The Dance Macabre
Dr. Steven Parris Ward
Copyright © 2010 by Dr. Steven Parris Ward
ISBN: Softcover 978-1-4535-3593-6
eBook 978-1-4535-3592-9
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.
Rev. date: 05/03/2019
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Contents
Preface
Canto I The Voyager meets his Spirit.
Canto II The Spirit reveals the first and second of her multiple forms. She discusses with the Voyager the nature of the cosmos, its manifest and latent aspects, and their relation to life, death and justice.
Canto III The Spirit reveals her third form, a broken painter, and therein discusses the nature of artistic inspiration and the manner of this love.
Canto IV The Voyager is transported by his guide to another shore, and there discusses the problem of governing wisely and the politics of war with the Foolish King.
Canto V The Spirit conducts the Voyager on a tour to witness the nature of suffering on the planet: caused by the inequality of wealth, greed, poverty and famine. The Spirit explains how men create their own Hell on Earth due to injustice and a lack of attunement to the whole.
Canto VI The Spirit conducts the Voyager to the outermost limits of the Earth. She then accompanies him through the various celestial regions of the planets and beyond the solar system to the pathway of the Milky Way, and on into the heart of the galaxy.
Preface
What is the poet’s task? First and foremost, a poet creates with their musical utterances a lyrical expression of their own inner self. Thus the poet gives voice to the music of the soul. As such, it is a psychological as well as a creative process; as it represents the personal process of “individuation”. Here the artist not only strives to attain a catharsis of his or her own unexpressed emotions, but also attempts to bring into a unity the disparate elements of their own soul (manifested as emotion and reason) through the practice and crafting of an expressed form. The interior process of creativity might well be one where the artist invokes a kind of interior prayer: a continuous repetition of the words and verses reducing the inner self to order, or a more unified psychological harmony. In this the poet practices a form of hesychasm; an interior repetition of the poetic mantra, so as to induce a psychological change within. The poet creates a personal expression of their inner self, a psychological and emotional map of their own thoughts, dreams and aspirations. Here poetry is an expression of the poet’s personal cosmos, or an expression of the inner process of ordering the self.
The oral recitation of a poem is the poetic cosmos being given form by the rational logos of the poet’s utterances. In this the true poet adapts the role of a kind of shaman or hero; a physical intermediary or medium between the audience and his inner visions claimed to be divine or other worldly. The shaman poet through oral recitation gives access to the hidden labyrinths of the mind, evoking both reason and emotion in other individuals, and offering images of inner worlds to produce a response.
“In the beginning was the word and the word was with God”. And God said “let there be light and there was light”. These Biblical passages amongst others express the creative process of God and the power of God as the creative Logos (as Reason or the Word of creativity). For believers, God produces the order of the cosmos and this Logos or Reason gives birth to and sustains the cosmos. Such a cosmic creative act has parallels in the poetic enterprise. For humanists, however, this is not a cosmogonical or metaphysical truth, but a literary and poetic expression of men’s inner visions based in the realm of the imagination. As such these parallels serve only to emphasise the metaphoric and literary content of the Bible as poetry, and its place therefore requires it to be contextualised as a testament to the power of the human imagination, not as a received truth from a beneficent deity, as Christians might profess it to be.
The duty of the poet is two fold: First, to love all of humanity and not simply one individual. For without love for all, there can be no common fellowship or notions of self improvement for the world community. Second, to attempt to articulate the feelings of the human spirit. Not just the poet’s own spirit but the spirit of all men and women. For so many share common hopes and aspirations, fears and worries about the nature and meaning of existence, and it ought to be a duty and natural proclivity of all good and right thinking individuals of vision to offer hope and freedom from such fears if and when they may arise. These concerns for humans may be expressed as fundamental or universal questions which unfold within the content of The Dance Macabre. To whit: what is the purpose of life? Is there a God? Is there an immortal soul? If not what constitutes living the good life? What are the injustices and perils which we face and must overcome in our efforts to develop free and improving democratic constitutions? What constitutes our understanding of this universe which we inhabit?
In this I have utilised the emotive power of religious imagery in an attempt to communicate and modernise religious beliefs and offer an alternative view more in step with current scientific theories. Set within the context of this poetic epic I have reemphasised the oft forgotten fact that religious beliefs belong to the province of myth or imaginative opinions, not statements of facts about the truth.
