinces his guru that he sees nothing but his target placed on a tree – the toy parrot’s eye. The student is well on his path to becoming a legendary warrior, with directed vision.
A soldier once shared that they are trained to press the trigger on command, not think. For if they think, they might decide not to press the trigger.
It makes me wonder what warriors miss out on while chasing victory – the voice of life around the target. They are trained to deliver, not decide.
jungles protest
mafia entrenched in roots
not a leaf stirs
You are welcome. Your mention of the targeted gaze really made me think about how the body handles that kind of strict fixation. When we hold our attention on just one small point, our shoulders tend to creep up toward our ears and the breath gets shallow before we even notice it. It is strange how a mental narrowing instantly locks the physical frame.
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The line about Arjuna seeing nothing but the toy parrot’s eye on the tree stuck with me. It reminded me how narrowing focus can sharpen action but also silence the surrounding world, much like the soldier who presses the trigger without thinking. Reading your haibun felt like a pause to notice what lives beyond the target, the quiet protest of jungles, the mafia‑entrenched roots, the stillness where no leaf stirs. Thank you for sharing that vision.
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Thank you so much!
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I feel like we have all been trained to be soldiers in a war we don’t even understand and we are fighting for a victory that will never belong to us. We must begin to ask questions.
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If you have the power to ask questions, but you don’t…. you become the criminal.
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That is the danger to our very souls.
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True. Thank you, Joseph!
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A bold and serious write – Jae
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Thank you, Jae!
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