For my improv piece I wanted to emulate the ideas found in both “Under the
Vulture Tree” and “Ode to the Maggot.” Both poems were able to defamiliarize
their subjects and also were quite successful in making these “gross” things
appear ethereal or divine. I have taken the subject of the maggot and tried to
so the same in my own way – by comparing it to a Hindu yogi.
“Ode To The Yogi Maggot”
Stillness at first
Still from far away.
Twisting their bodies into pretzel
shapes,
Look closer and you will see
wispy-haired Yogis on their paths to
enlightenment.
Abstaining from worldly pleasures,
approaching their work in the spirit of
love,
every bite a sacred ritual, fulfilled
as a sacrifice
to God’s Glory.
Mystics, these are - Sramana,
Owning:
no house
no property
no sons
no cattle.
eating only what is given,
committing no sin.
Meditating over their work, peaceful,
detached,
living in their heads, one with the
Earth.
Uniting the spirit of the dead with
their God that lies concealed
In the deepest recess of decay.
Promising. Maybe try now to give your lines more weight. Think of lines like bookshelves. You don't want just ONE THING on a shelf. Clutter them up, a bit. Make each one interesting. Does each line, in other words, merit standing on its own?
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