Brahm
A spectral film that came and went,
In its elusive way gave vent
In some unreal words which meant;
'I think therefore I am.'
That phantasm only thought it thought;
A vain conception crudely wrought;
An egotistic sham.
Which brings us up against the fact
By Chunder's attestation backed —
There is no Substance, Thought, nor Act
Nothing exists but Brahm.
This quaint contraption here below
Is not a magic shadow show
Where phantom figures come and go,
As held by old Khayyam.
A show has time and space enough,
But here we only have such stuff
As dreams are made of — mental fluff
And visionary flam,
Throughout the universal scheme,
Be sure things tare not what they seem,
(To quote a well-known psalm)
They're only whimsies of a dream
A transient dream of Brahm.
All through the cycles of the Past
At which Notation stands aghast
He has subsisted, first and last,
Lone, functionless and calm.
Nothing extraneous can obtrude
Upon his Sabbath quietude,
Or discompose his tranquil mood,
For nothing is but Brahm.
'The Past and Present here unite
Beneath Time's flowing tide' (to cite
A Bard of Uncle Sam)
For Time stretched out in aeons dim
To Apprehension's very rim,
Is insignificant to him
A Bagetelle to Brahm.
For once in his negation deep,
He somehow chanced to drop asleep;
And through that forty-wings there ran
A flitting dream. So time began —
He dreamed this stellar lens of ours,
Which mocks at telescopic powers
Innumerable suns sublime,
At furious speed yet keeping time!
And so remote that to the eye,
They look like fixtures in the sky,
But that's a trifle. Round about
A million light-years further out,
The wisps of nebular portend.
Sidereal schemes without an end
And this is no poetic flight
Nor idiotic blatherskite,
Nor what is termed a cram.
However vast these plans may seem,
They're only figments of a dream
A trifling dream of Brahm.
He dreamed our System's fiery gas
Condensing into solid mass;
And during several billion years,
Evolving planetary spheres.
But take this globe, alone, to prove
How things have moved — or seemed to move.
He dreamed some pulpy form of life:
Mutation slow; and savage strife:
With Nature's forces all in play,
And Darwin's system under way;
While bits of hide and tufts of hair
For countless centuries fill'd the air;
And only those were left alive
Whose fitness caused them to survive.
Monsters that lived in Gulfs of slime
With names that balk and baffle rhyme
Prodigious sloths, whose daily food
Was half a ton of leaves and wood —
Grim saurians of terrific strength,
A quarter of a mile in length,
Unsightly bats, with twelve-foot wings,
And endless tribes of fearsome things
Cull'd down, in point of fact, so fit
That they should thrive in Sheol's pit
And breathe its exhalations thick,
Holding their own with Ancient Nick.
And so, while ocean bottoms rose
To stand awhile as high plateaus
And mountains sank beneath the main,
To rise time after time again:
And rocks were formed, and strata rent
And Polar ice-caps came and went;
And geological ages pass'd
Each an improvement on the last;
And on the wrinkled crust of earth
More decent forms of life had birth;
Man was evolved a product queer;
A breed that it would pay to sheer;
And which it might be safe to say,
Has reached a higher stage to-day
Since restless generations gone
Have passed a few ideas on.
But, bear in mind, this human race
Diverse in colour, smell, and face;
These off-shoots from the simian stem
The Sons of Japheth and of Shem,
The progeny of Ham.
With mongrel races that infest
The isles and mainlands, east and west,
From Chili to Siam,
Are less than ripples in a stream,
They're only ripples on a dream
Namely the dream of BRAHM.
Even that race, divinely nursed,
Which for its virtues has been cursed
And booted into seven times seven
By every nation under Heaven
The seed of Abraham;
And those brave lions in their den
Each one a match for aliens ten,
With fist or rifle, bat or pen
I mean God's modest Englishmen,
Whose very fog is balm;
These are less tangible withal
Than shadowy rabbits on the wall
Nothing exists but BRAHM.
