C A M E L I A E L I A S

i12bent:

Closing with a really taut composition -

Roy DeCarava: Sun and Shade, 1952

(via addiction-mb)

i12bent:

Paul Celan, one of the most complex of all 20th C. European poets, was born Nov. 23, 1920 (d. 1970, suicide)…

Above: All Souls (Poetry, Sept. 1971 - transl. Michael Hamburger)

i12bent:

One of the great essayists of our time, the erudite Guy Davenport, who during the last 40 years of his life spent most of his time in rural Kentucky: Nov. 23, 1927 - 2005…

Davenport has also created some of the most relevant translations from classical Greek, esp. of Heraclitus and Sappho. In addition to his work with non-fiction and translation he wrote poetry, short stories and created visual art (often illustrating his own books).

Above: A small excerpt from The Resurrection in Cookham Churchyard, Poetry, 1963

This poem details the manner of resurrection of a large number of notable personages, including the following:

Christina Rosetti: English Pre-Raphaelite poet

Ludwig Wittgenstein: Austrian philosopher playing language games

Søren Kierkegaard: Danish existentialist philosopher

Raphael Pumpelly: American geologist and explorer

Hugh Miller: Scottish geologist and folklorist

Johannes Brahms: German composer

Octave Maus: Belgian art critic and writer

Roger Casement: Irish nationalist and humanitarian, executed for treason by the Brits

i12bent:

Eugène Ionesco, French-Romanian absurdist playwright: Nov. 26, 1909 - 1994…

“Ideologies separate us. Dreams and anguish bring us together.” — E.I.

Photo : Franziska Rast, Erker Galerie, Saint Gall, 1980s - at an exhibition of Ionesco’s own art…

In search of the philosopher's stone, we are melting like copper;
   you whose philosopher's stone is cushion and pillow, sleep on.
I have abandoned hope for my brain and head; you who wish for
   a clear head and fresh brain, sleep on.
I have torn speech like a tattered robe and let words go;
   you who are still dressed in your clothes, sleep on. (Rumi)

Translated by Jack Marshall
Arabian Nights
Coffeehouse Press, October 1986

i12bent:

Much like J.D. Salinger, Aldous Huxley was an adherent of Vedantic faith. In fact, together with Gerald Heard, Christopher Isherwood, and other followers he was initiated by the Swami Prabhavananda and was taught meditation and spiritual practices…

“All that happens means something; nothing you do is ever insignificant.” ― Aldous Huxley, Crome Yellow

Photo: Bassano, September 1931 - vintage print (NPG, London)

i12bent:

Aimé Césaire: Prophecy - from The Collected Poetry, transl. by Clayton Eshleman and Anette Smith

(Source: lumpy-pudding)

After a while

You learn

After a while you learn the subtle difference

between holding a hand and chaining a soul,

and you learn that love doesn’t mean leaning

and company doesn’t mean security.

And you begin to learn that kisses aren’t contracts

and presents aren’t promises,

and you begin to accept your defeats

with your head up and your eyes open

with the grace of a woman, not the grief of a child,

and you learn to build all your roads on today

because tomorrow’s ground is too uncertain for plans

and futures have a way of falling down in mid-flight.

After a while you learn

that even sunshine burns if you get too much.

So you plant your garden and decorate your own soul,

instead of waiting for someone to bring you flowers.

And you learn that you really can endure.

That you really are strong.

And you really do have worth.

And you learn. And learn.

With every good-bye you learn.

–– attr. to Jorge Luis Borges