In its overall form The Dance Macabre represents the passage from life to death and the inevitability of such a process, whilst serving as a reminder as a poetic memento mori. Its aim, however, is not to denigrate or pour scorn on the value or beauty of life by communicating a negative vision empty of meaning, but to offer a persuasive reminder of the importance of living this life to the full, free from the fear of death. In this it does not shirk the problems of religious belief, nor does it take harbour in them. It does not seek to quell such fears by promulgating faith in the myth of a loving and beneficent deity where salvation can be found. It has rather been my concern to offer a paean of praise to the beauty and value of this cosmos, as it is seen and understood empirically at present, free from the notions of a conscious, omnipotent, invisible creator deity active in human affairs. In doing this the clarion call is for mankind to take responsibility for its own actions, to stand above the superstitions of past archaic beliefs, to exercise its rational powers, and to value the worth of humankind and the importance of striving to improve humanity for its own good by contextualising its place in the cosmic process. Here mankind, and the appeal to improve our understanding of the environments which we inhabit, both ethical, social, terrestrial and universal, take centre stage.
The Dance Macabre offers the archetypal image of the female spirit to represent the male poet’s alter ego: the anima to the poet’s animus. The process of discovery as the journey unfolds represents the individuation process of better understanding the various and sometime disparate faculties of the self, and the importance of recognising these faculties and seeking to integrate them into a unity. In this respect, The Dance Macabre represents interior conversations with the various faculties of the poet’s own self. The King represents the ego, The Spirit the higher intuitive and spiritual faculty of compassion, the poets the rational and emotional. Thus, as an interior monologue, The Dance Macabre does not follow the conventions of conventional speech punctuation to indicate separate individual characters. In another respect, the poet’s conversations with various characters can be viewed as the individual’s progress
ion from ignorance to understanding, from differentiation (where we see ourselves apart from our global environment, as something other) to a unity. The process of attempting to achieve unity offers purpose and meaning to our lives, and promotes our continuing evolution and understanding as a collective race, and contextualises our place in our evolving notions of cosmos.
Canto I
The Voyager meets his Spirit.
Midway through this journey known as life I lost my way,
So set myself upon a quest,
a lonely path to tread,
Of liberating my true self from all the ties that bind,
In the sure and certain hope that through this method I would find,
A way of purging life from all desires which cause distress,
And thus to pass beyond the veil-
the realm of ignorance.
I was not burdened with a heavy heart upon the quest,
For I had never sought the life of indolent content,
Or treasured all those things that others held to be of value,
My pride did boast I once believed I had been touched by virtue,
In truth I was, however, so much nearer to the goal,
but sought not from the hand of Death a weighty recompense.
Upon the course I slowly trod the dark and perilous journey.
I found the woods around me growing overgrown and dense.
The night descended swift and soon the blackness which enfolded,
Did feed upon my mind and caused me pray for providence.
So soon the twisted branches did impede my steady progress,
To lead me blindly from the chosen path that I did take.
I foundered then upon a broad expanse of rocky clearing,
As all around the sweetest sounds did in my heart vibrate,
Or in my mind I knew not where it filled the silent airs,
With cadences of heavenly song inspiring reverence.
I held my breath in gaping fear and petrified amazement,
I felt the pounding rhythm of the chambers of my heart,
The flow of blood did ebb and course throughout the veins and organs,
Before me stood a sight I recognized but could not grasp.
Descending from the ether in the heavens far above me,
In clouds of glory streaming and in rays of shimmering light,
Angelic forms a crystalline bright halo there surrounded,
And within that halo luminous perfection met my sight . . .
Within the very centre point administered by angels,
I did behold a countenance that put all sin to flight,
I witnessed with my mundane eye her strange unearthly beauty,
This messenger who banish-ed the shadows of the night.
This imperfect mortal did behold a vision of his Lady,
Celestial her outer form unmarried Queen of Heaven,
And I did think that I beheld the blessed Virgin Mary,
Standing there before me clothed in loving radiance.
Two roses on her feet around her ankles were entwine-d,
Her raiment like the silver stars, her girdle shone like gold,
Her hair as white as driven snow did fall and flow behind her,
She was the true and perfect One made manifest and whole.