Our swarming brethren of the North
Whatever you may judge them worth
Sling Muck and Soogoo Ram,
Are fantoids like yourself and me,
Though differing somewhat in degree
Nothing exists but BRAHM.
That Fatman, dining at his club,
On costly wet and sumptuous grub;
The pilgrims in the roadside pub;
The washerwoman at her tub;
And Jacky in his native scrub,
On bandicoot and yam
Are momentary sports of thought
That flicker out and come to nought
In this brief dream of BRAHM.
Illusion in the very air
(If such an envelope were there);
And things that seem to claim your care
Your Wife, with her untidy hair:
And Grandma, in her easy chair:
And baby in the pram —
Are all a visionary crew
Which fact need never worry you,
For you're an apparition too,
Nothing exists but BRAHM.
But flies are in the ointment sweet,
And jumpers in the cheese we eat,
And maggots in the treacherous meat;
And mildew on the jam.
That is to say, we might complain
Of many a kink in things mundane;
Of barbarisms that still remain
For instance 'Sport' imposing pain;
Monarchial 'loyalty' inane;
The gnats at which the Wowsers strain;
The camels that they entertain:
Sectarian bigotry insane.
The ruthless quest of sordid gain —
A sad, perennial stream of bane,
Which only in a sense profane
We're competent to dam.
The feckless poet's cult of grog:
The idle bummer's cadge for prog;
The stern official's odious 'gog'
The flunkey's meek Salaam —
Such provocations, daily met,
And grounds of meddlesome regret,
Shall find their panacea yet;
With ratling promptitude you bet,
In this same dream of BRAHM.
Unquestionably, no one knows
The likely period of his doze;
But this we know that when he wakes
We vanish in a brace of shakes;
Without dismay or qualm.
The earth, the sun, and every star
Shall vanish like the freaks they are;
The corn and oil, the flower and grass,
The fig and vine, shall simply pass,
The eucalypt and palm:
The microbe small, the ponderous whale;
The greyhound swift, the tardy snail;
The lion and the lamb;
The sand and granite, quartz and schist,
Shall vanish like a so-called mist
Which the fictitious sun has kiss'd
(Of course they never did exist),
NOTHING EXISTS BUT BRAHM.
poem by Joseph Furphy
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Related quotes
First Encounter - Famous Buddhist Monk Ajahn Brahm
ajahn brahm
the humour of love
wins our hearts over
ajahn brahm
brimming with the humour
of love
ajahn brahm
not letting buddhism
become idolatory worship
ajahn Brahm
does it matter which religion
one belongs to
if our heart is filled with
the universal teaching of love?
poem by John Tiong Chunghoo
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The Fairy Queen
On lawn of green with floral borders
Hid little Elf, with twinkling eye.
Whilst 'Tangerine' the fairy queen
Sang to him ~ Brahm's Lullaby.
Came then, another fairy singing
To tempt the elf, way down she flew.
Calling him her elfin darling...
She stayed until the morning dew.
But Tangerine returned at midday
For little elf was cute and shy
His love was hers alone forever,
As she sang to him Brahm's Lullaby.
poem by Joyce Hemsley
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I Dreamed.
I dreamed a dream and in that dream,
I dreamed that I had dreamed a dream,
Of hope and fairytales come true,
I dreamed a dream and thought of truth,
I dreamed a dream of life and love,
Of fate and angels and God above,
I dreamed a dream of good wishes and friends,
I dreamed a dream I dreaded to end,
But then I woke into my dream,
I dreamed I woke in a world obscene,
I dreamed a dream of violence and hate,
And once again I dreamed of fate,
I dreamed a dream of terror and fear,
I dreamed that each word went unheard,
And so children never spoke a word,
I dreamed a dream of demons and beasts,
I dreamed a dream that ended at last,
I woke in my bed and wondered if,
I dreamed a dream of dreams or if,
I dreamed a dream of truth that night,
And if so I wondered which was truth,
And which was merely a dream.
poem by Emma Wright
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Dream On
Dream on baby, dream on
They might never seem to come true,
But dream on, baby, dream on.
