Journey IX

Dreamed before 1970 by Gary Snyder

We were following a long river into the mountains. Finally we rounded a ridge and could see deeper in-- the farther peaks stony and barren, a few alpine trees. Ko-san and I stood on a point by a cliff, over a rock-walled canyon. Ko said, "Now we have come to where we die." I asked him, what's that up there, then--meaning the further mountains. "That's the world after death." I thought it looked just like the land we'd been travelling, and couldn't see why we should have to die. Ko grabbed me and pulled me over the cliff-- both of us falling. I hit and I was dead. I saw my body for a while, then it was gone. Ko was there too. We were at the bottom of the gorge. We started drifting up the canyon, "This is the way to the back country."