Names
VIII.x. ( from the ashes of this ) darling town ( a phoenix in ) fall colours
ADEIMANTOS: ( o Sokrates, why have you named
him fearless? ) ( and why wont he say more? )
( even if we ask ) ( poke ) hm-mm.
( he still wont speak ) ( his irony
grows thick as wool ) baaa ( but how
is this being unafraid? ) ( doesnt he know
they-we want to hear everything about him? )
SOKRATES: for( it does )nt have-and-hold( the )nature
( growth-origin )( of )the steersman( kubernetes )
( they-dyad were steering )
( to bind himself )( to be in-need )of the sailors,
to be ruled( dyad-spider-web )by( from-under him )self.
οὐ γὰρ ἔχει φύσιν κυβερνήτην
ναυτῶν δεῖσθαι ἄρχεσθαι ὑφ᾽ αὑτοῦ
ADEIMANTOS: ( thinks for a while ) ( o kubernetes )
night falls over the town in a blink ( o sprinkles! )
( what has-and-holds your nature, origin, growth? )
( where did you come from? ) ( would you show us? )
we would take you to the spot by the lake,
( okay, lets go ) ( and walk around it ) ( one way
and the other way ) ( but walking anytime we could )
( some days the high path on the ridge, some days
the low ) ( sun, rain, or snow ) ( she found a place
to listen to herself ) ( in him ) ( we-seeking-we )
( we were right there ) ( we were reflection ) ( we
were seasons ) ( light air and water ) ( burning
star ) ( so ) ( neither are we a city man ) ( strictly )
( nor are we a business person ) ( really? )
( cant be ) ( not here ),
SOKRATES: nor(for)the wise(skilled-clever ones)
to go(up to)the double-folding-she-doors
(you will thrust out-of-doors)
of the wealthy-rich(ones),
οὐδὲ τοὺς σοφοὺς ἐπὶ τὰς τῶν πλουσίων θύρας ἰέναι,
ADEIMANTOS: ( in the rebellious phases of my youth )
we inhale the cellar-like scent in the air,
( and we reflect upon the few important years )
( sprinkles! ) ( spent waiting for the metro line )
( or behind the gynmasium of a public school )
( and lets be near the nations capital )
( coming-and-going to the man-made-real )
( the weird, the wild, the human unpredictable )
( for company and fumes to strengthen breadth )
( by breath of fog ) ( where sky looks like a cave )
( and yes, we walk the razors edge of her )
where we used to sit smoking as a teenager,
( as if self-damage would make her invincible )
( after some boy had said her joy was hideous ),
SOKRATES: but still he( refining-subtlety-cleverly-inventing )this lied,
ADEIMANTOS: ( but still excuse me Sokrates,
we didnt tell you everything he said.
he also said she was an hysterical bitch ),
SOKRATES: but still he( refining-subtlety-cleverly-inventing )this lied,
ADEIMANTOS: ( and he called her a self-entitled brat ),
SOKRATES: but still he( refining-subtlety-cleverly-inventing )this lied,
ADEIMANTOS: ( and he called her profoundly selfish ),
SOKRATES: but still he( refining-subtlety-cleverly-inventing )this lied,
ADEIMANTOS: ( and he told her she had to change her work,
to be more like his work,
and his work ),
SOKRATES: but still he( refining-subtlety-cleverly-inventing )this lied,
ADEIMANTOS: ( and he said what she was doing was
the opposite of philosophy ),
SOKRATES: but still he( refining-subtlety-cleverly-inventing )this lied,
ADEIMANTOS: ( and he forced her to repeat out loud
that anything she would ever put on paper
would make even the most expensive paper,
the finest, most exquisite paper — worthless ),
SOKRATES: but still he( refining-subtlety-cleverly-inventing )this lied,
ADEIMANTOS: ( and he called her stupid
many times ),
SOKRATES: but still he( refining-subtlety-cleverly-inventing )this lied,
ADEIMANTOS: ( and she remembers every one
of their names, the men who said those things,
and one of them was her father ),
SOKRATES: but still he( refining-subtlety-cleverly-inventing )this lied,
ἀλλ᾽ ὁ τοῦτο κομψευσάμενος ἐψεύσατο,
ADEIMANTOS: ( but self-care would make her invisible )
( so we- ) shiver in layers too light ( -being a puffy coat ),
( we keep him warm and insulate her truth )
( but when he accidentally births her puffer fish . . . )
( then we were punished many times ) ( from many
angles ) ( and each one hurts ) ( this knucklehead )
( always sorry ) ( lol ) ( until thirty-five or so ) ( when we realize )
( the punishments are pulling him away from her )
( and thats our line ) ( thats when our voice says ) ( no )
( then ) hiding fom the world ( we try to save
what can be saved ) ( we really do ) ( before we leave
to find ourself whom we dont know ) ( and we
find love ) ( because we find another man
who does believe in her ) ( and loves her too )
( so go looking in every way you can )
( as pieces by her paradise make whole ),
SOKRATES: but the true( unconcealed )
has been brought-forth( by nature )
( they had been brought-forth )( to have brought-forth )
( it has flown, fled, flight )( to have escaped )
( the charge )( they had been in exile ),
τὸ δὲ ἀληθὲς πέφυκεν,
ADEIMANTOS: ( and dreams, as Hamlet shows, hold on to you )
( so ) the lake doesnt know summer ( we ) is ( being ) gone,
( but she refused ) ( then ) ( to let go ) ( lake-mirror-black )
( with lines and leash and bricks of living gold )
( it yanks a chain ) ( commands ) ( build me a temple )
( and somehow ) ( how? ) ( we still suspect its Theuth )
( as if the very shadow master called him home )
( how did it make us feel? ) ( afraid, of course )
( when your own heart is hounding you ) ( by force )
( we didnt rush? ) ( there was no need ) ( if true,
we couldnt slow the course of destiny )
and on the walk back to town ( we put it thus )
( what we would do in heaven ) ( with joy )
( why shouldnt we do it now? ) ( own victory )
( but music was our designated work ),
SOKRATES: whether wealthy or poor
( he would )produce by work( make, fabricate )
( he would labor and toil, strive, exert, construct )
( he would be weary, exhausted, fatigued )
( and he would suffer, perhaps be ill,
until his work was done ) ( until hed done
his work ) ( you too ) ( youd do your work )
( you would produce, make, fabricate, labor
and toil, strive, exert, construct ) ( you would
be weary, exhausted, fatigued ) ( and you
would suffer, perhaps be ill ) ( but work, until
youve done your work ),
ἐάντε πλούσιος ἐάντε πένης κάμνῃ,
ADEIMANTOS: ( where are the healers? you would ask )
( and ) we would show you ( the church or the hospital )
( at first, he wouldnt know ) ( but of course Asclepios )
( and either would take hold of you ) ( for a price )
( and ) it looks exactly the same ( from the outside )
( as it used to ) ( when we passed by here before )
( by the way, her diet was inspired by his brother-
called city of pigs ) ( from book II ) ( were fascinated
to translate that passage for ourselves . . . )
( as we make our own ) ( through these interiors )
( we-practicing care of death ),
SOKRATES: to be forced( constraint-necessity )
( o prison-chained )
to go( up to )the double-folding-she-doors
( you will thrust out-of-doors )( of )doctors-healers,
ἀναγκαῖον (489ξ) εἶναι ἐπὶ ἰατρῶν θύρας ἰέναι
ADEIMANTOS: ( and indeed ) ( if you happen to live near a mosque
and hear the prayer, that is what ear-openers
have sounded like for her ) ( she wouldnt be here
without Al-Fatiha ) ( and the Basmala
she has called the poets seed ) ( hard liquor )
( she-me is really Muslim ) ( this remains her path )
( because the word-song leads back through herself )
( we-being roots or branches of a tree ) ( of twin Mercies )
( of dyadic-Ophelia as the translation may be )
( and there are many Names by which we trans )
( she keeps Al-Lateef, from her husbands hand,
nearby her pillow, where she sleeps at night )
( whats in a name ) ( this one ) ( dreams opener )
