I also saw the moon

and so I say goodbye

to this world

Chiyo-ni

In Japanese poetry the moon is often a reference to enlightenment.  In this death poem by Buddhist nun Chiyo-ni, she expresses her final words to the world and her experience of awakening.  Is it a glimpse?  A continuous state of mind?

As one of the great haiku poets of her time, Chiyo-ni expresses a sense of wakefulness in all her poems with sublime beauty and metaphor.  She wrote her first poem at age six and spent her life devoted to the arts of 18th century Japan.

In my garden

starflowers bloom

come and see.

Chiyo-ni, age 6

While her choice to become a Buddhist nun came later in her life after the death of her husband, the temple near her home was purported to be a strong influence in her life.  Her devotion to the wonder…

Welcome to our Weekend Poetry Readings, where we find a classic poem read by the poet. In doing so, by presenting the poem in the words of the poet, we hope that something new is conveyed to you, the listener.

This week, we decided to share some Sylvia Plath with you. Plath’s importance in the field of literature is undisputed, and in her short life she burned brighter than most. Credited with advancing the genre of confessional poetry, she is perhaps best known for her autobiographical novel The Bell Jar, written shortly before her untimely death in 1963, and two collections of poetry, Ariel and The Collosus andOther Poems. Posthumously awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1982 for The Collected Poems. Even though she is gone, her words, and here, her voice, live on.

So take a minute, sit down, and enjoy this piece. One of the…

Thare is na time that wull nae come again
Th’ stoor o’ ages weightless winds huv spread
Howfur git back ‘ere ah cannae ken

Oor bairn’s a mon tae quickly grown frae grain
‘n’ we noo wear th’ masks o’ parents deid
Howfur made it ‘ere ah cannae ken

Ah track oor years by pathways thro’ th’ glens
‘n’ loue ye mair than ever cuid be said
Howfur git back ‘ere ah cannae ken

Th’ seasons wi’ thair changes come ‘n’ then
print upon th’ freish genetic treads.
Thare is na time that wull nae come again

Thae trees wha’s totem beauty time disdains
climb thro’ space tae light whaur thay ur fed
Howfur git back ‘ere ah cannae ken

In time a’ Hielands fall upon th’ plain
‘n’ ragin` floods wi’ mortal blood run rid
Thare is na time that wull nae come again.
But howfur  git tae ‘ere…