On Thursday, I switched inks in my main TWSBI for the first time in years. While I flushed the barrel, watching the J. Herbin Poussière de Lune dissipate into the purified water, deceptively dark but absolutely transparent the first few times I pumped the pen, I thought through my superstitions about the switch to the … Continue reading Ink, Meditation, Change
Category: polytheism
Prayer to All of the Gods II
I praise Hestia, ever-embering,whose hair hangs oil-heavy;Storeroom Zeus, Standing Zeus,swallower of all swollen with life;Agathodaimon, thoughtful guardianabundantly giving good wisdom;Celestial Gods celebrating the cosmosin endless feasting, in delightful flow;Gods of skies, of seas, of seasons;Gods of rivers, of rocky heights;Gods of deep murky dominions;Gods of meadows, of murmuring brooks;Gods of cities, of scent, of sapience;Gods … Continue reading Prayer to All of the Gods II
Some Quotations from Olympiodorus’ Commentary on Plato’s PHAEDO
In January, I read eight books, among them Olympiodorus' Commentary on Plato's Phaedo. It comes from notes taken during his lectures, so as with any lecture notes, mileage may vary based on the likely-Christian student's (or students') accuracy and attentiveness. Here are a few notes. (As a reminder, I have a commonplace book tag with … Continue reading Some Quotations from Olympiodorus’ Commentary on Plato’s PHAEDO
Prayer to All of the Gods I
This is the first of three prayers that I plan to compose this year to all of the Gods. The first is the simplest, focusing on the core twelve Olympians (at least, those put forward by Plato and emphasized by the Platonic commentators and in Sallust's "On the Gods and the World") with some additional … Continue reading Prayer to All of the Gods I
Some Passages from Damascius’ Commentary on the PHAEDO
I just finished reading Damascius' discussion of the Phaedo, and I have a few quotations that I would like to share with you all. It's sometimes an unwieldy challenge to pull quotations that are striking from a commentary because the passages are very contextual. Here, the discussion of the Phaedo focuses on the various arguments … Continue reading Some Passages from Damascius’ Commentary on the PHAEDO
Two Books
If you have been wondering what A CASTING OF LIGHT and THE SONG OF PROCLUS, compiled by Guy Wyndham-Jones and published by the Prometheus Trust, contains, this post provides some helpful information about the format, arrangement of quotations, and other elements, with a few photos for clarity.
Flame Vessel
Hestia alight,candle's wick an arteryanchoring these prayersbeyond the raging ocean,its form embering hollowlike slow-cooked stew meatwhose veins once pumped a cow's blood.Feeding life through fleeting life:each, devoured, transforms.
Well-Written Literature
Any well-written piece of literature can be compared to a living being; if, then, the dialogue is comparable to a living being, and a living being has only one purpose, the Good (for the sake of which it has been created), the dialogue must also have one purpose, that is, one theme.Anonymous Prolegomena to Platonic … Continue reading Well-Written Literature
Ending 2020 — Pangrammatike
I just posted a 2020 Year in Review to my writing blog, and you're welcome to check it out if you want to read about creative things that extend beyond the scope of this blog. Link below. 2020 was a year. I went into it with several creative goals, and this blog post will serve … Continue reading Ending 2020 — Pangrammatike
KALLISTI 