Poetry competition CLOSED 9th August 2013 1:50pm
WINNER
LobodeSanPedro
LobodeSanPedro
ancestral feelings
- Queen of the Wolves -
Based on some of my past-life memories…
Part One: The Cavern
In the mountains of the primeval past, amidst rough crags,
There was a cave in which none dared to tread with spirit.
For the ice was oft thick about it, and as it melts and sags,
It runs as chill as frozen blood, causing the bold to fear it…
But worse still, all men said, was she who dwelt deep within.
Men can be fools, for the flee in terror from a mighty lady!
A shaman queen so great, that she knew all of a man’s sin.
Her eyes could pierce the flesh to the soul, and therein see!
And so I, a woman, came to seek her wisdom in that age…
Fleeing the lands of my birth, to come unto that lofty place,
Leaving behind me men, their lusts, their hungers, their rage.
I sought a woman who was my equal, in beauty and grace!
Part Two: The Queen
As I neared the cave I could hear wolves howling so shrill,
From someplace distant yet near, and they sounded fierce!
I thought mayhap they might fall upon me, meaning to kill…
But though they drew close, they were wiser in their years,
Than many men who had done me harm; and so I entered:
I came into the cave, where the great shaman queen ruled.
Many warm fires kept the place of power hotly centered…
Far from the chill outside, and where the flames so cooled,
A great throne of animal bones was set upon a rocky base.
Upon it was she, in a blackest gown, of the finest material,
Adorned with a wolf pelt cloak, a serene look on her face.
Wearing a crown of antlers, she was beautiful and terrible!
Part Three: The Lesson
Raven was her hair, as was my own in that long ago era…
And, I was enchanted: by her icy blue eyes, also like mine.
She could have been my twin sister, that cunning bearer…
Of arts that no common wisdom could find to be sublime!
Yet I found them so, and I became her willing apprentice.
For a single year I remained in her deep home, learning…
I was also her lover, and she taught me such arts of bliss,
Which only women understand, deeper passions burning!
At the end of the year, she showed me a place outside…
Where the wolves gathered, in countless, roaming packs.
That place was in the open; there was nowhere to hide…
And I was still fearful of the wolves and possible attacks.
Part Four: The Power
The wolves bowed to the queen, as if of one intelligence,
And I knew not one would harm me whilst thusly bound.
She taught me, that wolves have their own dim brilliance,
Being not the awful beasts of legend, but more profound.
She knew the mind and the spirit of the wolf, most deep!
And I came to know it also, and I was moved to tears…
To think how men hunt them so cruel, their skins to keep.
All because of a lack of knowledge, and too many fears!
But I had no idea the power that the queen possessed…
When she directed them, to fall upon some local hunters.
The hunters were slain to a man, their shrieks distressed!
And human skins were taken: by the queen of the antlers.
Part Five: The Price
Those hunters once tried to ravish me, but wolves came,
Scaring them away so that I could keep my girlish virtue.
Today those men paid the ultimate price, none to blame,
For when men commit evil acts, nature will have its’ due.
I clasped the shaman queen’s hands later that evening…
During one final grand ritual: that she was about to teach.
And I saw through her eyes, commanding and gleaming!
She saw through mine, and I cried out as if to beseech…
But I realized that there was only me: the shaman queen.
The scared girl who feared the hunters was long gone…
I remembered being her, as if looking back on a dream!
Too many years alone in that cave, I left that very dawn.
Part Six: The Pact
Madness can be the price you pay for wisdom, but I…
Had broken free of it, and so I returned unto civilization.
My tormentors were dead, their bones beneath the sky!
I taught my tribe, the lore of wolves, amidst celebration.
In time, I took an apprentice and she became my lover:
She was a scared girl, as I was when I fled to that cave,
And I knew it was her spirit I did in my visions uncover.
When the time was nigh, to her my antler crown I gave!
I never took her to the cold place, of my old sojourn…
Never showed her the skins of those hunters long dead.
She was an innocent soul and had not the need to learn,
That nature is, sometimes, in tooth and claw: blood red.