Cause you never know when one will find you.
Dream on baby, dream on.
Though the critics and sceptics cry,
Dream on you will, baby, dream on.
Cause one day you'll be waving them goodbye.
Dream on baby, dream on,
There's a reason that we have dreams.
Dream on baby, dream on.
You'll catch some dreams, though far away they seem.
Dream on, baby, dream on.
No, you probably won't get every one,
But isn't that what dreams are for?
Dreams, they propel us to leap out and have fun.
Dreams, where we run to who-knows-where,
Where we do things we can only imagine.
Dreams, where we find solace in times of despair:
Where ordinary men become legends.
Dreams breath life into our bodies,
Give us purpose in our life, carry us on,
Carry us on through the toughest time,
When all glimmer of hope is gone.
So shut your door, tuck yourself in,
Turn out the lights, and dream away.
Life's tough, now's time to escape awhile.
Time to dream about a happier day.
Dream on, baby, dream on.
Dreams come true,
So dream on.
One day, they'll find you.
poem by Joses Tirtabudi
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I Wanna be the Dream
I wanna be the dream
Yeah to be the real dream
I wanna be the dream
And to vanish like a dream
Like a star fading in the sunlight
Like a candle vanishing with the sunrise
The dreams keep seeping through the flimsy net
With the truth rising rising like the tide
Covering shiny pebbles that shone in the sun
Covring little puddles that showed thousand moons
I wanna be the dream
Yeah to be the real dream
I wanna be the dream
And to vanish like a dream
I am still here but no one else
Holding on to the dreams holding on to them
Fate is wicked and the road is crooked
The road I have to travel to get to the end
Flowing water streams smiling rose buds
They all shows up in the dreams in the net
I wanna be the dream
Yeah to be the real dream
I wanna be the dream
And to vanish like a dream
I am still here but no I am not
I want to get in the dream to jump in the streams
To kneel down beside and to smell the rose
I want to get in the dream to dream all along
And to vanish through the net when the dream is gone
I wanna be the dream
Yeah to be the real dream
I wanna be the dream
And to vanish like a dream
[Dilzz this is for you, the dreamer. It is one hundred and forty. Tonight I am tired. Tired of everything, everything... Water flows down... Because there is something called gravity... On the way... I met you. We touched each other's hearts... with our long warm... sighs. We can close our eyes and see the world... the world that is beneth the crust and beyond the limits of the universe. Yet that is.... my dear Dilzz.... I know you will agree.... just.... yes... just another dream.]
poem by Rowving Smith
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Sloth (I) & (II)
Sloth (I)
Too many a Samsan lip your teeth indent:
Too many a Sybil girl you lure to make
The Great Refusal for a fireside sake:
And glamoured poet many a look has sent
Into those eyeballs bear-brown, somnolent,
Nor dreamed that devils in each muddy lake
Were sucking his devotion in to slake
The furrowed belly of your fanged content!
Religion's bane and Freedom's subtlest foe!
Behold the poppied freight your barges bring
The dim-lit souls that crave the prophet's gleam,
Or fettered people's writhing 'neath their woe--
Gossamer clips and thriftless harvesting
Of phantom flocks and shadowy tilth of dream!
Sloth (II)
My dreams dissolve the day's illusive net:
While crested Action's billows blinding beat,
Omniscient Eyes in troughs of Faith I meet:
I wait with ancient stars until they set
Lest forward progress should their runes forget:
I am the rest that makes the bar complete:
And, in the shackled body of Defeat,
The womb of Baby Triumph living yet!
