There are some places around the world where the very ground seems to be suffused with energy and where there is an electricity in the air. The wind soughing through tree branches seems to whisper in ancient tongues and echoes of forgotten music still vibrate in the air. The right place and right season combine and if we are in a receptive frame of mind, we can feel awe and an ecstasy of the soul that can be a life-changing experience.
This poem was inspired by a midsummer visit to a such a very special place in Greece, where ruins of ancient temples visited while listening to the drone of cicadas and the gentle whistling of the wind, give rise to a special feeling of timelessness and of a communion with times past.
Poetry Jam this week asks participants to: "Write about the mid-winter or mid-summer season and what it means to you."
The Eleusinian Mysteries
The sun, wild,
Lashes without pity
Naked bodies.
The ancient marble lolls
Strewn amongst the pine trees
And the noontime stillness
Is mirrored in the
Midsummer heat.
Somewhere in the forest,
Dense and shady,
A fountain trills
Like Pan’s flute.
In the heart of the mountain,
Deep in the rocks, Cyparissus
Sleeps lightly,
Caressed by gentle Zephyr.
It’s enough to find a magic word,
A word both ancient and true,
And if you murmur it,
Twenty five centuries
Will shatter like glass
And crash in front of
The violet-tinged temple,
Which will arise from the ground built anew.
The sun, wild,
ReplyDeleteLashes without pity
Naked bodies.
Wonderfully captured the mid summer heat!
This beats my current cold situation.
ReplyDeleteluv the sense of magic here
ReplyDeleteHave a good Wednesday
much love...
You have expressed the summer so well in your poem. Now that its winter in my country I definitely need the sun. :)
ReplyDeleteEnjoyed your photo and its accompanying very atmospheric description of summer, Nick!
ReplyDeleteThere are some ruins like this that affect a person forever, once one has visited them.
I can really imagine Pan playing his flute!
Good capture of midsummer and the magic of being in an ancient setting. Really enjoyed feeling the heat!
ReplyDeleteTwo of my favorite places are Rome and Crete because they provoke the very unforgettable feelings and emotions you describe in your poem.
ReplyDeleteExcellent poem, relly evokes the summer and also the mystical ambience of ancient sites.
ReplyDeleteA word both ancient and true, nice
ReplyDeletewhat a cool place that would be to visit...i love your vivid opening...it pulls us right in and gives energy to your words and to the scene....
ReplyDelete