You walk among the spirits of flying dervishes and the whispers of their mystical joy on the anniversary of Rumi's death. How many lives have been loved, how many loves have been lived, how many flying hearts have turned and danced in his land since 17 December 1273? How many dances have been danced, how … Continue reading Rumi: Rubaiyat at Random
I have been biking to the piers at Sunset Park to read Siddhartha while facing the upper bay of the Hudson River's estuary. I knew that Siddhartha's encounter with the river would be the tale's most moving chapter for me. I wanted to prepare for it by contemplating, as I read, the ebb and flow … Continue reading Siddhartha by the River
Esta semana viajé a Irán. Fue sorpresivo, inesperado, a pesar de ser un viaje que he anhelado desde que vi el filme de Abbas Kiarostami, El viento nos llevará (Bad ma ra khahad bord, 1999), y conocí la poesía de Forough Farrojzad. La idea de hacerlo surgió en la estación del metro de Prospect Park, … Continue reading Viaje a Irán
Sometimes reading takes us out "on a walk." For many years I had longed to return to the Egyptian-Lybian desert and to the hills of Tuscany by reading Michael Ondaatje's novel The English Patient (1992). About a month ago I was finally able to let Ondaatje's lyrical storytelling take me on that walk. I have … Continue reading The English Patient: Nationlessness and Namelessness
Elías desfalleció bajo la sombra de un enebro. Jezabel (vicisitudes, tribulaciones) lo perseguía para matarlo y Elías huía al Monte Horeb. Después de andar todo un día por el desierto, abatido tras luchas, decepciones y traiciones, se sentó bajo un enebro y le dijo a su Dios que quería morirse: "¡Basta ya!" Se acostó y, … Continue reading Ángeles junto al enebro
As this challenging school year comes to a close, I keep reading my philosophical and poetical friends for their wisdom, both phronesis and sophia. The Preacher of Ecclesiastes, Lao Tzu, Plato, Aristotle, Saint John, Rumi, Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, Emerson, Thoreau, Tagore, and Henry Bugbee have been sources of insight and exemplary guides … Continue reading Old Poets’ Wisdom
En el arroyo la garza gris siente el gentil fluir del ki. Garza gris (Ardea cinerea): Recuerdo de Higashiyama, Kioto
Tenho sonhado com entardeceres amazônicos. Tenho visto de novo as imagens do céu enorme da Amazônia; das cores do pôr-do-sol -- amarelos, laranjas, roxos, lilás, vermelhos; das reflexões da luz oblíqua nas águas dos grandes rios arteriais -- o Madeira, o Negro, o Amazonas --, dos pequenos rios cheios de vida -- o Abunã, o … Continue reading Entardeceres amazônicos
I listened to Niall Connolly's song "Sum of Our Parts" on my headphones as I rode the F train from Prospect Park to the Lower East Side in Manhattan, on my way to his Saturday night gig Rockwood Music Hall. It had been several months since I'd seen Niall, and even longer since I'd been … Continue reading Listening to a Friend in New York Town
