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THE MEANING OF LIFE (Unfinished)
Contributed by
Demetrius_F_P_Stuwart
on
Tuesday, 27th January 2004 @ 09:40:26 AM in AEST
Topic:
Lifepoems
|
I. The Philosopher's Quest
Life, like a rose of many myriad petals,
Each interconnected, interdependent, interactive;
All masterfully, meticulously, marvelously balanced.
Life, a paradox in its complex simplicity;
A flower flourishing amid the weeds of inhospitable odds.
It is power of being within all beings.
The centerpiece of Creation
And masterpiece of the Creator....
Ah, but what unfathomable muse could inspire
So brilliant a metaphysical masterpiece?
This exquisite sculpture of mind and spirit
Painted with a living palette of flesh and body.
Is our existence but a mindless mantra of meaninglessness?
Or has the cast of mankind an ordained role
In the Grand Scheme of Things?
And every man a distinct part to play
In this Drama of Days?
The conscious mind asks "Who am I?"
While the sound mind asks "What am I?"
But the philosophical mind asks "Why am I?"
And for the answer, I invite you to embark with me now
On a wondrous journey not traveled by foot,
But by mind and spirit, through openness of heart.
A pilgrimage of faith, vision, self-discovery:
A quest of question:
The quest of the Philosopher.
II. The Secular Savant
Thus, having set forth through the halls of the sacred Schools of Thought,
We venture first to the school of the undeclared student.
The unexclusive, all-inclusive, Elementary School
Proudly attended by the commoner and nobleman alike;
An institution boasting world enrollment and universal alumni.
We boldly enter at its broad, garishly ornate gates,
Which stand ever-unguarded, forever open in welcome to temporal travelers.
And once therein, within its well-worn walls and well-traveled halls,
We find a numberless multitude walking every walk of life.
As we look upon them, we witness a motion portrait of infinite diversity:
A panoramic snapshot of every living kind and corner of humanity:
We see the Lover, manifested as a dashing Medieval suitor upon bended knee,
Solemnly proclaiming his adoration before the statue of a fair maiden.
There is the Hatemonger looming as a menacing ogre brandishing a bloody club,
His face hidden beneath a shadowy veil of contempt, his eyes afire with malice.
And we bear witness to the epic, never-ending classic confrontation
Between the outlaw and the lawman, locked in desperate, deadly dual.
We note that there are classrooms for everyone and everyone is in his class,
And to each class the headmaster, Society, teaches a different lesson of life
To a captive audience of pupils who sit at his feet in meek obedience.
Many graduate some classes by making grades of feat or fortune;
While other classes prove unpassable prisons of no escape.
Come...let us mingle with the multitude and meet with the masses.
Perhaps herein, in this fledgling leg of our journey, lies the answer we seek!
So, with pride in our purpose and purpose in our pace,
We step amongst the Wayfarers of the Worldly Way.
And all at once, we are enveloped in the relentless bustle
Of sight, sound and sensation that is the Circus of World Events.
We make our way through the thicket of motion and commotion,
And come upon a man--a common man-a man of the ordinary and everyday.
As we watch, we see him rub shoulders with the Moguls of Money,
Only to shift with accustomed ease and mix with the Denizens of Destitution.
He is a carouser with the playboy and consort of the vagabond,
While a proud, card-carrying partizan of the Bourgeois Majority.
We give pause to ponder the merry exploits of this social cosmopolitan.
And then, at last, it is time....
Thus, we boldly approach the mysterious man of the world.
He acknowledges us with a hardy greeting, as he lights up a fine cigar.
"Kind sir," I greet him politely,
"Perhaps you can help us: we seek the meaning of life."
The gentleman paused in a moment of reflection,
Cupping his chin and furrowing his brow, as he rocked on his heels.
Finally, with a chuckle and puff of his cigar, he offered this:
"We, the world of the materialist mind and secular sect,
Stand unfettered by the church or any religious respect.
We acknowledge no Bible and worship no God;
In fact, some of us find thought of a deity odd.
The irreligious mind flows freely, naturally as a pristine brook,
Untainted by indoctrinated guilt or teachings from a book.
I believe in separation of church and state;
Religion has no place in political debate.
It is the contention of the society secular that when a man in all his ways
Looks out over his landscape of life and liberty, he is lord of all he surveys.
In Science do we commit our faith to fathom our reality:
Enlightenment comes by inquiry, learning and rationality!
There is no proof of the unseen, at such folly we look askance;
All is physics and phenomena by chance and circumstance.
Where is the promise of an afterlife? Who is back from the grave to tell?
Life is Heaven, life is Hell, life is the here-and-now in this mortal shell.
A man's code is his creed, and his convictions strong;
My ethics are my bible, I sing the Freethinker's song!
I am my greatest champion, confidant and ally;
In a call to action, I am the Savior to whom I cry!
Do unto others as they have done unto you:
Be always faithful to give friends and enemies what is due.
The hypocrite in our midst us touts Holiness and Hell,
In a self-righteous spectacle to deceive and compel.
Church is merely a social occasion to see and be seen,
A place to put on airs in one's finery, gossip and convene.
I know of no supreme being greater than the human race,
And that's where I stand, until I meet one face to face.
Behold the Devil--the great Horned Scapegoat in effigy!
