They Both Desire To Rule- Nietzsche Recast In Poem

Ages there are in which the ration'l man
And th'intuitive stand side by side, the one

In fear of intuition, or scorn for abstraction;
Irrational one, the other inartistic.

They both desire to rule over their life,
Unreal or real, counting life to be.

Prudence, foresight and regularity,
The means with which one meets needs principal.

One o'erjoyed hero disregards these needs,
Counts life as beauty and an illusion.

As in the 'case in ancient Greece, th'intuitive,
Handles his weapons authoritatively,

Victoriously than his opponent, and
Establishes art's mastery over life.

All utensils we use in daily life,
Were made from art, not from our pressing needs.

Houses, our clothes, our clay jugs, all them were
Intended to express exalted joy.

Guided by abstractions and concepts, we
Succeeds in warding off our misfortunes,

Without ever gaining any happiness;
So that's the case the ration'l man's life is.

Th'intuitive man, aim freedom from his pain,
Standing a-firm amidst his culture's frame,

Reaps cheer, illumination and redemption.
Defense against misfortunes, he obtains.

I was once advised to read Nietzsche's 'On Truth And Lies In A Non-moral Sense.'I do not read Nietzsche; I sing it. I sing 'On Truth And Lies In A Non-moral Sense' this way. I am sad to observe that Nietzsche did not write it this way but in his eloquent flowing prose. Unfortunately, when I look at such prose and skim content, lines appear this way to me.

A Poem By P.S.Remesh Chandran. Editor, Sahyadri Books & Bloom Books. Trivandrum.

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