Nachiketa’s Dream – 10th November 2025

~ shaun tenzenmen

The boy,
too curious,
gets sent from the room.

Confused,
he wanders the wheat fields,
letting the sun in.

Lulled to sleep
with his thoughts,
many questions
float along the river.

He is walking
towards his grandfather.

“On reading, ‘you’ no longer exist

The cock crows

Energy transformed holds no fear
of the temporary canvas

The art of ‘you’ imprinted
on the fabric of reality

Belonging to consciousness
inseparable

Recognise there’s no escape

Seeing through the mirage
finding ‘you’ have always been free….”

Inspired after coming across this post by Shubham Upman
28th Jan 2026 – shared with dVerse Poetics – dream interpretation

23 thoughts on “Nachiketa’s Dream – 10th November 2025”

        1. It starts with the common mistake of using CCP. It has never been the CCP but the Communist Party of China (CPC).

          The so called famine during the Great Leap Forward that killed millions is based on a lie written by a westerner. Millions did die during this period – just as they had throughout any other period. This was a deliberate twisting of a truth and turned into a ‘fact’ over time. China was under crushing sanctions from the USA at the time, but that doesn’t get mentioned much. The population during this period actually increased!

          The belief that there was a massacre in Tiananmen Square is another common myth that is accepted as truth in the West. All protestors were allowed to leave the Square peacefully. There were deaths in other parts of Beijing which were due to violence by protestors, particularly the burning alive of several soldiers in an APC. Most westerners don’t even know what started the protest because it soon got co-opted by agitators to turn it into a democracy movement. What we now know as a colour revolution. Can you imagine the patience of your government in this type of situation?

          One off the cuff remark was also that there are many labour camps still existing in China. This was presented as fact without any evidence. What is the definition of a labour camp anyway?

          But I’m not letting these points interfere with the humanity of the story and the emotional disconnections between the family members. I like the way she sometimes questions the writing of the grandmother and that there may be some stretching or distortion of truth.

          I’m still only about 150 pages in so far and interested to see how it all unfolds.

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          1. Shaun, I appreciate those specifics, and I know how history is written to distort in various ways. I know this sounds far out, but would you consider communicating with Tessa and sharing your thoughts with her? She took multiple trips to China, learned some of at least one dialect, studied archives, spoke with people who lived through it. I don’t know what your foundation of info comes from, but dialoguing with her might result in corrections in a revised edition? She does have a bibliography in the back that gives sources for her stuff.

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            1. I don’t think I’m well enough placed to do that. It’s her experience and story and I’m just some guy with an opinion. My sources are from reading and my own experience from visiting China and trying to understand why Mao is still revered so much there.

              I’m at the part of them making it to Hong Kong which I found very interesting. From having nothing on the mainland to arrive into privilege and possibility, only for Sun Yi to breakdown! The experience of Eurasians was new to me.

              I’m still not quite latching on to the relationship issues between Tessa and her mum yet but maybe that is more highlighted in the second half of the book.

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              1. Shaun, I think the lives of all 3 of them are unique. Sun Yi was blessed to have a good support system waiting for her, as she waited much longer to leave the mainland than her friends. The interrogations and surveillance would be enough to put anybody over the edge. Yes, I think you will see why Tessa had/has the resentments against her mom in the 2nd half. I’m enjoying this dialogue 🙂

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  8. I just adore this stanza, Shaun, for its pastoral setting and tone:

    Lulled to sleep
    with his thoughts,
    many questions
    float along the river.

    It sweeps us away into the dream landscape for a very satisfying arrival, or realization, that makes us sigh with gladness.

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