( to be aware by what music we hear ) ( or whose )
( and anyway ) ( to take our time, we might pass by )
my favorite playground ( and play is how we learn )
( its where we watch the boys do monkeybars )
( its where we ) ( going on the swing ) ( swing high )
( swing low ) ( big sky ) ( sweet chariot ) ( blue way )
( to feel ) ( being-away ) ( from home ) ( my feelings )
( not in words yet ) but the trees do ( hum to me )
( so the tire-swing in the forest treats us best ),
SOKRATES: and( indeed for )all the( being-bound-
in-needing-of )to be ruled,
( to go )to( the double-folding-she-doors )
of he who is able( potentially )to rule
( to begin, to show, to be the first ),
καὶ πάντα τὸν ἄρχεσθαι δεόμενον ἐπὶ τὰς τοῦ ἄρχειν δυναμένου,
ADEIMANTOS: ( it was mostly safe to explore )
in my childhood neighborhood ( we-being alone )
( and following new sidewalks to the broken ones )
( we would walk along the older curving roads )
( discover paths through the adjacent woods )
( our summers growing thicker in the green )
( but ) soon enough theyll drop their fall colours
( and then well be crimson-burgundy again ) ( hotly! )
( as we wind our way along the creek ) ( we would
go wading in the silt ) ( and once, we measured
pollutants in the water for the science fair )
( discovering a biohazard ) ( won first place )
( another year we wrote computer code
to simulate three algorithmic modes
of evolution ) ( for that, the prize
was from the cia ) ( then failed
to rsvp for a tour of langley )
( we-being intelligence )
( woof! woof! )
SOKRATES: ( and )not( for )the ruler( o beginners-showing-first )
( of )the ones-being-ruled( all those coming after us )
to be bound-to and in need-of( the ones-coming-after )
( and )( to be )ruled( to begin, to show, to be the first ),
οὐ τὸν ἄρχοντα δεῖσθαι τῶν ἀρχομένων ἄρχεσθαι,
ADEIMANTOS: ( and if we dared to dream of )
the house we wanted to live in ( it would be safe
and quiet and calm and light ) ( with level floors )
( and high ceilings ) ( with room enough for thought )
( and an exceptionally cozy bed ) ( he
cant help himself ) ( he longs for fresh white linen )
( and enough blankets and pillows and throws )
( and baskets and drawers to fold and put things in )
( and hooks on certain walls for hanging clothes
or brooms or spoons or other kinds of tools )
( some other familiars artwork on the walls )
( and a woodstove for warm toes in the winter )
( despite the chill ) not even fully here yet
( assuming winter ) ( and slow-grown food
that tastes like loving care ) ( to keep us there ),
SOKRATES: if( there )would be any( furtherance,
advantage )help( o help )of him( or for him ),
( to-by-for )the( she- )truth( unconcealed ),
οὗ ἂν τῇ ἀληθείᾳ τι ὄφελος ᾖ.
ADEIMANTOS: ( but thats the house we wanted )
and the one next to it where no one does ( the chores )
( where no one wants to go up to the doors )
( but its ours too ) ( has been our house before )
( until Nobody does ) ( go up to the doors )
( and Nobody starts making us do chores )
( related to fake sailors ) ( and heres the truth )
( we cant predict what we will say or do )
( or what the response will be ) and the lake
will know ( this one is deadly dangerous )
( but look, Socrates, at what happened to you )
SOKRATES: but still, he wouldnt miss-the-mark
(and you wouldnt-wont miss),
(by likening-representing-comparing)
the now-ruling(rulers)(beginning-first)politicians
(political men),
to(for-by)the sailors(we)were just-now speaking(of),
ἀλλὰ τοὺς νῦν πολιτικοὺς ἄρχοντας ἀπεικάζων
οἷς ἄρτι ἐλέγομεν ναύταις
οὐχ ἁμαρτήσῃ,
ADEIMANTOS: ( we wanted never to go that way again )
( even if ) we would walk you along the route?
( where we would rather talk about the flowers )
( or the gang of wild turkeys crossing our path )
( or the barred owl calling from the trees )
( until ) we sink into my mattress ( and close my eyes )
( measuring my sighs by the cicadas )
( memories being our superpower )
( he out )
SOKRATES: and(indeed)the useless(unprofitable-
unserviceable ones)(so-spoken)by(from-under)these,
καὶ τοὺς ὑπὸ τούτων ἀχρήστους λεγομένους
ADEIMANTOS: ( so letswalk in ) to my old school ( at least,
one of them ) ( and there are many different schools )
( looking at random bulletins ) ( we calm my nerves )
( in a basement hallway ) ( until seminar gets out
and then the young come flooding in ) ( and then
somebody recognizes me ) ( its nighttime now )
( and cold ) ( and everyone is nicely dressed )
( or its the snowflakes on their eyelashes )
( and now we want a cigarette ) ( its toxic )
( cozy ) ( colonial brick-red ) ( and dangerous )
( but somehow we survived ) ( and yes, its true,
we didnt want to leave ) ( and yes, its true,
we needed to ) ( but later there will be a dance )
( it was indeed a party school ) ( o un-wasted
youth ) ( but there were many different schools )
( so that our pirate coat has many pockets
and bears the motif of democracy )
( ugly ) ( versatile ) ( pastiche ) and hope
its a portal ( indeed as Cheehaw Station
little man ),
SOKRATES: and( indeed )( ones being- )spoken( of
as )shop-talkers after heavenly-lofty( star-signs,
climate, weather-gossip )things
( to-for-by )( the )as-truly( unconcealedly )steersmen,
καὶ μετεωρολέσχας τοῖς ὡς ἀληθῶς κυβερνήταις.
HERA: who have( and hold the )broad sky( heavens ),
οἳ οὐρανὸν εὐρὺν ἔχουσι.
SAILORS: ( at the )most-straight( -upright-angles ),
ὀρθότατα,
SOKRATES: ( he would )
show every corner with a story attached
( to his capacity )
you know where we want to be
( as things come up ) ( naturally ),
SAILORS: (he)was saying,
ἔφη.
SOKRATES: ( you would have ) sweet-bitter ( memories )
and we would write our own ( shared )
( braided ) good ( memories around them ),
HERA: now(you), consider(ponder-bethink-purpose-plan-
contrive-observe-beware)(you were considering),
lest(to-for-by)you, we(would)back-again(hereafter)craft
(devise-contrive-wile-counsel-plan)(we would)(we will)
(squeeze-out the juice)(curdle the milk)(you,
squeezed and curdled)some-
thing evil(ugly-bad),
φράζεο νῦν μή τοί τι κακὸν μητίσομ᾽ ὀπίσσω.
ADEIMANTOS: ( and his are the voices questioning him )
( he doesnt ask to be or not to be ) comfy ( he he ),
( he asks ) ( what is this-he? ) ( who does his best for you )
( in whom you trust ) ( that we might get it right )
on the faded streets ( about specific names,
and dates, and details ) ( or we might get it wrong )
( but we will write things other men dont like )
( we write whom they would make impossible ),
SOKRATES: and therefore from these and( indeed )in these,
( its )not easy( for )the best pursuit to( have a )good
( well-seeming )reputation,
by( from-under )those pursuing( its dyad )opposites;
ἔκ τε τοίνυν τούτων καὶ ἐν τούτοις
οὐ ῥᾴδιον εὐδοκιμεῖν τὸ βέλτιστον ἐπιτήδευμα
ὑπὸ τῶν τἀναντία ἐπιτηδευόντων:
ADEIMANTOS: ( but there isnt much worth rescuing )
of this dying ( profession ), ( the gag that stole
the logos-word by which we do ) ( she says
they treat her like their garbage can ) ( until
he takes her back for you ) ( slowly at first )
( until he cleans her up, empties her out )
( and keeps her warm until shes young and blew
and beautiful again ) cuddly ( enacting she )
( who holds our end ) ( or what, Sokrates? ),
SOKRATES: but by( far )many( the )greatest
and( indeed )most-forceful( violent-strong )slander
( false-accusation-charges )come-to-be
( against )philosophy( wisdom-love ),
(489δ) πολὺ δὲ μεγίστη καὶ ἰσχυροτάτη διαβολὴ
γίγνεται φιλοσοφίᾳ
ADEIMANTOS: ( in the ashes of that ) darling town,
SOKRATES: through those claiming to pursue such things —
διὰ τοὺς τὰ τοιαῦτα φάσκοντας ἐπιτηδεύειν
ADEIMANTOS: as statecraft.