I am the blende of sleeping radiance:
The Siding where belated Industry
Draws from a Silent Tank tomorrow's zest:
Prophetic Art's preparatory Trance:
Dilating Force's Sabbath systole:
The Night of Brahm when worn Creators rest!
poem by Bernard O'Dowd
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Dream Operator
When you were little
You dreamed you were big
You must have been something
A real tiny kid
You wish you were me
I wish I was you
Now dont you wake up
The dream will come true
Every dream has a name
And names tell your story
This song is your dream
Youre the dream operator
Its bigger than life
You know its all me
My face is a book
But its not what it seems
Three angels above
The whole human race
They dream us to life
They dream me a face
And every dream tells it all
And this dream is your story
You dreamed me a heart
Youre the dream operator
Shake-it-up dream
Hi-di-ho dream
Fix-it-up dream
Look at me dream
Ive been waiting so long
Now I am your dream
Hard to forget
Hard to go on
When you fall asleep
Youre out on your own
Let go of your life
Grab on to my hand
Here in the clouds
Where well understand
And you dreamed it all
And this is your story
Do you know who you are?
Youre the dream operator
And you dreamed it all
And this is your story
Do you know who you are?
Youre the dream operator
song performed by by Talking Heads
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Why Fades A Dream
WHY fades a dream?
An iridescent ray
Flecked in between the tryst
Of night and day.
Why fades a dream? —
Of consciousness the shade
Wrought out by lack of light and made
Upon life's stream.
Why fades a dream?
That thought may thrive,
So fades the fleshless dream;
Lest men should learn to trust
The things that seem.
So fades a dream,
That living thought may grow
And like a waxing star-beam glow
Upon life's stream —
So fades a dream.
poem by Paul Laurence Dunbar
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Dream
Get in touch with that sundown fellow
As he tiptoes across the sand
Hes got a million kinds of stardust
Pick your favrite brand, and
Dream, when youre feeling blue
Dream, thats the thing to do
Just watch the smoke rings rise in the air
Youll find your share of memories there
So dream when the day is through
Dream, and they might come true
Things never are as bad as they seem
So dream, dream, dream
Dream when the day is through
Dream, and they might come true
Things never are as bad as they seem
So dream, dream, dream
Dream
So dream, dream, dream
song performed by by Ella Fitzgerald
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Do you have dreams?
Do you have dreams, Well I do
I dream of wonderful things
I dream of things yet to come
I dream of things some may say is dumb
I dream of love not just the word I mean real love
I dream of of a place where there is no war
I dream of a good answer to what we fight for
I dream of floating in the clouds free with no worry
I dream of a president who can just say sorry
I dream of reading a book thats begins with 'what is hate'
I dream of a country, thats completely great
I dream of life beyond the one we live today
I dream of a time when all kids do is learn and play
Ok time to wake up to reality
I was loving my dream now im mad at me for waking up
Life here in the real world can be so crazy
I guess the bigger part of me wishes I was stil a baby
Some of my dreams may come true
I know thats not true and so do you
But I will continue to believe my dream will come true
Because my dream was so wonderful, so I shared it with you
poem by Cheyanne Whien
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I Dream, Do You
Do you have dreams, Well I do
I dream of wonderful things
I dream of things yet to come
I dream of things some may say is dumb
I dream of love not just the word I mean real love
I dream of of a place where there is no war
I dream of a good answer to what we fight for
I dream of floating in the clouds free with no worry
I dream of a president who can just say sorry
I dream of reading a book thats begins with 'what is hate'
I dream of a country, thats completely great
I dream of life beyond the one we live today
I dream of a time when all kids do is learn and play
Ok time to wake up to reality
I was loving my dream now im mad at me for waking up
Life here in the real world can be so crazy
I guess the bigger part of me wishes I was stil a baby
Some of my dreams may come true
I know thats not true and so do you
But I will continue to believe my dream will come true
Because my dream was so wonderful, so I shared it with you
LOL
poem by Daniel Chapman
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Everybody dreams.
Everybody dreams.
Children dream,
Adults dream,
Old people dream.
I dream, too.
I dream about the friends with whom I'll grow old,
I dream about the person whose hands I'll hold,
I dream about being young and in love,
I dream about loved ones, looking down from above.
I dream of the places I'll one day see,
I dream of being wild and free,
I dream of my house, high on the rocks,
I dream of the sand underneath my socks.
