Works and Days of Division – 29 poems by Martyn Crucefix
Drawing on two disparate sources, this sequence of mongrel-bred poems has been written to respond to the historical moment in this most disunited kingdom. Hesiod’s Works and Days – probably the oldest poem in the Western canon – is a poem driven by a dispute between brothers. The so-called vacana poems originate in the bhakti religious protest movements in 10-12th century India. Through plain language, repetition and refrain, they offer praise to the god, Siva, though they also express personal anger, puzzlement, even despair. Dear reader – if you like what you find here, please share the poems as widely as you can (no copyright restrictions). Or follow this blog for future postings. Bridges need building.
Ash Wednesday 6.03.2019
‘the six-pack on the side of the bus’
after Basavanna
the six-pack on the side of the bus is a god
the hair care the jade earring
the clock is a sinister impassive god
for the ancients rumour was a kind of god
the data set the next level my mobile phone
with its lure of a liquid retina screen
the purity of product the window display
are all gods and the parking assist the speed
of delivery the hemp tote bag are gods
the ill-proof-read prize-winning plaque is a god
WIFI is a god when we curse its absence
and tell me when did difference become a god
and of identity we have made a god
whatever is shredded or faked or redacted
is a god and what is tortured is always a god
so many gods O there are so many gods
so little space left to put my feet
so long ago I lost a place to lay my head
all the bridges down
Martyn Crucefix 