Mr. Altig’s Overview of the Wonderful Dharma of the Lotus Sutra

A blues-folk confession about carrying the weight of our own minds. Starting in the darkness of recognition and moving toward the light of shared burden, this song traces the journey from isolation to acknowledgment—where simply naming what we carry begins to break its hold.

Inspired by Chapter Twenty-Four of the Lotus Sūtra, “The Delusion Chain” catalogs the six afflictions—greed, anger, ignorance, jealousy, stinginess, and arrogance—that obscure our clarity and peace. But the song’s real subject is what happens when we stop carrying these burdens alone.

In the tradition of Robert Johnson’s crossroads darkness and Mississippi John Hurt’s front-porch wisdom, with early Dylan’s confessional storytelling throughout, this is a song about how recognition becomes liberation, and how asking for help is itself the answer.

“The moment that I name what’s holding me / I ain’t carrying this delusion all alone, you see”

Acoustic fingerpicking, upright bass, harmonica. Recorded with intention and honesty.

Lyrics: 
[Verse 1]
Woke up this morning with a weight I can’t name
Six different devils all playing the same game
Got greed in my pocket, got anger in my bones
Jealousy whispering through the telephone

[Verse 2]
Stinginess counting every coin I save
Arrogance telling me I’m too good to behave
Ignorance smiling like an old, old friend
Can’t see the teaching through the fog I’m in

[Chorus]
I’m dragging this delusion chain
Link by link in the pouring rain
Too much greed and not enough wisdom, Lord
Can’t find the key to break this chain

[Verse 3]
Tried to read the good book, couldn’t see the page
My attachments got attachments keeping me in this cage
Every desire’s got a desire of its own
I’m obscuring my own path, reaping what I’ve sown

[Bridge]
Now, I ain’t saying I’m the only fool
Who mistakes his confusion for something cool
But when you’re carrying six kinds of heavy all day
You start to wonder if there ain’t a better way

[Chorus]
I’m dragging this delusion chain
Link by link in the pouring rain
Too much greed and not enough wisdom, Lord
Can’t find the key to break this chain

[Verse 4 – tempo softens, opens up]
So I’m singing you this song, laying my burden down
Telling you the truth I finally found
The moment that I name what’s holding me
I ain’t carrying this delusion all alone, you see

[Verse 5 – gentle, clear]
Recognition’s like a question asked out loud
Breaks the spell of walking in a cloud
When I show you all my greed and jealous ways
The teaching starts to shine through the haze

[Chorus – modified, lighter]
I’m naming this delusion chain
Speaking it out loud eases the pain
Still got greed, but I got wisdom growing, Lord
And sharing the burden starts to break this chain

[Outro – quiet, intimate, almost spoken]
Six links make a chain
One voice breaks the hold
The asking is the answer
The telling makes me whole
Brother, can you hear me?
I’m not alone no more