( but what they do, o Sokrates
he beauty-calls ) as endless war.
//
from hymn to Apollo
Republic VI
the Delphiad, book III
(NAUSIKAA and HOMER on the beach, at sunrise.)
NAUSIKAA: you call me cute in a way we cannot fight,
HOMER: had not Achilles himself risen-up(indeed)and said
the(muthos)story-word;
καί νύ κε δὴ προτέρω ἔτ᾽ ἔρις γένετ᾽ ἀμφοτέροισιν,
εἰ μὴ Ἀχιλλεὺς αὐτὸς ἀνίστατο καὶ φάτο μῦθον:
N: so we call surrender;
(Rise, Achilles.)
ACHILLES: now no longer exchange-in-turn, (you-two)
(them-two), o Ajax and o Idomeneos, mean(cowardly)
(cruel)(shameful)(abusive)(harmful)word-
song(evil)uglies,
(neither)when(following the dyad-word-
song), nor has it(been)seemly,
μηκέτι νῦν χαλεποῖσιν ἀμείβεσθον ἐπέεσσιν
Αἶαν Ἰδομενεῦ τε κακοῖς,
ἐπεὶ οὐδὲ ἔοικε.
N: ever;
ACHILLES: but(indeed)by the other(they-dyad,
you-dyad)would be resentful(angry-wroth),
at whoever would do this kind of thing.
καὶ δ᾽ ἄλλῳ νεμεσᾶτον ὅτις τοιαῦτά γε ῥέζοι.
N: surrounded by cool August breeze,
he still knows anger;
ACHILLES: but still, you(all)seated in the agon(contest-
gathering-struggle-battle), look upon the horses;
ἀλλ᾽ ὑμεῖς ἐν ἀγῶνι καθήμενοι εἰσοράασθε
ἵππους:
N: safe in a warm nest of pillows and sheets,
we look upon the horses;
ACHILLES: but they(by whom)quickly(perhaps)themselves hurrying
(hastening, eagerly-with-speed, blowing-blustering, propelling,
assailing-attacking)around victory, hither(thither)will(go)come;
οἳ δὲ τάχ᾽ αὐτοὶ ἐπειγόμενοι περὶ νίκης
ἐνθάδ᾽ ἐλεύσονται:
N: we wait;
(enter, Autos.)
ACHILLES: but then you will recognize each
of the Argives horses, by whom(they are)second
and by whom(being)presently-in-front.
τότε δὲ γνώσεσθε ἕκαστος
ἵππους Ἀργείων, οἳ δεύτεροι οἵ τε πάροιθεν.
N: our eyes are yours.
AUTOS: but you stood on the(forgotten-hidden-spoils-plundering-
pirates)Lelantine plain; it(this-she)didnt(o satiety, o loathing,
o weariness)delight(delight, you)(in)your thumos(hrrr),
to(make)build a temple-dwelling and sacred-wooded(with tree-
like markings)groves.
στῆς δ᾽ ἐπὶ Ληλάντῳ πεδίῳ: τό τοι οὐχ ἅδε θυμῷ
τεύξασθαι νηόν τε καὶ ἄλσεα δενδρήεντα.
H: as he said; but Tudeides(pursuing)went(and came)very(pit-
under-handed-dyad)close-by(seeking-chasing-pressing-
driving-urging-prosecuting)and drawing-near;
ὣς φάτο, Τυδεΐδης δὲ μάλα σχεδὸν ἦλθε διώκων,
N: he lives far from where prosecutors are,
A: but thence(whence)striding across the Euripos, o Apollo throws-
from-afar, you stepped up to the sacred mountains,
greenish-yellow(bilious-looking)(fresh-blooming);
ἔνθεν δ᾽ Εὔριπον διαβάς, ἑκατηβόλ᾽ Ἄπολλον,
βῆς ἄν᾽ ὄρος ζάθεον, χλωρόν:
N: and prefers flowers;
H: but by whip-scourge-lash he was always driving(drive,
you)arm-strokes-through from the shoulder;
μάστι δ᾽ αἰὲν ἔλαυνε κατωμαδόν:
N: our lord has shoulders, we dont whip;
A: but swiftly(perhaps, you)came from him(self)
to(she)Mukalessos(mooing-bellowing-nose-turning-mousy)
and(indeed)going(coming)to(he)Teumessos(happening-accomplishing-
vessel of a canny-fortune-device-workshop)(which cares)with-
grass-fit-to-make-a-bed.
τάχα δ᾽ ἷξες ἀπ᾽ αὐτοῦ
ἐς Μυκαλησσὸν ἰὼν καὶ Τευμησσὸν λεχεποίην.
N: swiftly by chariot, come for a ride,
H: but(the dyad)horses(o horses)by him(by him)
were lifting-lofty(raising-up)swiftly(quickly-nimbly)
passing-through(accomplishing)
(their)course.
οἳ δέ οἱ ἵπποι
ὑψόσ᾽ ἀειρέσθην ῥίμφα πρήσσοντε κέλευθον.
N: the loftier-the-lift, the less we try;
A: but you were arriving in the seat of Thebes(treasure-chest-store-
house-container, put-in-place to step-n-go)having-swooped-
down(covered and clothed)by hule(forest-wood-
land, firewood-fuel, brushwood-twigs,
stuff-material-matter, sediment-
mud, ooze, phlegm-
catarrh);
Θήβης δ᾽ εἰσαφίκανες ἕδος καταειμένον ὕλῃ:
N: digging in the earth of our own heart;
H: but the plume of dust was always hurling(throwing,
flying, striking)the charioteer,
αἰεὶ δ᾽ ἡνίοχον κονίης ῥαθάμιγγες ἔβαλλον,
N: so we cant always see just where we are;
A: for not yet(was)anyone(of)mortal-man dwelling in sacred Thebes,
nor then-and-there, yet-then-at-least, were there(k)not-twisting-paths,
nor drive-command-paths, throughout(the)grain-
bearing plain(of)Thebes,
οὐ γάρ πώ τις ἔναιε βροτῶν ἱερῇ ἐνὶ Θήβῃ,
οὐδ᾽ ἄρα πω τότε γ᾽ ἦσαν ἀταρπιτοὶ οὐδὲ κέλευθοι
Θήβης ἂμ πεδίον πυρηφόρον,
N: so we relied on our horses;
they too enjoy grain.
H: but the chariot having-been(dyad)covered(closely-surrounded,
shielded)by gold and tin, by swift-footed horses was
(as we were approaching)running-close-after;
N: we had to trust we would be safe;
ἅρματα δὲ χρυσῷ πεπυκασμένα κασσιτέρῳ τε
ἵπποις ὠκυπόδεσσιν ἐπέτρεχον:
A: but still, the hule(forest-woodland-cut-wood-
down-firewood-fuel-brushwood-twigs-
stuff-matter–material-sediment-
mud-slime-phlegm-catarrh)
was having(and)held —
aouuuuuuuu!
ἀλλ᾽ ἔχεν ὕλη.
