Moondive.

If you wish to know the politics of a dead man
Set his body on a hill
And let man take his bones for arms
Let the battle be fierce
But no so fierce as to make one man mistake
Mettle for valour or creed for honour
For these are neither opiums of men
Who are nor men who aren't
These hold meaning only to men who sleep
The only true virtue is forgetfulness

Because the soul that remembers
Is soon caught in yesterday's tendrils
Like the communist who fears the
Doubts on his own shadow
And so eats the pages of a manifesto
That has no promise of taste or nurture

As if ideology knows the mind of the heart
Enough to protect it from sword or age
But still it remains that you cannot subscribe
To a cause if it is known to you - for then it becomes required practice
And loses meaning
The true believer walks in darkness
And as such
You cannot also save a man with whom you have dined



-JSL.

Reviews

[Sami Khalil]

"Like the communist who fears the
Doubts on his own shadow
And so eats the pages of a manifesto
That has no promise of taste or nurture

As if ideology knows the mind of the heart
Enough to protect it from sword or age
But still it remains that you cannot subscribe
To a cause if it is known to you - for then it becomes required practice
And loses meaning "

Thank you for enlightening us on so many issues of our times...You are splendid...:).........................

[Priscilla Sayers]

Very intense Homie!
Love it
Miss reading your brilliance!!!!

[Alvin L. Kathembe]

I must admit the first two stanzas did not mean much, to me. Perhaps the metaphor of the dead man's bones flew right over my head.

"As if ideology knows the mind of the heart
Enough to protect it from sword or age
But still it remains that you cannot subscribe
To a cause if it is known to you - for then it becomes required practice
And loses meaning
The true believer walks in darkness
And as such
You cannot also save a man with whom you have dined "

I really like this one. It's true - no ideology can truly sway the hearts of men. Men are rarely moved by ideals, by ideas. But they will fight and kill and die for the most ridiculous doctrines as long as you sway their hearts and tap into their passions. History is replete with examples - the Hitlers, the Popes, the cult leaders. People will wage crusades to force a 'heathen' enemy to embrace their 'correct' religion of love.
We are so seemingly afraid of thinking for ourselves that we are happy to let others think for us, decide for us. Men have always loved a mystery. A magic trick loses its allure once you learn how it's done. The true believer who walks in darkness will follow his leader, blind though he be, straight into the Pit.
Thank you for sharing, you made me think quite a bit, which is always a good thing!

[KAOlmsted]

"The only true virtue is forgetfulness..." If this is true, I am the most virtuous woman on the planet ;-) I really like your debate here, Joshua. It made me think, but, alas, I won't remember a word of it tomorrow *laugh* Thanks so much for sharing this with us.

[InsanityWriter]

Intriguing. I liked reading this, very thought provoking... :) Great work!!

[Baby Ricochet]

Weird. Some cool imagery though. Good one

[.]

~ it's an interesting perspective... and it's brilliantly articulated... you excel in articulation... and you continue to improve... so you excel more with time... like wine...

[SHEEMA HUQ]

a poem with deep meanings, of mortality and morality, really interesting usage of language as ever, rather gritty on this occasion I thought, to your high standard, excellent

[Nick.B]

Interesting piece that captures many aspect of political issues, love the concept and how you've ended...faith can play a big role in politics (may god bless that, here and there)...anyway great job love it