A poem is not a riddle, it is a mystery about a mystery. A mystery is a reality that is beyond one’s understanding. In a riddle, the answer is mysterious only in its relation to the clues, the answer is not itself considered mysterious. And once one has the answer, the clues are no longer mysterious in their relation to one another. So a riddle is demystified by its answer, whereas the poem is made mysterious by its subject. A poem should be about something mysterious. In other words, it should be about something real. The poet does not demystify his subject; he is meant to make one aware of the mystery that is already there. Wonder is his poetic inspiration.
Reality is constantly flowing: from one person to another through words and gestures; from a flower to a bee; from a cricket to a person; from the sun to a towel to a cat. There is a constant giving and receiving among beings. Aside from these beings, there is the reality of what is given and received. Words and light are special, because they are physical instantiations of the regular flow between beings(1).
The poem is a capturing of what is given and received between the poet and another being(2). This capturing itself becomes a being, a poem, which is a testament to the relationality of existence. It is no surprise that poets deal in analogies, allegories, metaphors and similes, because they are the tools with which to discover existing relationships. So the poem as poem is relational, and the content of the poem deals in relations(3). This relation of nature and content allows a poem to stand on its own as a viable being.
Reality is constantly flowing: from one person to another through words and gestures; from a flower to a bee; from a cricket to a person; from the sun to a towel to a cat. There is a constant giving and receiving among beings. Aside from these beings, there is the reality of what is given and received. Words and light are special, because they are physical instantiations of the regular flow between beings(1).
The poem is a capturing of what is given and received between the poet and another being(2). This capturing itself becomes a being, a poem, which is a testament to the relationality of existence. It is no surprise that poets deal in analogies, allegories, metaphors and similes, because they are the tools with which to discover existing relationships. So the poem as poem is relational, and the content of the poem deals in relations(3). This relation of nature and content allows a poem to stand on its own as a viable being.
(1) In the first chapter of his Gospel, John uses the “Word” and “light” as two of three themes for understanding God, which is not surprising, given the fact that God is pure relationality. The third theme is "life," which is a standard for good literature.
(2) A poem is, among other things, instantiated awe.
(3) This is similar to when Jesus reads from Isaiah at the synagogue, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor.” (Lk 4:18) He is doing what he is reading by reading what he is doing. His purpose and action are one.
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