N: we were the howling;
H: nor were many tracks coming-through-after from the iron-rim
around the wheel, in the fine(thin-delicate-subtle-small-
impotent-slight-slender)cloud of dust
(he would cover)(youre covered
with clouds of dust);
οὐδέ τι πολλὴ
γίγνετ᾽ ἐπισσώτρων ἁρματροχιὴ κατόπισθεν
ἐν λεπτῇ κονίῃ:
N: were twinkling(flickering);
A: but(o earlier-dyad)whence(thence)(it came)
(it went)dyad-earlier-was going,
o Apollo throws-from-afar,
ἔνθεν δὲ προτέρω ἔκιες, ἑκατηβόλ᾽ Ἄπολλον,
N: there was a beacon,
guiding us through the night;
H: but(both)seeking-eagerly(urging-pressing-on, hastening,
exerting, anxious, harassed)they were flying.
τὼ δὲ σπεύδοντε πετέσθην.
N: they were just being girls;
A: but to Onchestos(swollen-pompous-bellowing-pear-
tree-place, projecting-hook-pour, set-standing-
straight)you went, to Poseidons sacred grove;
N: we have some warm memories;
A: where(a)newly-tamed(filly)foal recovers(draws breath)
(you-drawing-breath)being-roundly-over-loaded
(vexed-grieved-annoyed)dragging
(the)beautiful chariot;
Ὀγχηστὸν δ᾽ ἷξες, Ποσιδήιον ἀγλαὸν ἄλσος:
ἔνθα νεοδμὴς πῶλος ἀναπνέει ἀχθόμενός περ
( ἕλκων ἅρματα καλά ):
N: we have some hard ones too;
H: but(he)made a stand(set-placed)(stayed-checked)(established-
instituted-fixed)(weighed-)into the mid(dle-intermediate, imp-
partial, middling, moderate, mediocre, mean)into the agon
(gathering-assembly-contest-struggle-place),
στῆ δὲ μέσῳ ἐν ἀγῶνι,
πολὺς δ᾽ ἀνεκήκιεν ἱδρὼς
ἵππων ἔκ τε λόφων καὶ ἀπὸ στέρνοιο χαμᾶζε.
N: o(he)repudiates established-institution;
A: but onto the ground(the)roundly-good driver
from(the)seat-board(o springing)leaps —
goes(comes-to)(the)road;
χαμαὶ δ᾽ ἐλατὴρ ἀγαθός περ
( ἐκ δίφροιο θορὼν ) ὁδὸν ἔρχεται:
N: hes made of earth but swift of feet;
H: but much sweat was spouting(and gushing forth)
out of(the)horses necks and(indeed)
from(his)chest onto the ground.
N: our names are rivers;
A: but it(by this)meanwhile indeed
empty(-handed-fruitless-void-)carriage(shelter)rattles
(knocking-strikes-claps)(by rattling-applause)along
(is)letting-go(leaving-neglecting)(what-belongs-
to)a lord.
οἳ δὲ τέως μὲν
κείν᾽ ὄχεα κροτέουσι ἀνακτορίην ἀφιέντες.
N: we dance(an)empty-handed-fruitless-void,
H: but seeing(him), swift(to ward-off, defend, assist, avail, hold-
out)footed-god-like Achilles was feeling pity(for him),
τὸν δὲ ἰδὼν ᾤκτειρε ποδάρκης δῖος Ἀχιλλεύς,
N: but we bring and carry some-great-soul;
A: but if the dyad-chariot break(shiver)s in the sacred-wooded(with
tree-like markings)gro(o)ve, (they)attend(caring for)(letting their hair
grow long)to the horses,
εἰ δέ κεν ἅρματ᾽ ἀγῇσιν ἐν ἄλσεϊ δενδρήεντι,
ἵππους μὲν κομέουσι,
N: and we drag-along a pretty-great-friend;
H: but making a stand, then and there, into the Argives, winged-
word-songs(he)was speaking(speak, you)-agora-(into
the assembly, the marketplace);
στὰς δ᾽ ἄρ᾽ ἐν Ἀργείοις ἔπεα πτερόεντ᾽ ἀγόρευε:
N: there is a voice, it tells me no,
guiding me through the night;
A: but leaning(sloping-lying-down)(on something)
(they)allow(by letting-go)the(chariot);
τὰ δὲ κλίναντες ἐῶσιν:
N: there are dreams,
there are pillars,
there is a beacon;
ACHILLES: the last(left-behind)man(and)the best(bravest,
most excellent, finest)drives(youre driven)(set in motion)
(struck)(beat-out)(forged)with one
(un-cloven)hoof;
‘λοῖσθος ἀνὴρ ὤριστος ἐλαύνει μώνυχας ἵππους:
N: may your words remain a constant echo
A: for so(the)earliest(hallowed-pious-pure-divine-natural)law
(begetter-ancestor-author-)(himself)became;
ὣς γὰρ τὰ πρώτισθ᾽ ὁσίη γένεθ᾽:
N: get a good nights rest,
in my mind even half asleep;
H: but(him)self(autos)from the all-shining seat-board
leapt(leap, you)onto the ground
(all-shining),
αὐτὸς δ᾽ ἐκ δίφροιο χαμαὶ θόρε παμφανόωντος,
N: we are made of earth, swift-footed;
A: but(to)(for)by the lord
(they)(boast-exult-
triumphant)pray,
οἳ δὲ ἄνακτι
εὔχονται,
N: o we ever arent him;
H: but(he)leaned there-and-then the whip-scourge-lash
against the yoke; nor did(he)idly(waste time doing it),
sturdy(strong)Sthenelos(strength-might-force-vigor);
κλῖνε δ᾽ ἄρα μάστιγα ποτὶ ζυγόν: οὐδὲ μάτησεν
ἴφθιμος Σθένελος,
N: neither does he whip, nor does he run your race;
A: but then destiny(fate)guards(you-on-your-
own-guard)the seat-board of the god.
δίφρον δὲ θεοῦ τότε μοῖρα φυλάσσει.
N: all(being)guarded(we)by(the)guardian(of)guardians(being)all;
H: but still-self-speedily(he)took hold of(grasped-
seized)the(contest)prize;
ἀλλ᾽ ἐσσυμένως λάβ᾽ ἄεθλον,
N: well he had come in first place;
A: but whence(thence)dyad-previously(you)were going,
o Apollo throws-from-afar;
ἔνθεν δὲ προτέρω ἔκιες, ἑκατηβόλ᾽ Ἄπολλον:
N: previously burning in Achilles funeral pyre;
H: but(he)gave for(his)high-spirited(thumos)companions
the woman to lead,
N: our name is Nausikaa; we are the first
to whom he(stranger)owes his life.
H: and(indeed)to carry(the dyad-)tripod
with(o ears!)(oars?)handles;
δῶκε δ᾽ ἄγειν ἑτάροισιν ὑπερθύμοισι γυναῖκα
καὶ τρίποδ᾽ ὠτώεντα φέρειν:
N: a giants never been in safer hands;
A: but then and thereupon, you reach the beautifully(flow!)ing
Kephissos(dull-sluggish-torpid-droning-buzzing-garden-
guardian-growing-natural-rest),
Κηφισσὸν δ᾽ ἄρ᾽ ἔπειτα κιχήσαο καλλιρέεθρον,
N: where we step with bare feet,
when were not taking a seaside nap;
H: but he was(unbinding, unfastening, letting-loose
and releasing)(the dyad-spider-webs)
(and)setting free the horses;
ὃ δ᾽ ἔλυεν ὑφ᾽ ἵππους.
N: which is how they learned to fly;
A: and who-he(would pour)pours from(gracious-desiring-
clarity, musical-guardian-yearning, libations-of-oblivion)
Lilaietha, of the beautifully-flowing water;
ὅς τε Λιλαίηθεν προχέει καλλίρροον ὕδωρ:
N: nobody(he)at all.
(All set.)
from hymn to Apollo
Il.23.488-508, 532-538
cf Od. 8.462
the Delphiad, book II
(KOURAI and HOMER on the beach at sunrise, slack-tide.)
