The comparison between poetry and divine light that we have proposed HERE finds its perfect explanation in Saint Paul, Epistle to the Romans 1:19: τὸ γνωστὸν τοῦ θεοῦ φανερόν ἐστιν ἐν αὐτοῖς, ὁ θεὸς γὰρ αὐτοῖς ἐφανέρωσεν — “that which may be known of God has been made manifest in them (in men), for God has manifested it unto them”.
Poetry unveils within the human being the need to be human, that is, the need for Beauty, the need to feel Beauty within oneself and alongside oneself; and this feeling is sustained by divine light. Since we are influenced by the Augustinian idea of saeculum, we hold that poetry belongs to the saeculum and therefore comes to a halt upon the threshold of divine light [I] without crossing it, though perceiving the light that lies beyond that threshold.
We are led to that threshold by the human feeling of Beauty that dwells within us and guides us to that point: to that door which cannot be crossed in our human condition. And yet, the mere act of standing upon that threshold is illuminated by the naming of things which poetry asks of the poet as an act of revelation, causing him to seek the possible paths and words through which to express them (that is, to name that which cannot yet be named) [III].
We may finally conclude this brief yet dense note by proposing that poetry is that which allows divine light to breathe within the saeculum. Poetry perceives the divine breath through the names and words of the poem. And in this perception of the divine breath, poetry brings us closer to truth [IV] as an experience of unveiling, for no one can lie to Beauty itself, which every poet receives (through poetry) from his own divine light at the moment when he senses the divine breath hovering as he names things. And in this drawing near and naming things, we name truth, because at that moment we stand naked and behold ourselves reflected in it, incapable of falsehood. And while we unveil truth, we are led closer to eternity, for, as Saint Augustine says: tanto quisque ab aeternitate discedat, quanto a veritate discedit — the further one departs from truth, the further one departs from eternity [V].
Is poetry, then, the voice of eternity within the civitas hominum?
We believe it.
-------------------------
[II] This idea is from of Octavio Paz's poetry vision. HERE.
[III] On this issue, see again HERE
[IV] To understand the metaphor of breathing, think of the trees that by breathing purify the air and those who live under the trees are purified by getting closer to the status of Well-Being
[V] De Mendacio Liber Unus 7,10
Comments
Post a Comment