Lyrical poetry about the Great Unknown

Departing briefly from the field of limericks, the following poems flowered from similar soil, fertilized by an active imagination. Like so many of my metaphysical limericks, these verses explore the mystery that transcends good and evil, time and eternity, and all those pairs of opposites that rule our quotidian lives.

The first poem, entitled “The Great Unknown” aims to describe that which defies description. Though it probably falls short of that goal, it does provide a quick summary of my own spiritual journey. The next poem, “Interdependence”, takes a look at the interconnectedness of all things. It comes as no surprise then, that the two poems are also connected in their own way.

The Great Unknown

Into a tunnel beyond darkness and light
The soul makes a journey under cover of night
The course of this voyage cannot be explained
A path toward the life source which cannot be named
Its secret location no road map reveals
But he who goes searching must trust what he feels
The circumference is nowhere, the center right here
But to even the wisest it will not appear
Hinted at only on the hero’s return
No shape to behold and no form to discern

It’s hard to accept in our rational age
When every known fact has its own wiki page
But among the cold data a gap still remains
A sense of experience eclipsing our brains
A sense of emerging, belonging and will
An aura of something consisting of nil
Neither tiny, nor mammoth, nor cool, nor hot
For all that it is, it most chiefly is not
Neither seen, nor touched, nor felt, nor heard
Borne on the wind like an unspoken word

     *     *     *     *     *     *

Interdependence

Do away with the folly that says you’re unique
Like a singular drop in a babbling creek
Tumbling ’round in the race to be first
Though you share the same spring and you quench the same thirst

One among many with one common source
Who follow one river but know not its course
You strive to be different from them that you scorn
But it’s they who surround you, describing your form

And others you envy for things you might lack
While all that you offer can only come back
So open your hands and your heart and release
By giving to others your own will increase

Erase the distinction of outer from you
That slices the union of one into two
For division gives rise to all hatred and fear
And prevents you from seeing that each drop is a mirror

     *      *     *     *      *     *

 

Further Reading

If you enjoyed this poetic excursion, please consider sharing the post or subscribing to the blog. You might also want to check out some of these popular articles:

• As if: Variations on Rudyard Kipling
• Soul Searching Limericks
• 11 Inspiring Limericks
• The History of Limericks from Shakespeare to Spirit Rock