Promise, or: Purpose

Poetry Partners #151

‘Ride the Chaos’, a poem by Tanmay Philip of ‘Blog inVERSE’

There was a time

When I eagerly lapped up
The teachings of
Gurus, preachers
Spiritual masters
Searching for
Truth and grace
Magic and meaning

There was a time

I breathed in their smoke
Until I choked
Seeing visions
Born from asphyxiation
Eagerly making order
Out of false premises
And fake promises

There was a time

When I longed for a sip
Of Ayahuasca
Or transubstantiated wine
Anything
To make meaning
Out of pain and life
To cut my chain with a knife

There was a time

I ceased questioning
And let them dictate
Who and what I am
What I was
What I will be
I found comfort
In authority

There was a time

I began questioning
Everything
And became vulnerable
Chaotic, psychotic
Uncomfortable
Inspired
A creator

There are times

When I sense my body wandering
Wondering where ‘I’ have been
Unrecognizable
For a few seconds
After a great journey
That I’ve almost forgotten
My third eye blurry

Every time

I know that I am
A man with a body, mind and soul
Whole, though I am
At the bottom of a hole
Trapped by temporality
And reason, but not alone
Connected; All life is holy

I make a promise this time

To renew my questioning
To ride the chaotic spiral of Life
To stop being complacent
To stop being impatient
To get my head out of the ground
To open my eyes
To destroy the lies I tell myself

Blog inVERSE: https://slipstreamswimming.wordpress.com/

A ‘golden shovel’ in the form of a ‘shadorma’ by ben Alexander of ‘The Skeptic’s Kaddish’

hopeful, I
attempted to make
sense of a
stock promise
made by the faithful of this
world; the rub was time

today, I
know: no one can make
even a
kind promise
of purpose come true, for this
demands will and time

Let’s write poetry together!

When it comes to partnership, some humans can make their lives alone – it’s possible. But creatively, it’s more like painting: you can’t just use the same colours in every painting. It’s just not an option. You can’t take the same photograph every time and live with art forms with no differences.
–Ben Harper (b. 1969)

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!