It is true we never know the real value of something until we lose it. And it is equally true we never know how much we love someone until we lose them. When the unthinkable happens, and our hearts are aching and beating in pain, “Do Not Stand at My Grave and Weep” will be a constant source of healing and consolation.
Written by a poet who knew loss, felt loss, and befriended loss, it encapsulates an unshakable belief in the interconnectedness of all that is. Its message of hope and renewal has helped hundreds of thousands find peace of mind.
Read the original poem below and then treat yourself to an uplifting performance of “Do Not Stand by My Grave and Weep” by One Voice Children’s Choir under the direction of Masa Fukuda and music by Robert Prizeman.
Both versions, although slightly different in tone and content, help us believe that we are never alone and our loved ones are always with us.
DO NO STAND AT MY GRAVE AND WEEP
Do not stand
By my grave, and weep.
I am not there,
I do not sleep —
I am the thousand winds that blow
I am the diamond glints in snow
I am the sunlight on ripened grain,
I am the gentle, autumn rain.
As you awake with morning’s hush,
I am the swift, up-lifting rush
Of quiet birds in circling flight,
I am the day transcending night.
Do not stand
By my grave, and cry —
I am not there,
I did not die.
Now listen to the performance, one of the most touching hyms to all creation that will nurse you back to life:
Complement “Do Not Stand at My Grave and Weep” with the art of jisei, a Japanese death poem, and then revisit spiritual teacher Eckhart Tolle’s meditation on the perpetual cycles of renewal in nature.
Very beautiful. Thanks for sharing.
Hi Alisa, the poem and the performance are heavenly! Thank you for stopping by and your kind words.