Based on some of my past-life memories…
Part One: The Cavern
In the mountains of the primeval past, amidst rough crags,
There was a cave in which none dared to tread with spirit.
For the ice was oft thick about it, and as it melts and sags,
It runs as chill as frozen blood, causing the bold to fear it…
But worse still, all men said, was she who dwelt deep within.
Men can be fools, for the flee in terror from a mighty lady!
A shaman queen so great, that she knew all of a man’s sin.
Her eyes could pierce the flesh to the soul, and therein see!
And so I, a woman, came to seek her wisdom in that age…
Fleeing the lands of my birth, to come unto that lofty place,
Leaving behind me men, their lusts, their hungers, their rage.
I sought a woman who was my equal, in beauty and grace!
Part Two: The Queen
As I neared the cave I could hear wolves howling so shrill,
From someplace distant yet near, and they sounded fierce!
I thought mayhap they might fall upon me, meaning to kill…
But though they drew close, they were wiser in their years,
Than many men who had done me harm; and so I entered:
I came into the cave, where the great shaman queen ruled.
Many warm fires kept the place of power hotly centered…
Far from the chill outside, and where the flames so cooled,
A great throne of animal bones was set upon a rocky base.
Upon it was she, in a blackest gown, of the finest material,
Adorned with a wolf pelt cloak, a serene look on her face.
Wearing a crown of antlers, she was beautiful and terrible!
Part Three: The Lesson
Raven was her hair, as was my own in that long ago era…
And, I was enchanted: by her icy blue eyes, also like mine.
She could have been my twin sister, that cunning bearer…
Of arts that no common wisdom could find to be sublime!
Yet I found them so, and I became her willing apprentice.
For a single year I remained in her deep home, learning…
I was also her lover, and she taught me such arts of bliss,
Which only women understand, deeper passions burning!
At the end of the year, she showed me a place outside…
Where the wolves gathered, in countless, roaming packs.
That place was in the open; there was nowhere to hide…
And I was still fearful of the wolves and possible attacks.
Part Four: The Power
The wolves bowed to the queen, as if of one intelligence,
And I knew not one would harm me whilst thusly bound.
She taught me, that wolves have their own dim brilliance,
Being not the awful beasts of legend, but more profound.
She knew the mind and the spirit of the wolf, most deep!
And I came to know it also, and I was moved to tears…
To think how men hunt them so cruel, their skins to keep.
All because of a lack of knowledge, and too many fears!
But I had no idea the power that the queen possessed…
When she directed them, to fall upon some local hunters.
The hunters were slain to a man, their shrieks distressed!
And human skins were taken: by the queen of the antlers.
Part Five: The Price
Those hunters once tried to ravish me, but wolves came,
Scaring them away so that I could keep my girlish virtue.
Today those men paid the ultimate price, none to blame,
For when men commit evil acts, nature will have its’ due.
I clasped the shaman queen’s hands later that evening…
During one final grand ritual: that she was about to teach.
And I saw through her eyes, commanding and gleaming!
She saw through mine, and I cried out as if to beseech…
But I realized that there was only me: the shaman queen.
The scared girl who feared the hunters was long gone…
I remembered being her, as if looking back on a dream!
Too many years alone in that cave, I left that very dawn.
Part Six: The Pact
Madness can be the price you pay for wisdom, but I…
Had broken free of it, and so I returned unto civilization.
My tormentors were dead, their bones beneath the sky!
I taught my tribe, the lore of wolves, amidst celebration.
In time, I took an apprentice and she became my lover:
She was a scared girl, as I was when I fled to that cave,
And I knew it was her spirit I did in my visions uncover.
When the time was nigh, to her my antler crown I gave!
I never took her to the cold place, of my old sojourn…
Never showed her the skins of those hunters long dead.
She was an innocent soul and had not the need to learn,
That nature is, sometimes, in tooth and claw: blood red.
