What a wonderful image - "inhaling darkness". There is a natural interpretation to be drawn. I have done a little caving and know the air feels very foreign, dark. All movement becomes very deliberate as you proceed deeper, through ever more confined spaces. One doesn't just breathe, but indeed inhales, to control against panic.
But I am sure Polona will be sorry if we fail to consider another set of connotations. The psychologist in me sees in this poem the inner journey. The cave I think can be the shadow-realm of our personal psyche. And entering, exploring (hopefully with an experienced guide), can be extremely confronting. The word "inhale" suggests a movement of the spirit, absorbing, owning one's own dark shadow.
Intriguingly, she has not written the poem vertically, descending (which I think would have been the natural format for the purely natural interpretation). It is another horizontal poem (which I have observed always cues me to look for a more existential work). The journey is not meant to be a descent, but rather a broadening of one's understanding, an opening of horizons.
Thank you for challenging us with your ever "inspiring" poetry, Polona.
an opening of horizons indeed. your words do just that for me. our Karst (no mistake in capitalisation - this is where karst got its name) is replete with caves, with a munber open for tourists, and each one offers a unique experience of the underground
2 comments:
What a wonderful image - "inhaling darkness". There is a natural interpretation to be drawn. I have done a little caving and know the air feels very foreign, dark. All movement becomes very deliberate as you proceed deeper, through ever more confined spaces. One doesn't just breathe, but indeed inhales, to control against panic.
But I am sure Polona will be sorry if we fail to consider another set of connotations. The psychologist in me sees in this poem the inner journey. The cave I think can be the shadow-realm of our personal psyche. And entering, exploring (hopefully with an experienced guide), can be extremely confronting. The word "inhale" suggests a movement of the spirit, absorbing, owning one's own dark shadow.
Intriguingly, she has not written the poem vertically, descending (which I think would have been the natural format for the purely natural interpretation). It is another horizontal poem (which I have observed always cues me to look for a more existential work). The journey is not meant to be a descent, but rather a broadening of one's understanding, an opening of horizons.
Thank you for challenging us with your ever "inspiring" poetry, Polona.
Strider
an opening of horizons indeed. your words do just that for me.
our Karst (no mistake in capitalisation - this is where karst got its name) is replete with caves, with a munber open for tourists, and each one offers a unique experience of the underground
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