I dream of the people I'd love to greet,
I dream of the things I'll say when we meet,
I dream of hearing their voices sing,
I dream of being happy with everything.
I dream of travelling with a map in my hand,
I dream of never coming back to this land,
I dream of finding myself - in sense
I dream of jumping far off this fence.
I dream of any things that one day I'll know,
I dream of the freedom: a dream I won't let go,
I dream of my future and marvel at my pride
As my heart is flying and singing inside.
poem by Twilight Whispers
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Dreaming Reality
In the real world, as in dreams,
Nothing is quite as it seems.
To see what we have never seen,
To be what we have never been,
To shed the chrysalis, learn to fly,
Depart the earth, kiss the sky,
To be reborn, be someone new,
Is this a dream or is it true?
Is my life in fact a dream?
Are things not always as they seem?
Are daylight hours reality,
Or do I dream eternally?
In the dream world or the real,
We cannot know what we can't feel.
What is not a dream by day,
Comes to us at night to stay.
Dreams - vivid colors of life,
Or fleeting, obscure, murky strife?
Façade of reality brings,
To the mind, exquisite things:
Love, regret, memories, cheer,
Imagination, even fear.
The lives we live appear, it seems,
To be a dream within a dream.
A long dream of hopeless sorrow,
I'll dream my life again tomorrow.
(27 February 2005)
poem by Richard Stamper
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I dream..
I dream of floating away on a cloud
I dream of catching a falling star
I dream of my prince charming
I dream of how I'll save him from the dragon
I dream of cows on the moon
And pink grass
I dream of old ladies knitting socks
I dream the twelve Olympians are real
I dream I'll meet them someday
I dream of vast sugar cane fields
I dream of a bed of roses
And how prickly that must be
I dream of firefly friends
I dream of a lighting bug show
I dream of riding a striped horse down the aisle
I dream of hot air balloons
I dream of polar bears
And penguins
I dream of snow
I dream of rain
I dream of summer
I dream of fall
I dream of day
And night
I dream of the moon
I dream of stars
I dream of going to Mars
I dream of how I'll be queen of the Martians
I dream of how I'll love my subjects
And people always said I belonged on another planet
I dream of love
I dream of faith
I dream of hope
I dream of culture
I dream of life
And I dream sweet dreams
poem by Sai Srujana
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Dream A Little Dream For Me
At night when you think through your day
Think on the things that you did say
When you think through the things that you should be
Dream this little dream for me
Dream of blue skies forever
Dream that we are a worthy endeavor
Dream this one dream so you can see
Dream this little dream for me
The world fades but I'm still here
Still living for you
I'm sitting outside beneath the sky clear
Just enjoying your view
Sleep well until morning comes
Live with the passion of a thousand suns
Tell me all the things that you should be
And dream this little dream for me
Dream of you through my eyes
Dream though it may not be much of a surprise
That while you dream enjoying the view
I'm dreaming a little dream for you.
Yes, dreaming a dream for you!
poem by Jack Harris
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My Juliet, My Love My Dragon-fly
When I dream the dream of paradise
I see a picture of you
And when I dream the dream of love and care
I see a picture of us two
And when I dream a dream of loneliness
I see a shadow on the wall
Looking back at me like
I'm nothing at all
But those dreams a quickly chased away
When I wake up to a sunny day
And I see your pretty face right by my side
When I dream a dream of smiling
The room is full of you
And if I dream a dream of candy land
The sweetest thing is you
And if the nightmare comes along
To say its fond goodbyes
The thought of you will stop it
before those dreams arise
Because with you sharing my bed at night
My dream will always come out right
And tomorrow will always be another day
If I dream a dream while I'm awake
That dream will be of you
If I dream a dream of wedding cakes
I'll dream a dream of you
And when I dream a dream of a loving wife
That dream will be of you
And if I dream a dream of growing old
I'll be growing old with you
And if my dream were ever to come true
I know it will be because of you
And that's the reason that I love you so.
poem by Mbaimbai Phathutshedzo
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Dream, My Boy! Dream!
