What force dances one
into this lovely state?
Light & ecstatic,
Blissful but calm.
Each breath a drug
that sends delicate
shimmers rippling
through the universe.
What force, indeed?
The Dance [Free Verse]
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Tag Archives: Free
Freedom [Free Verse]
Everyone loves an impassioned dance --
Not merely for its grace & athleticism --
But, also, because it's emblematic
Of being free -- truly free.
If features the two essential levels
Of freedom:
Freedom from without -- one's body
Being unrestricted and untethered.
&
Freedom from within -- one's mind
Being unfettered by self-consciousness.
Unbound and not weighed down by thought...
That is Freedom.
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“Bold” [Poetry Style #11] by Sikong Tu [w/ Audio]
View flowers like a bandit;
Let nature flow through you,
Breathing in the Great Way
As you let your crazy brew.
Wander like the free winds --
Sea and mountain in gray-blue.
Feel true power overflow,
As all nature lives through you.
Before: sun, moon, and stars;
Behind: the one from two.
By dawn, sea turtles have gone,
Soak your feet where they withdrew.
NOTE: The late Tang Dynasty poet, Sikong Tu (a.k.a. Ssŭ-k‘ung T‘u,) wrote an ars poetica entitled Twenty-Four Styles of Poetry. It presents twenty-four poems that are each in a different tone, reflecting varied concepts from Taoist philosophy and aesthetics. Above is a crude translation of the eleventh of the twenty-four poems. This poem’s Chinese title is 豪放, which has been translated to “Free,” “Set Free,” and “Broad-minded” in various English language translations.
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In Captivity [Free Verse]
bars at your back,
and their stripes
permanently etched
into one's field of vision.
so much so,
that you feel they're
a ubiquitous feature
of the world beyond.
the cage should be a hated place,
but one can grow to love the cage.
the cage is shelter.
the cage is delivery address
for food & water disbursements.
the cage forms rollbars --
like on a dune buggy --
protection in the event
of a sudden & unexpected crash.
the cage offers one a range --
narrow as it might be --
of distances at which one's captor
may be kept,
and, as long as the cage is shut,
that gives one a delightful
illusion of control.
what a hated place a cage should be,
and yet how conflicted are the captives?
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POEM: Free
What are you free to do or be?
Can you set out across an endless sea?
What deserts can your mind go roam
from which your fears won’t send you home?
Epictetus asked, “Are you free?”
Can you stand, while others flee?
Can you escape the default mode
that’s locked into your mental code?
Can truth change your way of seeing?
Are you sectless in the art of disagreeing?
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