KOURAI: push pause
HOMER: (loosed)
λῦτο
K: and let the world rest
H: but the contest(assembly - games - arena - struggle)disper s e d
(unyoked - undid - unfastened - unbound - dissolved - set f r e e
released - came undone - relaxed - unfol d e d )
(λῦτο)δ᾽ ἀγών,
K: while we arrange our thoughts
H: but each people scattered to go
(and come)upon the swift ships.
λαοὶ δὲ θοὰς ἐπὶ νῆας ἕκαστοι
ἐσκίδναντ᾽ ἰέναι.
K: into neat piles
H: those(by you)(indeed)were thinking of dinner;
τοὶ μὲν δόρποιο μέδοντο
K: each carefully labeled
H: and of sweet sleep(of lichen)(he was putting
to sleep)(sleep, you)
to be satisfied;
ὕπνου τε γλυκεροῦ ταρπήμεναι:
K: lock ugly ones in a box
H: nevertheless, Achilles(remembering)
was weeping(weep, you)(remembering his)beloved companion, re-
membering, and not even sleep, all-tamer, was taking hold,
αὐτὰρ Ἀχιλλεὺς
κλαῖε φίλου ἑτάρου μεμνημένος, οὐδέ μιν ὕπνος
ᾕρει πανδαμάτωρ,
K: give the key to you
H: but he was turning(youre turning)here and there, yearning
(missing)(regretting)(longing)for Patroklos, his manhood
and his goodly menos(courage-passion-spirit-fury-strength) —
ἀλλ᾽ ἐστρέφετ᾽ ἔνθα καὶ ἔνθα
Πατρόκλου ποθέων ἀνδροτῆτά τε καὶ μένος ἠΰ,
and however many(he had)wound-off(achieved)together-with-him
and(the pains)suffered(endured), the pains(piercing-
through)of men(growing into manhood)the grievous wars
and(piercing-through)the(pregnant)waves(floods)(swellings)piercing-
through —
ἠδ᾽ ὁπόσα τολύπευσε σὺν αὐτῷ καὶ πάθεν ἄλγεα
ἀνδρῶν τε πτολέμους ἀλεγεινά τε κύματα πείρων:
remembering those, he(weeping)let fall the blooming(flowing-
full-fresh, stout-thick-lusty)(we-weeping)tear,
at one time, on(his)(ribs)side lying down, at another again
lying(backwards)(supine)on his back, at another,
lying(prone)on his front;
τῶν μιμνησκόμενος θαλερὸν κατὰ δάκρυον εἶβεν,
(10) ἄλλοτ᾽ ἐπὶ πλευρὰς κατακείμενος, ἄλλοτε δ᾽ αὖτε
ὕπτιος, ἄλλοτε δὲ πρηνής:
K: knowing
H: but at times standing straight
he was turning(whirling)restless(distraught)(at a loss)(wandering
along)the beach, beside the salty sea; nor did dawn
appearing escape his awareness,
τοτὲ δ᾽ ὀρθὸς ἀναστὰς
δινεύεσκ᾽ ἀλύων παρὰ θῖν᾽ ἁλός: οὐδέ μιν ἠὼς
φαινομένη λήθεσκεν
K: you won’t give it back
H: from beyond the salt-
sea and this beach.
ὑπεὶρ ἅλα τ᾽ ἠϊόνας τε.
(enter AUTOS)
AUTOS: but in again(bow wow)to this, Ares and well-
sighted Argeiphontes(giant-slayer-Hermes)(they)play
(she-playing by he- or they-playing);
ἐν δ᾽ αὖ τῇσιν Ἄρης καὶ ἐύσκοπος Ἀργειφόντης
παίζουσ᾽:
H: but(he)at least then(youre following the dyad-word-song)
(he)would yoke the swift horses under(dyad-spider-
webs)the chariot;
ἀλλ᾽ ὅ γ᾽ ἐπεὶ ζεύξειεν ὑφ᾽ ἅρμασιν ὠκέας ἵππους,
A: nevertheless(he)Phoibos(pure, bright, radiant)Apollo
plays the kithara,
αὐτὰρ ὁ Φοῖβος Α᾽πόλλων ἐγκιθαρίζει
H: but to drag(him)he would tie(bind)Hektor behind the seat,
Ἕκτορα δ᾽ ἕλκεσθαι δησάσκετο δίφρου ὄπισθεν,
A: (as you are played)dyad-beautiful and(indeed)striding-high;
(ἐγκιθαρίζει) καλὰ καὶ ὕψι βιβάς:
H. but three-times dragging(you)around the sign(the burial-
mound)of the dead son of Menoitios(Patroklos),
and again(on the fourth)pausing to lie down,
τρὶς δ᾽ ἐρύσας περὶ σῆμα Μενοιτιάδαο θανόντος
αὖτις ἐνὶ κλισίῃ παυέσκετο,
A: but radiance shines(you are shone)around him,
αἴγλη δέ μιν ἀμφιφαείνει
H. but leaving him in ashes(and then)lying stretched-out
(prone)on his face;
τὸν δέ τ᾽ ἔασκεν
ἐν κόνι ἐκτανύσας προπρηνέα:
A: and the twinkling(and flickering)of(his)feet;
μαρμαρυγαί τε ποδῶν
H: but of him, Apollo was holding-off(hold-off, you)the whole
outrage to the flesh(body)(skin), feeling
pity for the person,
(indeed)though(he)had died;
τοῖο δ᾽ Ἀπόλλων
πᾶσαν ἀεικείην ἄπεχε χροῒ φῶτ᾽ ἐλεαίρων
(20) καὶ τεθνηότα περ:
A: (indeed)of(his)well-spun tunic;
καὶ ἐυκλώστοιο χιτῶνος.
H: but all-around by-aegis(he)covered(cover, you)by(-all-)gold,
so that(the)dragging-about wouldnt tear-off(the)skin.
περὶ δ᾽ αἰγίδι πάντα κάλυπτε
χρυσείῃ, ἵνα μή μιν ἀποδρύφοι ἑλκυστάζων.
K: (o radiant lord — )my body is refusing
to(cross-eyes)cooperate
(powers-out)again
it(you)(you)must know
(dark moon)of the storm in my heart.
H: nevertheless Odysseus
was observing the twinkling(flickering)of feet,
αὐτὰρ Ὀδυσσεὺς
μαρμαρυγὰς θηεῖτο ποδῶν,
A: but they rejoice-at(great thumos)looking-into(the)great thumos;
οἳ δ᾽ ἐπιτέρπονται θυμὸν μέγαν εἰσορόωντες
H: but(he)wondered(wonder, you)(at it)
in his thumos(flickering-
twinkling-heart).
θαύμαζε δὲ θυμῷ.
A: and Leto(seize-behold)of goldy-locks and(indeed)deliberate Zeus
(wondered at their)beloved child, playing amongst the immortal
gods(they shine - by shining)(they run - by runing)
(by gazing)and goddesses.
Λητώ τε χρυσοπλόκαμος καὶ μητίετα Ζεὺς
υἷα φίλον παίζοντα μετ᾽ ἀθανάτοισι θεοῖσι.
H: nevertheless he, playing the lyre, was throwing-and-striking-up
beautifully, to sing!
αὐτὰρ ὁ φορμίζων ἀνεβάλλετο καλὸν ἀείδειν
A: and how, then-and-there, would(will)we sing(of)you(re being
sung), being(s)wholly well(and-many-well)sung?