Dream my boy! Dream!
Dream to rid of your rote monotony.
Dream if you dare! Dream to show you have guts!
But never dream for the sake of dreaming.
For, dreaming is but to take up cudgels against adversity.
Dream to make your life what you like it to be.
If you are young and still can’t dream,
You will be abusing the Xs and Ys that dreamed of you.
When you grow up to a man, you can’t dream.
For, nightmares beset you to disturb your sleep.
And once you become old,
What will there be to dream about
Except a long inventory of bungled up promises,
And life wasted away as a vast desert of time?
Dream my boy! Dream!
Dreaming is not yet another exercise of pastime.
It is trying to draw a blueprint of life.
It is an epoch to embark upon challenges
The earlier generations dreaded to dream.
Dream about freeing from every shackle,
About breaking every chain that impedes your progress.
Let dreaming be such an obsession with you
That you dream about things no one hitherto ever dreamt of.
Imagine where you would be
Had not that caveman dared to dream!
Dream my boy! Dream!
Not anybody can, nor everybody would dream.
Many shiver in their socks to dream
And of the few that can, most leave their dreams
At the doorstep of eyelids when they have to buck-up.
Only a digital few live to translate their dreams,
This, to a bewildered onlooker seems dream living.
Dreaming is not resignation to fate amidst string of failures.
On the contrary, it is a defiance of it
And resilience from the sense of defeat.
It is “bonsai”ing hope and confidence,
In the fist of determined effort.
Only those that quarry courage from the deep recesses
Of their psyche to face every want, battle out every hurdle
A la Galileo, Socrates, or Copernicus
Could dare dreaming of exotic things.
Rest stay content
Inhuming their blessed youth in the hives of time
Sans identity, sans respect,
Sans any notion of their having ever existed.
I can never dream of God
TELL ME, GOD!
you will let me dream,
that I'l dream of a heaven
I'l never see,
that I'l dream of a hell
that has no pain.
that I'l dream that one day
that I dreamed that I wake!
TELL ME I'L DREAM
that my mother was alive!
Tell me I'l dream
there were tears in my eyes!
Tell me I'l dream
of the first light of day,
TELL ME I'L DREAM!
and I'l dream that I wake!
For, in a grave!
for the rest of my time,
In a grave! in the hell where I lie!
In a grave, where forever I'l sleep,
I'd dream of God,
..........If only I could dream
Dreams
Alone I sit and alone I dream
The world is naught but dust to me
In a place I know the place I dream
I dream of things I've never seen
I dream of places I've never been
I dream of finding my one true love
Of finding treasure hidden in the stars above
I dream of space
I dream of one day finishing my race
Can the dream last?
Whose to say what dreams will go and what dreams will stay
I dreamed that I will come home to thee
Where nightmares are kept at bay.
poem by Rachel Branscombe
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I, Once, Dreamt a Dream
I, once, dreamt a dream that dreamers oft dream
Of loving and living a lovely life
A house, my children and a caring wife
I, once, dreamt a dream that dreamers oft dream
Oh, how I long to dream that dream again
Where hope solemnly sought for nothing more
Than to find her standing there, at my door
Oh, how I long to dream that dream again
How do dreams die... Do they ever revive
How does one learn to trust the coming day
When the past keeps trust an arms length away
How do dreams die... Do they ever revive
I, once, dreamt a dream that dreamers oft dream
Oh, how it seemed closer than dreams oft seem
I lived a dream once upon a daydream
We'd walk slowly through the park holding hands
Speaking so sweetly and making our plans
I lived a dream once upon a daydream
I lived a love once when a love loved me
I knew her in ways that only I knew
I was the first among her chosen few
I lived a love once when a love loved me
In one heartbeat she chose a diff'rent path
Oh, how could she leave without one last kiss
I often wonder if love still exists
In one heartbeat she chose a diff'rent path
I lived a dream once upon a daydream
Oh, how it seemed closer than dreams oft seem
((February 2nd,2009))
poem by Danny Speicher
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