Best Courtesans Poems

Aha - argh... oh my dog...
don't mind me muttering, eh?

Earlier today (May 5th, 2020),
I forget thee exact hour
found me utterly beside mice elf,
matter of fact even at this moment,
yours truly doth feel mad at himself
cuz Aldi's merchandise (mostly food)
needed to be restored to their proper...

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Renee Vivien Translations


Song
by Renée Vivien
loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

When the moon weeps,
illuminating flowers on the graves of the faithful,
my memories creep
back to you, wrapped in flightless wings.

It's getting late; soon we will sleep
(your eyes already half closed)
steeped
in the shimmering air.

O, the agony of burning...

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Alas morning has come, 
the treacherous storm has passed
Anticipation heightens my senses as the wind swirls past, 
The essence of musk engulfs me;
Replacing the aroma of sea salt that once filled the misty air
I am assured that my beloved pirate is homeward bound

Perched upon my...

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Rejection
a roundel by Geoffrey Chaucer
loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Your beauty from your heart has so erased
Pity, that it's useless to complain;
For Pride now holds your mercy by a chain.

I'm guiltless, yet my sentence has been passed.
I tell you truly, needless now to feign:
Your beauty...

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Moulin Rouge

The greens and pinks magnetize to my eye
Like flowers abloom, in a field espied;
That overwhelms creation’s invention
With beauty of grandiose dimension
Shifting to the wind’s orchestrated movements,
And winks my soul agape by the performance
To be delighted by the extravaganza presented.

To see the hand, relax in...

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The lament of an evil man on the eve of death:

“It is twilight in paradise 
And the end of my idle life 
Of lavish pleasure is nigh. 
My dreams benighted, 
Crumbling before my eyes,
I sorely regret frittering away 
Those calm prosperous days 
Of youth, wealth...

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You were born in a war ravaged state
You lost your man to the caprices of fate
You fell prey to your wayward ways
Victims of betrayal, greed or circumstances
You were drowned in the tide of darkness

Depraved incidents of forced sex and perversions
Rooted in carnal desires and unsated...

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Yosa Buson haiku translations

On the temple’s great bronze gong
a butterfly
snoozes.
?Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Hard to describe:
this light sensation of being pinched
by a butterfly!
?Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Not to worry spiders,
I clean house ... sparingly.
?Yosa Buson, loose translation/interpretation by Michael...

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The Land Of Royal Monarchs


from the plains we see
the land of royal monarchs 
perched on a hilltop

its architecture
draws us to the heritage 
of the blue blooded 

secret lives of kings
unveiled flamboyancy with
queens and courtesans

heirs of dynasties
dreamed treacheries and murders 
as game for the throne

princely monument
in...

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...a tribute to Hermann Hesse and his novel 'Narziss Und Goldmund.'


Two friends in early childhood when their lives were worry free,
each pursued his own direction to fulfill his destiny.
One was tempted by the devil to devote his life to greed,
debauchery, dissimulation, he embraced each sinful...

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Les Bijoux (The Jewels)
by Charles Baudelaire
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

My lover nude and knowing my heart's whims
Wore nothing more than a few bright-flashing gems;
Her art was saving men despite their sins;
She ruled like harem girls crowned with diadems!

She danced for me with a gay...

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The battlefield, never a place of beauty
Flowers grow, where blood did flow
And souls were taken, by sword and arrow
All in the name of a god, we shall meet too soon

Battle cries, as eagles sore
Hunting for dinner, their final score
Symphonies compose the battle plans, 
Marching bands...

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Li Po, the Wanderer
Was appointed Court Poet
Yet left again in haste,
Preferring the bright noise of a waterfall
To the white noise of courtesans and kings....

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...a tribute to Hermann Hesse and his novel 'Narziss Und Goldmund.'

                            ***********

Two friends in early childhood when their...

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POLLY WANT A CRACKER??

…and so they play
political musical chairs
uncostumed clowns
scampering about
like children,
pushing and shoving
accusing all
of acting like them.
Passing electronic notes
for all to see
while accusing others
of “leaking” information.
Feigning indignation
at the behavior
of their adversaries,
grandstanding before
a shepherdless congress,
Milling about the political
dog park sniffing and barking
leaving a mess for...

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