In seed time learn, in harvest teach, in winter enjoy.
Drive your cart and your plow over the bones of the dead.
The road of excess leads to the palace of wisdom.
Prudence is a rich ugly old maid courted by Incapacity.
He who desires but acts not, breeds pestilence.
The cut worm forgives the plow.
Dip him in the river who loves water.
A fool sees not the same tree that a wise man sees.
He whose face gives no light, shall never become a star.
Eternity is in love with the productions of time.
The busy bee has no time for sorrow.
The hours of folly are measur'd by the clock, but of wisdom: no clock can measure.
-William Blake
Love the Hallowe'en-ness of your pic. And this passage by Blake, amazing.
ReplyDeleteLove you .... xoxo
Ahhhh! I just started putting all of my alter things together tonight and then came here. I love this time of year. Everything is golden. BEAUTIFUL photo. Are those ornaments new this year? I'm crazy about them. Wow. Wow. Wow.
ReplyDeleteAnd so true: "The busy bee has no time for sorrow"
xoxoxoxoxo.
oh, and when I saw Wow, I mean....
ReplyDeleteare they for sale?
Ah, El Dia de los Muertos..
ReplyDeletevery fine altar youse assembled.
He whose face gives no light shall never become a star. Wow, I need to read up on some classical literature. Beautiful poem. Scary pumpkin!
ReplyDeleteNice diorama!
ReplyDeleteThose DOTD ornaments are wonderful! I love the lighting in that picture - and the happy/scary smiles. Blake, well, he's a little dour first thing in the morning. Maybe after coffee. ;) xo
ReplyDeleteMy friend in Australia would love those day of the dead ornaments! Great choice of poem to match the picture too.
ReplyDeleteDan
-x-
this poem by Blake is from the LONG poem/book "the marriage of heaven and hell".
ReplyDeletefrom Wiki:
In the most famous part of the book, Blake reve
als the Proverbs of Hell. These display a very different kind of wisdom from the Biblical Book of Proverbs. The diabolical proverbs are provocative and paradoxical. Their purpose is to energise thought. Several of Blake's proverbs have become famous:
"The road of excess leads to the palace of wisdom."
"The tigers of wrath are wiser than the horses of instruction"
Blake explains that,
"Without Contraries is no progression. Attraction and Repulsion,
Reason and Energy, Love and Hate, are necessary to Human existence.
From these contraries spring what the religious call Good & Evil.
Good is the passive that obeys Reason. Evil is the active springing
from Energy. Good is Heaven. Evil is Hell."
The book ends with a series of revolutionary prophecies and exhortations, climaxing into a fierce proclamation for the different peoples of the world to break the bonds of religious and political oppression.
amazing !
ReplyDeleteAll well and good, but why do you have an altar? That's just creepy.
ReplyDeleteLove this. Blake is one of my all-time favorite poets. I'm working on my altar today and am thrilled that this year I can include something from you and Boxer: her Death Rattle and your Maldonado votive. S.B. and I are going to Santisima in Old Town tomorrow (where you bought the votive) to see what's new on the walls, enjoy some hot chocolate and chile, some food, and the festival. I'll be thinking of you guys.
ReplyDeleteYep, you can dip me in the water:-)
ReplyDeleteHaiku Monday's theme is up at the Pond. I'll look forward to your wit
and your visuals.
Halloween is, if not a celebration of the dark yang of the world's nature, it is an acknowledgement of such. Evils greatest triumph is when it is denied. in the tradition of dia de los muertos, death figures as a totem to remind us to live while we can - death laughs at you as the great equalizer. Devils of papier mache give form to action. Harvest is the scythe cutting the wheat - let art and literature be your guide.
ReplyDeleteamen, chickie, amen.
ReplyDeletexoxo
I suggest you read "The Great Divorce" by CS Lewis which was partially inspired by the "The Marriage of Heaven and Hell". He was a lot better writer than me.
ReplyDeleteAlso because Lewis is in Heaven while I am a humbled ghost who's purgatoryish punishment is having to listen to incompetent tenured leftist Literature Professors completely misinterpret much of my work.
ReplyDeleteLove the Blake, love that photo! Let the dia de los muertos festivities begin!
ReplyDeleteHumbled Ghost? ah, purgatory? Thas' good!! me an Dante is cheerin'!
ReplyDeleteHeh--look at these goodies:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.conviviobookworks.com/pages/Book%20of%20Days%20Catalog%20Dia%20de%20Muertos.html
ghost can be prayed out of Purgatory. Ill light the Archangel for ya
ReplyDeleteIve got that catrina market bag - and the zapata figure. *agrarian revolutionary*
As always, beautiful.
ReplyDeleteFrankenstein at Ether Capacious--discussion of horror. C'mon on by when ya can.
ReplyDeleteAnde, what is happening? I have just been signing J. instead of Judith I put so much thought into them. Darn. Mom
ReplyDeleteWow, I hadn't read this piece by Blake! I'm not sure I agree with him...but it's very provoking to think about! Happy Halloween!
ReplyDeletedeborah: i dont think you are meant to agree with him - these are the proverbs of hell - there is reason to them - action to them. that is the nature of it - its almost right. Be advised - devils are cunning.
ReplyDeleteWhat will they say when they see the words written over and over again on your blogs.
ReplyDeleteFrom " FUCK U" to " HARVEST" to "RECIPES" and
" CHOCOLATE"?
And now chickory is actually the CHENANT with CHENES?
And you had the FOCK ROOMS with the ANIMEL LISTS
Ad the QUARRY LANES?
And on top of it all, with the PAINIZE and the CROOLS, you had the PTY LTD and the COWSCULA and the MOOMEN of BLACK PLANETS?
And even more there were the COCHONS and the SCOMPO along with the SEMPOU and you culled and you culled and you culled.
And you had your orders and you had your ads and you had your shipments and " GRAVEYARD CELEBRATIONS"?
Try and tell one person you didn't mean it and don't forget to add the " looooooooooooove".