Poem: "Onism"
This poem came out of the January 7, 2025 Poetry Fishbowl. It fills the "Silks and Saddles" square in my 1-1-25 card for the Public Domain Day Bingo fest. It has been sponsored by janetmiles. This poem belongs to A Poesy of Obscure Sorrows series.
"Onism"
the awareness of how little of
the world you'll actually experience
Singularity is an illusion
that drives mortals to frenzy.
You are not singular but
a wave in an infinite ocean,
individual yet interwoven.
You are not your body
but a soul having
a human experience.
Everything is alive;
everything is connected.
To touch the rest of it,
you need only release
the illusion of singularity.
Become aware that you
are part of All That Is,
embrace the infinity
that is your true self.
Cherish the body that
you have while you have it,
the time while you live it.
Try anything, try everything
in reach, tell all the stories.
Wear silks and linens;
ride saddles of horses,
camels, and elephants.
Get off the beaten path
and go with wonder.
Walk the sacred Earth
with your bare feet and
feel the soil that gives
rise to the biosphere.
Breathe the air that was
here from the beginning.
Taste the waters that
have supported all of life.
Smell the flowers and
listen to the social insects
buzzing all around them.
Read everything in sight
to follow the paths of those
who have traveled where
you have not yet gone.
Take it all in, everything,
mindful of each moment
of your mortal life.
In the end, when it
comes time to cast off
the last of your boundaries
and slip free of mortal skin,
you will already remember how
to be everything everywhere all at once.
* * *
Notes:
The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows by John Koenig, p. 35. Simon & Schuster, 2021.
This comes after "Zielschmerz." Note that there is another "onism" (on page ix) about being limited to one body.
"Onism"
the awareness of how little of
the world you'll actually experience
Singularity is an illusion
that drives mortals to frenzy.
You are not singular but
a wave in an infinite ocean,
individual yet interwoven.
You are not your body
but a soul having
a human experience.
Everything is alive;
everything is connected.
To touch the rest of it,
you need only release
the illusion of singularity.
Become aware that you
are part of All That Is,
embrace the infinity
that is your true self.
Cherish the body that
you have while you have it,
the time while you live it.
Try anything, try everything
in reach, tell all the stories.
Wear silks and linens;
ride saddles of horses,
camels, and elephants.
Get off the beaten path
and go with wonder.
Walk the sacred Earth
with your bare feet and
feel the soil that gives
rise to the biosphere.
Breathe the air that was
here from the beginning.
Taste the waters that
have supported all of life.
Smell the flowers and
listen to the social insects
buzzing all around them.
Read everything in sight
to follow the paths of those
who have traveled where
you have not yet gone.
Take it all in, everything,
mindful of each moment
of your mortal life.
In the end, when it
comes time to cast off
the last of your boundaries
and slip free of mortal skin,
you will already remember how
to be everything everywhere all at once.
* * *
Notes:
The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows by John Koenig, p. 35. Simon & Schuster, 2021.
This comes after "Zielschmerz." Note that there is another "onism" (on page ix) about being limited to one body.