The Human Reef
a beat poem
1.Troy’s debris in my shoes, pricking
a short walk to the sea shore, and the frothing tides of
ㅤ ㅤ ㅤ ㅤㅤㅤㅤ Gold wine pulling
over our toes, under Moon’s control; Hesperides stealing a bite from the Titaness’ fruit, and all that Newtonian fuss in your eyes and
ㅤ ㅤ ㅤ ㅤ ㅤ ㅤㅤA gazelle failing
to walk on a drunk sea’s sand, and then the mirage drowns when Sirius’s switched on. It all could have been
ㅤㅤ An alternate dimension, existing
on some different plane — we might have taken that walk, but I to see you off, and you on
ㅤ ㅤ ㅤ Your way back home, riding
a turtle’s back, to the Japanese Dragon palace, underwater; I might not accompany you; not follow you; I might revisit the same spot every night though,
ㅤㅤㅤㅤ ㅤ And my naturally graying
beard might never need a mystery gift box to open.
2. ㅤㅤ ㅤ ㅤ You, who is forced to be someone you’re not!
ㅤ ㅤ ㅤㅤ ㅤ drop that gorgon mask. I say pull down thy vanity, and pretensions of air castles!
ㅤㅤ ㅤㅤ ㅤㅤYou, who is forced to be someone you’re not!
ㅤ ㅤ ㅤㅤ ㅤ come along with me. Leave thy comfort, and crave something higher. Have you heard of Nalanda?
Get Zev (Shahzeb Akhter)’s stories in your inbox
Join Medium for free to get updates from this writer.
ㅤ ㅤ ㅤㅤ ㅤYou, who is forced to be someone you’re not!
ㅤ ㅤ ㅤㅤ ㅤ strip down to your bare soul, and turn Jain. Don’t kill even that ant. Sweep on the land before you walk it.
ㅤㅤ ㅤㅤ ㅤㅤ You, who is forced to be someone you’re not!
ㅤ ㅤ ㅤㅤ ㅤ don’t preach what you don’t act. And don’t spread malign on the lands. Fear death by water? Fear death?
ㅤㅤ ㅤㅤ ㅤㅤ You, who is forced to be someone you’re not!
ㅤ ㅤ ㅤㅤ ㅤ Socrates invented afterlife. And perhaps religion too, but let’s no talk of it. It’s taboo.
ㅤㅤ ㅤㅤ ㅤㅤYou, who is forced to be someone you’re not!
ㅤ Budham Sharnam Gachchami!
3. ㅤㅤ Poet
ㅤ ㅤ ㅤ laureate, Graves says ambrosia was a weed, a fungi, Amanita muscaria, and kings don’t share it; nor laurel chewing
ㅤ ㅤ ㅤpoetic
ㅤ ㅤ ㅤ ㅤ oracles, and in England, Coleridge hallucinates to invoke the muse.. he writes unconsciously, and Jung exclaims him cheater! Kubla is plagiarized, the latter says! and Milton’s
ㅤ ㅤ poetic
ㅤ ㅤ ㅤ ㅤmagnum opus’ an inspiration forever, but check out his Book IV, lines 223–285. So there’s more to it than meets the eyes and
ㅤ ㅤ poets
ㅤ ㅤ ㅤ ㅤ to exile, in the Victorian, and Keatsian early deaths, and Wilde for his love of boys; ah, had he lived in the Greek society, or in the twenty seventeen! and
ㅤ ㅤ poets
ㅤ ㅤ ㅤ ㅤ saved from going to the wars for being psychopaths; some getting arrested, and other under trials!
ㅤ ㅤ poets
ㅤ ㅤ ㅤ screaming ‘the love that dare not speak its name,’ ‘redeeming social importance’.
- For K.E. Kimball’s prompt. acknowledging : Ivana, Mike, Paul & Christopher. xo