Silent Self Destruction
put a gun in my mouth
but didn't pull the trigger
with fear my lips trembled
and tears streamed down my face
across my mind the world flashed
brilliant colors of blue and green
swirling into shadows of black and grey
faces appear then spiral away
casting demon smiles
dashed by the shuffling madness
lights splash into my eyes
like liquid fire burning visions into my mind
hemorrhaging into my psyche
clots of reality clog my sanity
rational thoughts no longer flow
but are cast into the madness
lost forever within the shadows
the world happens... life runs... flows
twisting... turning and spinning
contorting itself into a sinister form of reality
life moves at an alarming rate
dashing here to there
turning itself inside out and back again
exposing its inner workings
the heart has a voice and it screams
silently sometimes bursting at the seems
thoughts have fluidity
acidic and corrosive
burning holes though the brain
the heart the emotions
clinging the soul and scorching the spirit
words have life... breathing
spitting poison in the face
of anyone who will listen
breathing fire upon ice
cold hearts turn molten only to freeze again
aching and frostbitten
scalded but still beating
the twisting darkness bores through my head
creating tunnels and paths that bleed
blood flows free
each new hole path or tunnel
a memory that should be forgotten
a past that spits in the face of the present
poison that is absorbed... ingested
regurgitated and swallowed again
dissolving and devouring everything
tearing through... ripping and slashing
thoughts as sharp as razors
silent self destruction
put a gun in my mouth
but didn't pull the trigger
with fear my lips trembled
and tears streamed down my face
across my mind the world flashed
brilliant colors of blue and green
swirling into shadows of black and grey
faces appear then spiral away
casting demon smiles
dashed by the shuffling madness
lights splash into my eyes
like liquid fire burning visions into my mind
hemorrhaging into my psyche
clots of reality clog my sanity
rational thoughts no longer flow
but are cast into the madness
lost forever within the shadows
the world happens... life runs... flows
twisting... turning and spinning
contorting itself into a sinister form of reality
life moves at an alarming rate
dashing here to there
turning itself inside out and back again
exposing its inner workings
the heart has a voice and it screams
silently sometimes bursting at the seems
thoughts have fluidity
acidic and corrosive
burning holes though the brain
the heart the emotions
clinging the soul and scorching the spirit
words have life... breathing
spitting poison in the face
of anyone who will listen
breathing fire upon ice
cold hearts turn molten only to freeze again
aching and frostbitten
scalded but still beating
the twisting darkness bores through my head
creating tunnels and paths that bleed
blood flows free
each new hole path or tunnel
a memory that should be forgotten
a past that spits in the face of the present
poison that is absorbed... ingested
regurgitated and swallowed again
dissolving and devouring everything
tearing through... ripping and slashing
thoughts as sharp as razors
silent self destruction
Ichi Ni San Shi Go
Poem Image
I was 'Ronin'
on faithful steed did I ride
Injustice and corruption
dealt swiftly from 'katana' at my side
Such beauty did catch my eye
our love deemed forbidden
but mere words
they can not deny soul mates
Ride you said
we will meet again
strong our connection
I will return my love
when the cherry blossoms first bloom
Swiftly did I flee
paying little mind
to three stings
that struck my back
Here I can hear the lost souls cry
wailing in pain
separated from soul mates
Three arrows drain my life's blood
as the riders on the storm
swiftly thunder on by
know this though
here among the ghost's
I will wait for I am still alive
true love never dies
Poem Image
I was 'Ronin'
on faithful steed did I ride
Injustice and corruption
dealt swiftly from 'katana' at my side
Such beauty did catch my eye
our love deemed forbidden
but mere words
they can not deny soul mates
Ride you said
we will meet again
strong our connection
I will return my love
when the cherry blossoms first bloom
Swiftly did I flee
paying little mind
to three stings
that struck my back
Here I can hear the lost souls cry
wailing in pain
separated from soul mates
Three arrows drain my life's blood
as the riders on the storm
swiftly thunder on by
know this though
here among the ghost's
I will wait for I am still alive
true love never dies
Many thanks for the acknowledgement and the time you took to host, druidicheirophant. I found out about a week ago the shanty submitted has been accepted for publication on a historical nautical website - so again thanks for the opportunity to present this layer.
Congrats to all who participated! ... anna_grin - your entry was priceless!
Congrats to all who participated! ... anna_grin - your entry was priceless!