πῶς τ᾽ ἄρ σ᾽ ὑμνήσω πάντως εὔυμνον ἐόντα;
H: about(around)Ares lovemaking and fragrant-crowned Aphrodite,
as they(dyad)first mingled, in(the)house(of)Hephaistos,
secretly,
ἀμφ᾽ Ἄρεος φιλότητος εὐστεφάνου τ᾽ Ἀφροδίτης,
ὡς τὰ πρῶτα μίγησαν ἐν Ἡφαίστοιο δόμοισι
λάθρῃ,
A: or(ah!)in going-courting we(would)sing of you,
and(indeed)in-lovemaking,
ἠέ σ᾽ ἐνὶ μνηστῆρσιν ἀείδω καὶ φιλότητι,
H: but(it)gave many(dyads),
πολλὰ δ᾽ ἔδωκε,
A: so that(mindful-of was)wooing Azantida(parched-sacred, dread-
girdled, anti-blossom)girl-daughter,
ὅππως μνωόμενος ἔκιες Ἀζαντίδα κούρην
H: but(the marriage)bed shamed, indeed(the grave)bedding
of lord Hephaistos.
λέχος δ᾽ ᾔσχυνε καὶ εὐνὴν
Ἡφαίστοιο ἄνακτος.
A: were(you)going with god-like Ischos(hip-loin-leash-strength)
at-once with well-horsed Elationides(fir-pine-tree-wood-driver-
charioteer-beating-forcing-outward-
smaller-deer)?
Ἴσχυ᾽ ἅμ᾽ ἀντιθέῳ Ἐλατιονίδη εὐίππῳ;
H: but at-once to-him(a)messenger came(and went), Helios(its-just-
the-sun), who perceived them mingling-in-lovemaking.
ἄφαρ δέ οἱ ἄγγελος ἦλθεν
Ἥλιος, ὅ σφ᾽ ἐνόησε μιγαζομένους φιλότητι.
A: or at-once(with)Thorbas(tumultuous-t-rex-against)the off-
spring by Triops(triad-eye-giant)?
ἢ ἅμα Θόρβαντι Τριοπέῳ γένος,
H: but Hephaistos, soon-as(he)heard(the)thumos-grieving(muthos)story,
there and then he stepped to go(come)to(his)forge(dyad-ugly),
(and)by the phrenes(heart-mind-built-deep)(he was)building-in-
the-deep(brooding)(pondering-secretly)dyad-uglies,
Ἥφαιστος δ᾽ ὡς οὖν θυμαλγέα μῦθον ἄκουσε,
βῆ ῥ᾽ ἴμεν ἐς χαλκεῶνα κακὰ φρεσὶ βυσσοδομεύων,
A: or at-once(with)Ereutheos(vomit-staining-fire-rageous-red)?
ἢ ἅμ᾽ Ἐρευθεῖ;
H: but(he)put the great anvil on the anvil-block, (o yes)
ἐν δ᾽ ἔθετ᾽ ἀκμοθέτῳ μέγαν ἄκμονα,
A: or at-once(with)Leukippos(white-bright-horse)and
(indeed)the wife(dame-tamer)of Leukippos(white-brightening-horse) . . .
ἢ ἅμα Λευκίππῳ καὶ Λευκίπποιο δάμαρτι
H: but he was hammering-out fastenings(fetterings-bonds-
halters(ships-mooring-cable)(knots)spells-latches-charms
(desmos)not-to-be-broken(not-to-be-loosed),
so that in-the-ground(steadfast)(safe)(un-decaying)(vigor-retaining)(never-
failing)on-the-spot they would stay(stand fast, stay at home, stay
where one is)(remain as one)(abide).
κόπτε δὲ δεσμοὺς
ἀρρήκτους ἀλύτους, ὄφρ᾽ ἔμπεδον αὖθι μένοιεν.
A: . . . on foot, but he by horses;
… πεζός, ὃ δ᾽ ἵπποισιν:
(universal-laughter)
H: nevertheless since(following the dyad-word-song)he made(built-
worked)the bait(trick-stratagem-of guile-craft-cunning-
treachery)provoked-to-anger by Ares,
αὐτὰρ ἐπεὶ δὴ τεῦξε δόλον κεχολωμένος Ἄρει,
A: and not(one month)even
was Triops(triad-
eye)left behind;
οὐ μὴν Τρίοπός γ᾽ ἐνέλειπεν.
H: then and there(he)stepped, to go(or come)(we come)(and go)to
(his)bedchamber, where lay(his)beloved(made-by-)himself bed;
βῆ ῥ᾽ ἴμεν ἐς θάλαμον, ὅθι οἱ φίλα δέμνι᾽ ἔκειτο,
A: or as the first oracle(o oracle!)by human beings, seeking-
through the land(you)stepped, o throws-from-afar Apollo?
ἢ ὡς τὸ πρῶτον χρηστήριον ἀνθρώποισι
ζητεύων κατὰ γαῖαν ἔβης, ἑκατηβόλ᾽ Ἄπολλον;
H: but then, around(the)bedposts(he)was pouring(pour, you)the bonds
(fetters-head-bands)by an all-encompassing circle;
ἀμφὶ δ᾽ ἄρ᾽ ἑρμῖσιν χέε δέσματα κύκλῳ ἁπάντῃ:
A: to Pieria(oopsy, her Piraeus)(fertile-muses-trial)indeed the first
from Olympos(on whom)you went-down;
Πιερίην μὲν πρῶτον ἀπ᾽ Οὐλύμποιο κατῆλθες:
H: but many(of them)and(indeed)down from roof-beams(houses)(lairs)
(cages)they were poured out, like(fine-thin-delicate-subtle)spider-
webs(small intestines, a very small coin, a jar, minutes-
seconds, moonlit-outages),
πολλὰ δὲ καὶ καθύπερθε μελαθρόφιν ἐξεκέχυντο,
ἠύτ᾽ ἀράχνια λεπτά,
A: and sandy Lektos(bed-ology)you passed by
and the(being-thrown-innies)Enienes
and(indeed)through the(sprinkling-crooked-
around-the-edges)Perraibos;
Λέκτον τ᾽ ἠμαθοέντα παρέστιχες ἠδ᾽ Ἐνιῆνας
καὶ διὰ Περραιβούς:
H: and none would ever see them, not even one of the blessed gods,
for(he)had built(it)around(wily - crafty - artful)subtleties(doloeis).
τά γ᾽ οὔ κέ τις οὐδὲ ἴδοιτο,
οὐδὲ θεῶν μακάρων: πέρι γὰρ δολόεντα τέτυκτο.
A: but swiftly(perhaps)into Iaolkos(o purple-poison-arrow-dragging-battle-
cry-cure)you were arriving, and you went upon Kenaios(that-there-
here-this-that-would-empty-center)of Euboia(lovely-
cows-eyes-say-moo), ship-famous —
O Nausikleia!
τάχα δ᾽ εἰς Ἰαωλκὸν ἵκανες,
Κηναίου τ᾽ ἐπέβης ναυσικλειτῆς Εὐβοίης.
from hymn to Apollo 200-219
Il. 24.1-24
Od. 8.264-281
ritual persuasion
and he says,
then i shall write it down,
beside you,
the song.
but whether
(all of this is)
we being irreducible . . .
if you persuade me,
or even if not?
maybe (all of this is) really
just we being incorrigible?
