Stelliferous the stars o’erspread
that lace the heavens overhead
and sparkle plentifully bright
to grace the atramental night
when face of lumined sol has fled.
Sidereals the skies embed
bejeweling where dreamers tread
to render poets’ fancies quite
stelliferous.
With wonderment the welkin’s wed
to linger long in starry bed
‘midst tapestries all strands unite
of infinite supernal light
e’er woven with celestial thread
stelliferous.
~ Harley White
* * * * * * * * *
The poem is in the form of a rondeau…
An enigma
wrapped in mystery
covered in secrets
risking hell
A legend
from the ages
bereft of sages
casting spells
The message
nondescriptive
in ephemera
laden tongues
Lucy in the sky
bejeweling
screaming deafness
— silence won
(Dreamsleep: April, 2024)
Ryokan translations of Zen Death Haiku and other Poems
First one hidden face is revealed,
then the other; thus spinning it falls,
the autumn leaf.
—Ryokan (1758-1831), loose translation by Michael R. Burch
This world:
a distant mountain echo
dying unheard in the Void ...
—Ryokan (1758-1831), loose translation by Michael R. Burch
The peonies I planted around my hut
I must now surrender
to the wind’s will
—Ryokan (1758-1831), loose translation by Michael R. Burch
Wild peonies
blossoming in their prime,
glorious in full bloom:
Too precious to pick,
Too precious to leave unplucked
—Ryokan (1758-1831), loose translation by Michael R. Burch
I persuaded a child to purchase rural wine;
once I'm nicely tipsy,
I’ll slap down some calligraphy.
—Ryokan (1758-1831), loose translation by Michael R. Burch
The thief missed it:
the moon
bejeweling my window.
—Ryokan (1758-1831), loose translation by Michael R. Burch
The Orchid
Deep in the valley, a secluded beauty!
Serene, peerless, impossibly lovely.
In the bamboo thicket’s shadowy tower
she seems to sigh softly for a lover.
—Ryokan (1758-1831), loose translation by Michael R. Burch
Bedazzling,
Bejeweling,
Moonlit
Diamond of love
Recovered and
Discovered in the
Midst of intensely
Passion,
Discerned as real
In the glow of the
Beginning hours of our relationship,
Shared as glowingly
As carbon-originated
Diamonds
Unclear when
The diamond turned into
A diamante, a rhinestone, a
Sequin,
But when it did, the diamond
Rapidly dissipated
Billy Buttons
under the
Celery Pines
free verse
Billy Button's downy foliage
Burst open with large gold blooms.
Midst thousands of dandelion's green
Above, celery pines tip their plumes.
Grasslands wave contently in the fields
Missouri golden rods climb the hill.
Broom beard grass and buffalo clover
Send subtle earthy scents, cross my sill.
Mulberry's beckoning to the blue ash,
Creeping soft grass hides the jasmine crepes.
Water pond seeks dry nooks and crannies
As nature swags her majestic drapes.
All of nature is alive and full of romance
Kissed by morning dew she opens her buds
Her long silky fingers rustle all to wake
Bejeweling earth in vibrant colored studs.
Carole Cookie Arnold
2010<>
Looking for the formal definition, structure, and history of this poetry form? Visit the Poetry Dictionary entry below. Then return to explore how PoetrySoup members bring the form to life through their own poems.