Monday, March 17, 2025

Irish Zen song on St. Patrick's Day


ST. PATRICK'S DHARMA: Welcome to Zen Buddhism in Ireland (ZBI) with Myozan Kodo (妙山興道). Years ago, on March 17th, he delivered a short talk on Irish history on a possibly ahistorical figure named "Saint Paddy" to mark St. Patrick's Day. Rev. Myozan Kodo lives his Zen Buddhist spiritual tradition on the Emerald Isle at zenbuddhism.ie which is open to all.

New traditions
Welcome to ZBI: Zen Buddhism Ireland - Zen Buddhism Ireland
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Let's go beyond The Pale in Ireland
The Irish are nothing if not amazing storytellers. Our own resident poet, Seven O'Dhr, frequently performs his epic "Finnegan's Awake" to stunned crowds who cannot comprehend how there can be so many rhyming syllables delivered in a Gaelic cadence in what is ostensibly an all-English poem. The piece is, of course, a tip o' the hat to James Joyce and his magnum opus  Finnegans Wake, but both works are rooted in an old Dublin ditty everyone who's ever entered a pub has heard, "Finnegan's Wake." What now if the classic song were Buddhified? If the story of Saint Paddy can be, as certainly it was all dreamed up by the Church over the years to sanitize the genocide of the indigenous pagan "snakes" being chased off the snakeless island.

Finnegan's Wake (traditional)
"Finnegan's Wake" (Irish American comic ballad) Clancy Brothers and The Dubliners

Tim Finnegan lived on Watlin Street
A gentleman Irish but mighty odd
Had a beautiful brogue so soft and sweet
To rise in the world he carried a hod

He had a sort of a tipplin' way
With a love of the liquor poor Tim was born
To help him on with his work each day
Had a drop of the craythur every morn

[CHORUS:]
Whack fol the dah of the di-do-day
Dance with your partner
Welt the floor your trotters shake
Wasn't it the truth I told?
Lots of fun at Finnegan's wake!

One mornin' Tim felt rather full
His head felt so heavy it made him shake
Fell from a ladder and dashed his skull
They carried him home his corpse to wake

Rolled him up in a nice clean sheet
Laid him out upon the bed
A bottle of whiskey at his feet
A barrel of porter at his head

[CHORUS]

His friends assembled at the wake
And Mrs. Finnegan called for lunch
First they brung in tea and cake
Then pipes tobacco and whiskey punch

Biddy O'Brien began to cry
"Such a nice clean corpse did you ever see?
Tim mavourneen why'd you go and die?"
Arragh shut your gob said Paddy McGee!

[CHORUS]

Patty O'Connor took up the job
"Ah Biddy" says she "you're wrong I'm sure!"
Biddy gave her a belt on the gob
That sent her sprawlin' on the floor

Then a war did soon engage
It was woman to woman and man to man
Shillelagh-law was all the rage
And a row and a ruction soon began

Mickey Maloney lowered his head
As a bottle of whiskey flew at him
Missed and fallin' on the bed
The liquor sprinkled all over Tim!

Tim revives see how he rises!
Timothy risin' from the bed
Sayin' "Whirl your liquor around like blazes
Thunderin' Jaysus do you think I'm dead?"

[CHORUS]

Finnegan's Awake (Zen version)
Seven O'Dare for Wisdom Quarterly, St. Patrick's Day 2025
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Tim Finnegan did BE on kinhin street
A gentleman Irish but Almighty Odd
Had a beautiful OM so soft 'n sweet
To rise above the world, he sat in the sod

Tippin' over wave and save: awake!
He had a sort of a tippin' wave
With a love of the hardcore ol' Tim was reborn
To help him on with his work each day
Had a talk with the master every morn

[CHORUS:]

Work for the title of the Died-All-Day
Breathe with your partners
Welt the floor then your trousers shake
Wasn't it Four Truths I told?
Lots o' fun now that Finnegan's awake!

Welt the floor then trousers shake
One mornin' Tim felt rather dull
His head felt so sleepy it made him wave
Tipped right over and dashed his skull
He sprawled out his corpse to wake

Rolled his'self up in a nice bright sheet
Reclined his'self in lion's pose in bed
A barrel of sake was good till you're dead

[CHORUS]

His friends assembled at the wake
Then Mrs. Finnegan called for lunch
First they brung in green tea and cake,
Zen bamboo flutes with a sake punch

Biddy O'Brien began to cry,
"Such a nice lean corpse did you ever see?
Tim's in satori and he might die!"
Arragh, shut your gob said Paddy McGee!

[CHORUS]

Roshi O'Connor took up the job
"Ah Biddy," said he, "you're wrong, I'm sure!"
Then Biddy gave him a wordy belt on the gob
That sent him sprawlin' on the floor

KeisakuSeven temples to experience Zen sitting meditation (zazen) (Jatrabridge)
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The keisaku is to awaken, but the shippei...
Then a debate did soon engage
It was man on woman and woman on man
Shippei-law was all the rage
And a row and a ruction soon began

Flicky Baloney lowered his head
As bottled-up frisky flew out of him
Missed and fallin' on the bed
The life sprinkled and touched ol' Tim!

Tim revives! See how he rises!
Timothy risin' from his deathbed
Sayin', "Whirl your hurl 'round like blazes
Thunderin' Dōgen, do you think I'm dead?"

[CHORUS]

Hardcore Zen: Zazen is Not Meditation
(Roshi Brad Warner) Zen punk on why Zazen is Not Meditation

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