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.
Tuesday 19.03.2019
‘as a crow in the sticks of a winter tree’
after Basavanna
as a crow in the sticks of a winter tree
it hops
from branch to branch
my heart is not to be trusted
this smouldering coal-black feathered thing
goes hop-hop
at one thing then at another at my desk
then into the noisy street
it flaps and flies off
to land again in the bare branches of a second tree
ruffling its feathers
as if perhaps beginning to catch fire
hop-hop
all the bridges are down
Martyn Crucefix 