Poem: "Dancing with the Beast of Tanagra": ysabetwordsmith

Poem: "Dancing with the Beast of Tanagra"

This poem came out of the November 3, 2009 Poetry Fishbowl. It was prompted by

stonetalker, cheered by several other people, and sponsored by

janetmiles. It refers to an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation and there is a "Darmok Dictionary" online. I am really pleased to be able to share this with you, because "Darmok" was one of my favorite episodes and a splendid example of xenolinguistics.

Dancing with the Beast of Tanagra

“Darmok” –
This was the episode
I watched with my ears set to the screen
and a cup of tea cooling in my hands,
a friend and myself knee-to-knee on the floor,
both of us calling out translations and hypotheses
as quickly as we could think of them,
breathless and laughing,
even in the face of tragedy.

Even when we guessed wrong
and had to revise our ideas
      Shaka, when the walls fell
it was exhilirating just to stretch out
and fly beyond the boundaries of the human brain
into a language so vivid with imagery.

It reminded me instantly of the saying
that learning a new language
is like wrestling with an angel,
the object being not to win but to surrender,
brawl becoming embrace:
      Sokath, his eyes uncovered!

Every language is an ocean undiscovered,
an island untamed and dense with wilderness.
In every ocean there are deeps and storms,
on every island, beasts –
for to open yourself to a language
is to swallow its ideals and its reasoning
without ever knowing if it will destroy you
or reward your sacrifice with untold riches.
      Darmok and Jelad at Tanagra.
      Picard and Dathon at Eladril.

There is only the ocean and the jungle,
and the warmth of a friend by your side,
and the words in your ears like the beating of breakers
when you go forth to dance with the beast of Tanagra.

Open your mind like a door,
and believe that what you receive will be worth the risk.
      Temba, his arms wide.

marina_bonomi

November 4 2009, 17:14:04 UTC 11 years ago

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'wrestling with an Angel' indeed. Hat off for this one, Elisabeth, it's just perfect. The feeling, the excitement, the undercurrent of fear taking the plunge, the discovery... magnificent!

ladymondegreen

November 4 2009, 17:33:14 UTC 11 years ago

I like that one a lot too. Especially since the language I'm currently wrestling is ASL. ;)

11 years ago

Hmm...

ysabetwordsmith

Re: Hmm...

Try this...

Re: Try this...

technoshaman

8 years ago

bow, flourish

norda

November 4 2009, 17:38:26 UTC 11 years ago

I liked this very much.

Thank you!

November 4 2009, 19:25:53 UTC 11 years ago

I'm happy to hear that.

unmutual

November 4 2009, 18:10:04 UTC 11 years ago

How delightfully geeky! :)

Yes...

November 4 2009, 19:26:17 UTC 11 years ago

... geek service available here.

jenny_evergreen

November 4 2009, 18:24:54 UTC 11 years ago

I am such a sap. *wipes away tears* Thank you!

hugs

November 4 2009, 19:24:40 UTC 11 years ago

That is sweet. It's okay to cry if a poem moves you that much. I am honored.

ellenmillion

November 4 2009, 18:27:19 UTC 11 years ago

Marvelous!!

That's a very moving poem!

dakiwiboid

November 4 2009, 19:56:19 UTC 11 years ago

Thank you for writing it!

Re: That's a very moving poem!

November 4 2009, 20:11:40 UTC 11 years ago

You're welcome. I'm glad you like it.

ladyperegrine

November 4 2009, 20:20:48 UTC 11 years ago

Oh, oh! I love this.

I have my own Darmok-inspired poem. I'll search around for it and post it if you're interested.

Very, very nicely done. :-)

Yay!

November 4 2009, 20:39:43 UTC 11 years ago

I'm delighted to hear that.

I would certainly enjoy reading your Darmok-inspired poem. If you let me know where you've posted it, I'll link to it.

Re: Yay!

filkferengi

November 10 2009, 04:17:37 UTC 11 years ago

This is one of my favorite episodes & has inspired some discussion with my spouse about how we create our own languages, based on personal experiences and metaphors.

ozarque, her journal so welcoming

November 11 2009, 01:43:22 UTC 11 years ago

That's so sweet.

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