Underworld Poems

To Hell and Back

A verse retelling of the story of Orpheus, son of Apollo and Calliope, who was the husband of Eurydice. They were not married long when Eurydice was bitten by a snake and died. Orpheus, overcome with grief, journeyed to the Underworld to plead that his wife be restored to him. With his skillful playing of

My call to the underworld

I sat there for what seemed an eternity.
I lost myself in an ocean of orange and red.
How poignant, Staring off into the remnants of
yesterday. how beautiful to recall a sun that slowly
gives its life so that others may live. How inconsiderate
a solitary tear to acknowledge a sacrifice. A subtle shiver
as the shedding of my skin.

Underworld

UnderWorld
 A rainy night.
 Under a black sky.
 A mysterious figure from above.
 She jumped down below.
 Fangs with blood.
 Always on the run.
 With a black silk bodysuit.
 With 2 guns firing on pursuit.
 A vampire on the rise.
 Take out victims by surprise.
 Always lurking in the dark.
 Hiding not far.
 Looking for

It is written

the underworld rumbles and summons
beckoning in groveled whispers
with undertones of shady pretenses

haunted by gods and demons
who brazenly wave their book of souls
tormentors do the dirty work in afterlife

meanwhile here kings and rulers
wealth in pocket pauper in heart
build their towers to climb to heaven

every last of these towers of babylon
will one day come apart at the

Tripwire

She had been indoctrinated to believe her country was free
But she hit the tripwires, had nowhere to flee
She learned the hard way that what she'd been taught
were lies from a regime that couldn't be fought.

His country was designed free, the constitution shows
But there are some paths where nobody goes
There is organized crime, and ideologues on

HALLS OF AMENTI 2

HALLS OF AMENTI 2

Doom dark in the 
Halls of Amenti
whole families are 
dropped down drains 
covers shut tight
no pink flamingos  
not a single orange 
tree in sight

They grope along hold 
each other’s fat oozing 
rats over feet beat
noisy fish tank heat
some scream 
where’s hubby cream !
others connect online
or via human law 
to no avail

Beyond the unseen

I dread that unseen day,
When mortal bounds will fade away,
And death's dark veil will lift to show
The secrets kept from living eyes.
My soul, unmoored, will wander slow.

Perhaps in realms of ethereal light,
It will drift, a leaf on cosmic winds,
Among wonders hidden from our sight,
Where spirits roam, or solitude entwines.
Free from flesh, my essence will take

katabasis

Euridice, Euridice
daughter of mortals, sworn to divine;
the bell tolls, the bell rings
“I’m sorry, I miss you”
Orpheus turns;  Euridice.

the unmade sheets, dog-eared pages 
stacked, dishes scattered in the sink
sunlight splashes 
I close my eyes
I see the ghost of where you’ve been

how long has it been
since the summer of your smile, 
the spring of your voice.
twenty

Virgil Translation: Descent into the Underworld

Aeneid Book 6: The Descent into the Underworld
by Virgil
loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

The Sibyl began to speak to Aeneas:

“God-blooded Trojan, son of Anchises,
descending into the Underworld’s easy
since Death’s dark door stands eternally unbarred.
But to retrace one’s steps and return to the surface:
that’s the conundrum, that’s the catch!
Godsons have done it, the chosen few
whom welcoming

Lilith

Oh, Lilith, circled by that vicious snake
and draped by owl wings as a feathered shawl;
hair crowned with spiraled horns for evil sake-
of which the snake itself seems to appall.

Oh, Lilith, your deep, luminous red eyes
instill cold fear while shooting fiery glow-
with a blank stare that quickly amplifies
cruel dangers brooding- waiting to bestow.

Oh, Lilith, your fake

Persephone returns

Gray,
Dismal
Rainy days.
Then leafless trees,
As it gets warmer,
All start to sprout new buds.
Migratory birds appear.
Abandoning the underworld, 
And the ruler of the dead, Hades,
Persephone returns to Demeter.

Where the last army laments

WHERE THE GARDEN SHINES ABOVE
ABOVE GEMS AND GOLD
WHERE THE FIRST FAMILY LAUGHS
IN GROVES AND MEADOWS
WHERE CHRIST, THE WHITE LAMB, FROLICS
IN THE GRASS WITH THE FIRST MAN

Where the desert darkens below
Below rocks and dirt
Where the last army laments
In caves and wastelands
Where Satan, the black wolf, hunts 
On bare earth with the last man

Anubis

Anubis, his decision, who has admission
mummification array, slows rot and decay

Laughter For Now and the Hereafter

Wearing nothing but rags
We laugh and sail on the seas of the netherworld
Without flags

With iron nails
The lamb laughed on the cross's world 
Without wails

With gaffe
Against seas whirled
Laugh

Some souls laughed at their rags
Laughed when they entered heaven's world
Laugh


Contest: lets Minichu on laughter Poetry Contest
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Please Return To the Underworld

I ran into the house and slammed the door.
The tiny stone people are in the garden again!
My husband rolled his eyes and headed to the store.
He is not fearful of them, he hears not their din.

They speak to me, and some of the words are mean.
I was horrified to see them in my garden green.
They

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