(me and you, we-women laugh, and hes laughing too)
(i remember when you tasked me a simian-similar-ask)
(oh, its very important to him-and-us that this all be light-
hearted-funny. her laughter is the sound of the ego, dead
and dying many times over)(inside comedy inside tragedy
inside comedy until he is goodly dead)(tears our witness
as the armor of its insanity protects the truth)(humor is
the most difficult to carry. the loss of the comedy portion
of Aristotles poetics kills us here, but one thing i remember
he says — i dont have time to find the exact line, but did
you know, that poor Aristotles books werent written by him,
but reconstructed from lecture notes? well, one of the most
funny-being things was animals acting like humans, i ass-
umed also humans acting like animals. but i remember us
laughing at how un-funny that was.)(i said to the mask-
maker, isnt every mask a monkey mask?)(love, i demand
he agree)
if i-we persuade you-we,
he says,
O Socrates.
okay, okay. we
let we-being irreducible.
and the name of me,
which i-we will call,
would you-we perfect it?
if not, injustice
is we-without-you,
he says.
for yours is not some oligos logos
amongst we of the leaf.
but i
as being a child (make-music perfect tension relief)
by the names (which have been diverse and wild)
by the dresses (often inappropriately we-coded)
by the beach (and her sunrise you already kissed)
by the valley (and her cooling rivers i already miss)
by all of this here (& the seventh letter in my first)
always-already-remember-together-being-you
καὶ ὅς
Ἀπογράψομαι τοίνυν
ἔφη
παρὰ σοῦ τὴν ἐπῳδήν
πότερον
ἦν δ᾽ ἐγώ
ἐάν με πείθῃς
ἢ κἂν μή
γελάσας οὖν
ἐάν σε πείθω
ἔφη
ὦ Σώκρατες
εἶεν
ἦν δ᾽ ἐγώ
καὶ τοὔνομά μου
σὺ ἀκριβοῖς
εἰ μὴ ἀδικῶ γε
ἔφη
οὐ γάρ τι σοῦ ὀλίγος λόγος ἐστὶν
ἐν τοῖς ἡμετέροις ἡλικιώταις
μέμνημαι δὲ ἔγωγε
καὶ παῖς ὢν
Κριτίᾳ τῷδε
συνόντα σε
156α
//
mogis pos
🌑
when god comes through (the family)
whats aorist is prologue proves
whats epilogue too poor
my past-progressive cousin turns
world future-perfect war
my uncle means the tyranny
what notes a slippery noose
what wills the wise unwilling wipes
my riverrunny nose a name of Zeus
//
Charmides
the son
of Glaucon
our uncle(godproblem)
and my cousin
Χαρμίδην
τὸν τοῦ Γλαύκωνος
τοῦ ἡμετέρου θείου ὑόν
ἐμὸν δὲ ἀνεψιόν
(i)(have seen and) know (him) of course
(flow)by Zeus
(i am)(they are) i say
οἶδα μέντοι
νὴ Δία
ἦν δ᾽ ἐγώ
//
family tree
one
the wise only
(to be) called un-wills
and wills Zeus
name
🌘
agon onomatos
outside of the boxing ring
the whos and whats
become a blur.
outside of our bedroom,
outside of our bed,
the same.
there is the one who put me here,
there is the one i face.
there is the rain.
all tongue,
all friction,
ugly against beautiful.
//
and at the same exact time
he sits me down
(and you sit down)
leading me
beside Critias
of Callaischros
// 153ξ
news of orchids
Phaedrus:
isn’t it overgrowingly (huper-phuos)
(in) other things
and also by the names (honomasin)
joined (together) (eresthai)
οὐχ ὑπερφυῶς
τά τε ἄλλα
καὶ τοῖς ὀνόμασιν εἰρῆσθαι
//
yesterday, in the kitchen, our friend whos out
from prison, was sharing gossip about a junior
being caught and being sent to aranjep
over kampung coffee and orchid media.
and no, they never tell me how it works.
the violet news arrives always from inside
the shackled parallel, the humbled inflorescence.
recirculating sources its own mystery.
war-salvaged rumors from the streets are white
like mouses ears that dream into my peers.
we build them nests from all our mixed-up hair.
the silver blacks the blonde. the ashen thatch.
the trees trail overgrowingly through tails
and tubers until, tangled up, the bearded roots.
to found us here. among inmates and outlaws
and songs, as clove tobacco blanketed our evening.
did you know, they blow the breath of dust
until a fungus makes the faerie home?
a thinking blink is how they move from there
to here, a mayfly mask, the wake to name a wink.
the jungle knows no law, leastly, my wooden sanity.
and when reports an owling bloom, my nervous cell —
i dont believe in walls, i saw you on the battlefield, and
i dont believe youre dead, how could you trust me.
so we have come to be present, by the previous
of evening, out of Potidaea, from the army.
and as having arrived, through time, gladly
i go. and two-thirds of the words are backwards slang.
//
Socrates:
we have come to be present (hekomen)
by the previous of evening
out of Potidaea from the army-ground (stratopedon)
and as having arrived through time
gladly
i go
upon the together-dwelling (sunethes)
rubbed-throughs (diatribas)
ἥκομεν τῇ προτεραίᾳ ἑσπέρας ἐκ Ποτειδαίας ἀπὸ τοῦ στρατοπέδου
οἷον δὲ διὰ χρόνου ἀφιγμένος
ἁσμένως
ᾖα
ἐπὶ τὰς συνήθεις διατριβάς
//
🌒
Pharmakeia’s triptych
trippy destiny
true story: in her salad bruising days
her myspace name was like a prayer, Pharmakeia
the profiled face was drawing of a death
cap mushroom; well, consistency
and every day a salad day
and every day un po’ di morte
today, when sniper scopes an urban label
the same shaded and subtle botanical
renderings pop up from top of neon heap
left truffles for her canny little pig
for snorts and tickles, yet
a fact; and do you trust it
//
what marriage
the maskmaker who daily carries her
drew sigil gold and black on brown bag paper
Al-Lateef—his soft likeness sleeping by her pillow
beloved names for her beloved way
what reck does come to find
what wreck that came to ground
as travelers witness landslides and inundations
upheavals that by eagle’s eye the aftermath
counts losses, failure, countlessness; what hand
to brush a tawny cow, her long-lashed eyes
what blinded word to see
what marriage of then and now
//
big girl
she sees, by name, the blue of heaven’s white
behind how obvious a giantess
the light, the light, it hurts to look at it
so brightly shines a lofty signature
built body born from Isis warm
and catching form her dulcet veil
some Aphrodites are, it’s said, too tall
to be from brick wall read, too high to see
by tools of masonry; how broad her arms
great fools embracing sky of marbled earth
her reckoning like reckless love
big girl logician
//
🍄
the horse’s mouth
teloscopically, my dear, are we botany
born reading leaves, the pricking fear of bees
are talking, my lisp, or rearing wobbly nature
what place, organs and bodies, this disease
the shying seasons blowing through us, here
parts animal in starts, quivering vibrations
made artifacts suspect by cities, near
or far, the accidents survived, the prisons
that ended us; the motes and moths in teas
our flicks or running rivers; wicked courses
of understanding; what catastrophes
what phase our faces, without the faith of horses
you have to have a horse whose feet you trust
to warn you when a snake is in the grass
the serpentine who wants to be unseen
repenting for her gemstone like an asp
for forking tongues, a talisman is key
but wear a hat, they’re speaking from the trees
odd shrubberies are bristling with false friends
a firecat bristling back can help with jinn
mosquitoes here are vectors for torpedoes, so
herbal experiment and/or gorilla war
sometimes there’s one snake, sometimes there are more
at least, no kind of viral is a pearl
a tender canter, daemonic carousel
remembered ribbons bite in ancient ways
we play the venom clockwise in our veins
we shed the dead redundancy of days
my jungle is a dreadful-clever dreaming
with shade-grown coffee, waterfalling views
what godly voices animate my evening
there’s none i’d rather jungle with than yous
let’s nicker maps, reverb the mythic blues
i spell, where y’all are going, where you been
switch witches laughter with the beating rain
the crickets will out-round the macet, friend
to live outside the law, you must be honest
Bismillahirrohmanirrohim
by river dark, inside a wounded dawn
we rhyme it, we just flow to make it rheme
//
(Dylan, my Prophetﷺ, Cohen, Cardi B, etc)
//
diet
never too much
garlic, carrot, oat
sleep, cake
but gingerly
the fungi
//
the emerald vine
sayangku, this is insane! is how i called
to show him my translation. Wondrous bending
noetic might, this miracle of earth —
she called the way she calls him for a viper.
and it was chrysochlorous green, zithering neon
in day-bright, venom visible, scroll shining
un-minding, rubbing sleep out of her eyes;
quick-silvering to sprawling pumpkin vine to hiding —
the same, the same, the same! but every word
turned different, and all the rest went dim;
the sirens and the hooks, made dull and distant;
slow-honeyed hum, what frenzy, vital air.
the hungry lung was spitting, stitched and thinning-through
to this — brilliance, broad-leafing light, breathing
Egyptian smaragdine, Sri Rejeki, Mak Sun;
but whoever wasn’t blind already knew.
