Poetry in Motion

5/17/2006

Score one for the MTA

Here in New York, The Poetry Society has been running a program called “Poetry in Motion” for the last ten years. In conjunction with the MTA (Metropoplitain Transit Authority) the society has been placing standard size advertisements, for lack of a better term, all over the buses and the subways. These posters instead of a photo of a beautiful model, an expensive automobile or a bottle of liquor, feature poems from various poets. It is an attempt at providing “culture” to the masses of people who are riding these concofinous metal tubes to their own personal dance floors they call their jobs.

I have been following this program since its inception and usually, I have to admit, I think the poems are awful or, at least, I just don’t get them. On the same token, I don’t “get” most poetry that does not start off, “There once was a man from Nantucket...” so I am probably not the best person to judge the quality of the prose.

With that being said, on the Number 1 Train this morning, this latest entry caught my eye:

Out beyond ideas of Wrongdoing and Rightdoing
There is a field
I'll meet you there.
When the soul lies down in that grass
The world is too full to talk about.
Ideas, language, and even the phrase “each other”
Does not make any sense.

My initial reaction was overwheming:

Who wrote this new age hippy claptrap? Was it one of those “secularlist” left wing liberal professors of Berkley trying to destroy Christianity by suggesting that the idea of “rightdoing” and “wrongdoing” are only ideas and not God’s law? Was it the ACLU who have been fighting a war against Christmas and everything good since their inception? I am so fed up with these weirdos spreading their bullshit! I wish we could go back to a time when “morals” and “faith” ruled supreme, before those 1960s long haired ungrateful spoiled brats started complaining about stuff. These lefties should try that in Russia and see what happens to them. Elitist bastards!!! I HATE THEM! I HATE THEM! GOD DAMN IT!!!

I was furious that MY TAX DOLLARS was paying for this “program” that obviously was immoral and anti-Christian. I wanted to know the name of this “poet” who was so arrogant to write this filth. I decided when I arrived at work I was going to write a scathing post slamming this bearded jerk who has the audacity to question. I was going to put that pampered little college grad where he belonged: Licking the boots of real men.

So I looked at the bottom of this trash that these people call “art” and found the author’s name.

Rumi (1207- 1273)

Ummmm...that was a long time ago.

With minimal effort, this is what I found these various statements that were applied to him:

"If there is any general idea underlying Rumi's poetry, it is the absolute love of God."

from - Khamush.com

"Rumi is still read today, and his followers, whirling dervishes (holy men), still perform their elegant, hypnotic dances to express the idea that God can be experienced in manifold ways."

from – Life Magazine

"Here it is important to remember that while Rumi was informed by numerous sources of ideas, on his journey he seemed to leave many of his contemporaries behind—his love and compassion flowed like the waters of the world’s oceans; so much so that while continuing to live physically among humans, he managed to become ever closer to God."

from - Whirling Dervishes.org

For a more “objective” or “secular” look at this guy you could check out Rumi's Biography or, for a straight timeline of his life poetseers.com

Very interesting stuff.

Although Rumi wrote about 800 years ago, his work seems to get closer to what the actual essence of being is than anything I have heard from anybody over at The 700 Club or The Pope or any Aayatollah or Grand Rebbe in my lifetime.

The shit I hear at PNAC sucks too.

Oh well.

And for all of you reading this who feel isolated or alienated because you feel that there is more to the world than consumption. For the people out there who feel that THEY are strange because they feel compassion yet everywhere you turn you see imbeciles telling you to fear what you don’t know. For the ones who have empathy although all you see are inhuman blow hards rattling their sabres convincing you that you should despise what you don’t understand.

For anyone out there like that, don’t let ANYONE tell you you’re “crazy” “evil” or “silly” because your philosophy of life takes you beyond our borders and ideas while they straight jacket themselves to two dimensional thinking. Thinking that is leading us all to an unrecognizable state. Do not ever apologize for your inquistiveness and be wary of those who want you to.

In fact, for some, the ideology doesn’t even go beyond their own feeble mind.

There are more things in heaven and earth...
Than are dreamt of in your philosophy.

- William Shakespeare

To the ones who continue to strive for understanding.
Who continue to give a damn.
I say…
You are not alone.
Larry