Tuesday, August 08, 2006

Ulysses by the Merlion
by Edwin Thumboo

I have sailed many waters,
Skirted islands of fire,
Contended with Circe
Who loved the squeal of pigs;
Passed Scylla and Charybdis
To seven years with Calypso,
Heaved in battle against the gods.
Beneath it all

I kept faith with Ithaca, travelled,
Travelled and travelled,
Suffering much, enjoying a little;
Met strange people singing
New myths; made myths myself.

But this lion of the sea
Salt-maned, scaly, wondrous of tail,
Touched with power, insistent
On this brief promontory...
Puzzles.

Nothing, nothing in my days,
Foreshadowed this
Half-beast, half-fish,
This powerful creature of land and sea.

Peoples settled here,
Brought to this island
The bounty of these seas,
Built towers topless as Ilium's.

They make, they serve
They buy, they sell.

Despite unequal ways,
Together they mutate,
Explore the edges of harmony,
Search for a centre;
Have changed their gods,
Kept some memory of their race
In prayer, laughter, the way
Their women dress and greet.
They hold the bright, the beautiful,
Good ancestral dreams
Within new visions,
So shining, urgent,
Full of what is now.

Perhaps having dealt in things,
Surfeited on them,
Their spirits yearn again for images,
Adding to the dragon, phoenix,
Garuda, naga, those horses of the sun,
This lion of the sea,
This image of themselves.

the dead woman murmured 8/08/2006 08:20:00 PM
|

mood

Translation:
Nemo nisi mors.


the subject

utopist. dreamer. cynic. poet. a contradiction. eccentric. cartesian. a starlight in the gloom.

The patient, born in 1984, suffers from a history of idealism of unknown onset and duration.

bloghome | owl me


links

~ Amadeus Choral Society
~ Cat Welfare Society
~ Foamy the Squirrel
~ NTU Choir

:: Bing
:: Celine
:: Jace
:: Jan
:: Jean
:: Jerry
:: Jonnie
:: Jordie River
:: KatTj
:: Kerri
:: Kiat
:: Margaret
:: Melvyn
:: MJ
:: NCHS Chinese Opera
:: Sze Fei
:: TseWei
:: XiaoBin
:: Yimei


archives

January '03
February '03
March '03
April '03
May '03
June '03
July '03
August '03
September '03
October '03
November '03
December '03
January '04
February '04
March '04
April '04
May '04
June '04
July '04
August '04
September '04
October '04
November '04
December '04
January '05
February '05
March '05
April '05
May '05
June '05
July '05
August '05
September '05
October '05
November'05
December'05
January '06
February '06
March '06
April '06
May '06
June '06
July '06
August '06
September '06
October '06
November '06
December '06
January '07
February '07
March '07
April '07
May '07
June '07
July '07
August '07
September '07
October '07
November'07


fanfic

:: Destiny Trilogy Part 1: The War
:: Destiny Trilogy Part 2: The Children of Lughnasadh
:: The Gates Just Opened


Powered By Blogger!

:: Photo by National Geographic Society Copyright © 2002 ::