I was bereft of speech and thought,
in this thus brought to stillness,
As I beheld this icon and portal to the stars,
I knelt before her presence then in deep and humble reverence,
Before her graceful hand did show the sign that I should rise,
And indicated then that I need have no fear of vengeance,
She did not Lord Jehovah’s wrathful anger thus evoke.
(The Spirit):
Fear not thyself I am thyself,
A thousand rushing winds,
Did issue from my inner being as though each were a tongue,
Of living incandescent light revealing to mine eyes,
Celestial choirs,
angelic forms
and visions in the skies,
the limits which in human words are inexpressible.
(The Spirit):
Fear not thyself and know thyself,
Oh mortal man behold!
Prepare to witness with thy mind the ancient tales untold . . .
In speaking this she did not utter sounds of mortal nature,
But entered through a doorway to a chamber in my mind,
And there she dwelt with heartfelt love in deep communication,
Dispensing truth and gladness
and prophecies divine.
Be glad the dove makes haste my love,
from fair and distant lands,
To free you from all sorrows to
a life reborn and new.
Come forth now from your mortal shell,
and I will clothe you, my dear friend,
In garments golden braided with
abundant heavenly glory.
As she this song of silence sung my soul became refined,
Or purified, I know not which, my mundane faculties,
And all the dregs of former wrongs did there within me die,
My naked soul was twice released from all the ties that bind.
And as she thus imparted truth befitting of her station,
My mind became as one with her,
Mystic illumination.
(Chorus):
Exultates jubilates
The Noble Queen so near to me did seek to venture then,
That I now in her presence close did clearly start to shake,
My lips and lidded eyes tight closed I tried to keep composure,
as my Lady of the Hours once more did softly start to speak:
I am that I am in mind and form,
to be your Queen of Heaven,
The Great Unknown has brought me forth,
as light to lead the way,
Your mind alone could encompass not all that great truth or splendor,
I am the guide who shall lead you forth,
beyond all thoughts mundane.
In waves of fear I spoke in thought but not a word was uttered,
To question then the essence and the substance of her being,
For if the form before me was of strange immortal nature
My mind must have run riot,
And conjured up this dream,
To fill my heart with manic thoughts and strange imaginings.
I am no mere reflection of your mind.
A vision or a dream which is confined,
By all the thoughts of your experience,
I will inspire through faith and innocence.
I am a consequence of life’s existence,
which takes substantial form from mind and life,
Fear not the friend and guide who in your presence,
Shall help you to perceive the wrong from right.
And as my Lady took me by the hand she softly whispered,
And then my soul transmuted to another sphere refined,
Ascending then my soul like light within a sun did die,
To be reborn in purifying sublime ecstasy.
Canto II
The Spirit reveals the first and second of her multiple forms.
She discusses with the Voyager the nature of the cosmos, its
manifest and latent aspects, and their relation to life,
death and justice.
As I then with my Lady did survey the plains of Eden,
My thoughts expelled did rest upon her countenance divine,
Her heavenly gaze did through her eyes communicate her beauty,
&nbs
p; Which introduced the first of many concepts to my mind,
And through this act she purified my false imaginings.
The poet is the Everyman who evolves to realize,
That life, the sacred narrative made conscious in the mind,
Must in every action be of vital consequence,
And thus transfigure through these acts the personality.
As Jesus acted out the role of Messianic prophet,
And thus became the Shepherd and the Keeper of the Fold,
The poet as a prophet must believe that they too hold,
The means to reconfigure self with every living word.
And poets too shall suffer in this process of creation,
From death to resurrection on the page of history.
Till they be cleansed by passing time of human imperfections,
And take their place within the vaults of cultured memory.
Transported then by reason through her ever guiding presence,
My mind through thought did thus perceive a vision in her eyes.
I then beheld an image new,
in form a young male poet,
Whose eyes did yet retain the light and nature of my guide . . .
The rose lipped poet spoke his words as I in rapt attention,
Did contemplate their meaning and their true significance,
Oh holy choir resound the words as echoes from the past,
The basic verse transforming but the inner sense shall last,
Reflecting every aspect of his charmed philosophy:
This passage called the dance of life,
is error strewn, with pain and strife,
And represents a struggle brief, with that which seems, but cannot be,
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