//
autopygmalesis / autopygmalysis
Trimeresurus insularis
previously
//
🌕
a pewter chest for the silver robes
already i have sensed murmurations of moving on. and i’ve hesitated. but it’s time to bundle these up in ribbons so that they might go home. ( what follows is an introduction to “silver robes of a rose rabbi”, a cycle of poems i will post on purnama, InsyaAllah. and the closing of a chapter. )
“telescopic texts” were born as serial replies to the twelve cantos of Wallace Stevens' “Le Monocle de Mon Oncle”. i stumbled into this project and was amazed at their unfolding, at the responsiveness of Stevens' text to this treatment, and at the fruitfulness of a dynamic interaction. furthermore, it became apparent this was exactly the initiation needed for this blog’s translation of Plato’s Phaedrus. ( things come together and open up in a wonderful way. )
“translation of the Phaedrus” — is “translation” the right word? for the sake of transparency: i’m not setting the rules; i am caught in a vast body of waves. flotsam is pulled in, cobbled together, sent away, before i have fully understood. this is embarrassing in all of the ways that “Mon Oncle” is embarrassed by its own sublime. ( by Love, as mantically bashful poetry, which opens into stratospheres. )
here, “Mon Oncle” has constituted an epicycle of Phaedrus. a poem is a gravitational pool to suck you in and spit you out as something ( or somewhere ) different. i go along for rides and things are created thereby. drunkenness is a confession, not a metaphor. it’s like losing everything, but then it’s the blues. InsyaAllah there will be more poems of insanity, madness, mania — the alchemical reduction to metered speech. ( pores of the poem, through which rivers flow back into the poet’s seed. and rivers will be the madness. )
but madness isn’t a method in itself, so i maintain that this is a translation. carrying bones is part of building a temple, even when the temple is something inconsequential like a blog. building a temple has from the beginning been the generative dream of this blog. ( a temple needs orientation toward Mecca, that stone among stones. )
a note on my process. in translating the text of Phaedrus, i had reached the end of a dialectical prelude. it was time to wrap something up, and time to get something started. there was an aperture into a dream. it demanded initiation. ( and/or it commanded leisure. ) Pindar was the first step, and a chariot was born, but i needed more contemporary tuning, more techniques, lenses, experience with my vernacular. ( i needed a voice; i dawdled at the crossroads. )
i was re-reading Wallace Stevens. his later poems captivated me when i was in college — especially “The Idea of Order at Key West” and “The World as Meditation”. moreover, they changed the way I read Homer. so they changed the way i read everything. ( before i ever imagined writing poetry myself. ) now i wanted to discover clues as to how Uncle Wallace had built his voice. so I was studying his earliest book of poetry, Harmonium, when i was pulled by the aforementioned gravitational force into “Le Monocle”. ( there occurred a fertility ritual; and a certain birth. )
so were created “silver robes of a rose rabbi”. i have seen and experienced so much in writing these — figuring them out, in, and around, being a poet of paltry months, with everything to learn. in case it doesn’t come across in the work itself: i have nothing but admiration and gratitude for Stevens' poetry. ( this has been an act of devotion.
and well, the text mistook itself for vestments. )
(
one final note. as i write this blog, i continue ( slowly ) to study the Quran. to speak of rivers flowing and gravitation — i have a “deep hunch” that the Quran is a poetic singularity. if so, then i’ll spend the remainder of my life ( slowly ) learning to read it. as i have spent up until now ( slowly ) learning to read. i do not understand this as being in conflict with my ( slowly ) translation of Phaedrus. so poetry ( slowly ) becomes a choir.
if a beginner voice, moreso a beginner listener. the first words of the Quran have begun to feel like sipping a trickle of fire out from underneath an immense ocean. for the sake of transparency. any light in these verses is from Allah through the intercession of the Messenger ﷺ. errors and mistakes are my own by the Mercy of Allah. Alhamdulillahirrabilalameen. Ar-Rahman Ar-Rahim. Wasalamu’alaikum to those i know and those i don’t know. Peace and thank you for reading🙏🏻
)
//
proving ground
desire is a world of promises:
endings as sorry causes everywhere
i look. unkind is my outward explosion;
inward, it’s terribly bereft. while you
who are my second self, nimbly reflect
the shining order of my bronzen failure.
sightless, i touch your skin, and we are moved
by sterling promises of moonlit measure.
hunger stretches the bend along your limb
as multitudes, desiring one. believe
this melody. let melt the muscled heart
whose turning grief recovers ever Love.
//
dead earth blues
i pass my hand across the air
before your face. your eyes don’t move.
i speak of news, the word is bleak.
your eyes don’t shed a tear.
where could i live, if in your heart?
no room for me is there. your face
became my homelessness, in form:
His mother, blind to Christ.
i keep a memory of home,
of close and kindred mysteries.
the rosy books i used to read
would rise to meet my hungry eyes.
but meme versus the memory
is dream forgot, for anti-dream.
you cannot eat, we used to say,
the cream without the cake.
the bone without the nerve, of me,
is concrete sea and leaden air.
i read the news alone and lose
the wind out of my heart.
no matter, were we ever there.
why is this imprint fused with thought
if not to be remembered?
i pretend you aren’t a stranger.
and dreams arrive; they aren’t my own.
the one of drifting pieces, lost
at sea of darkening history.
i wait and work; a dream for mercy.
//
dissertation in three or four dimensions
time is (only)
a measure
of motion.
time is
a measure of
( motion )
( ( multi ) tudes )
)
mercies
(
//
Aphrodite's verb for a meme-lord
don’t be gender-strung
brother, grinding in a corner
sexless repetitions.
go limp a little.
let be won a little.
let the sun a little soften
your margarine edges.
the men i know
resemble a differently-
tipped tree than you.
my men are fundamentals, lost
in parched landscapes, empty
of water, warmth, and mercy,
from where, i teach them love.
lusty giants bristle-trunked
and planet-stranded, are nipple-
slit and magma-branded
by fully-armored Mars.
but cold palms trembling
twiddle the ephemeral course
with your recurrent inkling.
you, pocketed by four-
fingered mercenaries, twenty-
four, seven, re-puppet the gifted goose.
smoke the flat potion.
blowhard the hollow motion.
worship the literal juice.
shout, as if spilled clout
were potency, your wee-
throated catharsis.
strong-arm, for and from
the haptic trill,
a lover’s pity.
you, lordly and viral, left your
deflated blubber on
the public bedside table,
honey— your woodless worms
exhausted into empty domain
of static, remorseless maw.
and tender pussycat,
she swat. then low-key, she
your factum, deposited
into her rainy-day, furry-frosted
milkmaid, snappy the snatch-
game crocodile account.
//
the letter B
a small stone stopped
me on the way
having forgotten &
being renamed
tear
in
the glass
//
insp. by “Three things, together”
body’s most wondrous lesson was
turning raw wounds into desire
as ripening longing to be eaten
as eyes longing to see and be open
//
broken machine of tentacles and teeth
war is what monsters are and what they do
monsters are monsters at war with monsters
useless becomes another name for peace
//
Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh 🌖
our exercise as exorcism of time —
the oddly-staggered rhyme leaves bruises
on buds stringently-steeped, the undisclosed
grays of grass groped in dark of morning that
took hold as roots in midnight, not knowing color
not knowing how seemly to be in sun —
steps right into the rhythm of blinding fire
this prism of shadows is highways home, revealed
in daylight’s reconciliation with desire
//
Selamat Idulfitri, Eid mubarak, blessed Eid to those who observe.
Alhamdulillahirabbil’alameen. 🌙
//