Just a name for the abuse of free will and dark side of destiny.
Religion is man-made mythology of fairy tales told;
To pander to the people and solicit for gold.
Life is a tango of good and evil in the dance of daily deeds;
We do what is right or expedient as per our wishes and needs.
Shakespeare was right in his epiphany that all the world's a stage:
Actors begin a script of innocence, but forget their lines with age.
Life is a lifestyle defined by you:
A portrait by whom the brush is given to.
In truth, my friend, it is for the moral high ground we try,
But alas for the heart, the child in us we satisfy.
I celebrate the secular, I revel in the worldly way!
Hurrah for Progress and Civilization, the hope of today!
The meaning of Life is hardly a mystery,
Its riddle unraveled through study of history.
The keys of life are defined as three;
They measure the sum of you and me:
And the first key is Pleasure:
The Pleasures of Mind are Diamonds of shimmering light;
Sparkling with happiness and fulfillment coruscating in flight.
The Pleasures of Body are Rubies burning crimson bright;
Afire with sensuality and lusty passions born in the heat of night.
The second key is Purpose:
A man is known by his trade and his trade by its worth:
We are valued by contribution in what we bring to the earth.
It is our piece in the puzzle of society that defines us:
We are cogs, we are conduits in a great engine marvelous.
And the third key is Power:
Wealth: the power of money and material things:
The hand of acquisition, the favorite toy of kings.
Status: the power of reputation, authority and persuasion:
The politician's prerogative and celebrity's occasion.
Ability: the power of mental and physical ableness combined:
Survival of the fittest and favor of the fairest--the weak fall behind.
And thus is the meaning of Life as this student was taught.
Herein lies the sacred mystery your quest has sought.
Now go henceforth a graduate of my college.
You leave this school of thought an alumnus of knowledge!"
Copyright ©
Demetrius_F_P_Stuwart
... [
2004-01-27 09:40:26]
(Date/Time posted on
site)
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Re: THE MEANING OF LIFE (Unfinished)
(User Rating: 1 )
by Lionel on
Thursday, 12th February 2004 @ 01:14:33 PM AEST
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a Message)
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What say ye then, my wise friend you,
Is it blind fate and a little luck too,
Some random power to tip the scale
And bring forth heaven, or show us hell?
I choose a design of great import,
A meaningful kind of a rational sort,
With a purpose far above the crush,
Of humanity's desire-filled headlong rush.
An intent supreme, of a virtuous kind,
With purer motive and reasoned mind,
To set things right and bring an end,
Much more desirable than chance can pen.
To vindicate the causeof all,
The pain, the strife, the rise and fall,
Of history's travial from then til now.
Could the answer be thus simply stated,
"by Him and for Him they were created?
Please read the complete poem "With good purpose" and get back to me with your comment. Another I would like your comments on:"An appeal to secular reason"
Thanks- and your work is very interesting |
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Re: THE MEANING OF LIFE (Unfinished)
(User Rating: 1 )
by EternitysLyre on
Sunday, 22nd February 2004 @ 05:33:00 AM AEST
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a Message)
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This poem is fantastic. Lionel does you no justice by saying hi and asking you to read his work, tagging on a "Oh, and your poem is interesting as well." I'm willing to bet he mightn't have gone through the whole thing, but what you have here deserves acclaim. You're the first poet since Chaucer and Shakespeare that I've read through, and admired every line of. Especially because your poem has approximately no rythm, and doesn't rhyme for the first 70 lines either. It doesn't sound like a 15 minute ditty either, and the time and effort spent seems quite appreciable in your words. I really really really admire this poem. Go read the rest of the comments I've ever made. This is by far the most worthwhile read I've ever seen on this site. Be sure to post the rest--I'll be disappointed if this is all I ever see from you.
"Ephemeral dreams and perpetual ire; Melodious lies from Eternity's lyre."
~The Palatine Poet |
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Re: THE MEANING OF LIFE (Unfinished)
(User Rating: 1 )
by Vitreous_Soul on
Sunday, 22nd February 2004 @ 06:16:28 AM AEST
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a Message)
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This is one of the greatest poems i've ever read, by anybody, living or dead. The breadth, logic, passion, and sheer magnitude of this masterpiece is light years beyond anything i've seen in AGES. Such a topic deserves the epic backdrop you have laid before us, and I stand in silent wonder.
Truly,
-V.S. |
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Re: THE MEANING OF LIFE (Unfinished)
(User Rating: 1 )
by Former_Member on
Sunday, 22nd February 2004 @ 09:10:26 AM AEST
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a Message)
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I'm with the previous two on this. I've only been writing a short while, but you've managed to encapsulate in verse, what I (or any poet worth their salt, I believe) would ultimately aspire to - in only one volume . . . immaculately rhymed and composed.
No praise of mine could or would accurately describe how high I regard this piece. So i'll just say I'm trepidly awaiting the next volume with sober expectancy. |
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Re: THE MEANING OF LIFE (Unfinished)
(User Rating: 1 )
by Stitch on
Monday, 5th April 2004 @ 07:50:58 PM AEST
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Somewhere along the line (maybe around 1984), I passed through these doors. I hope you are seeking to publish this (in its completion of course). It is magnificent.
Stitch |
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