Tag: poet

Lightning

Learning, Poetic
Lightning is so quick
Striking sight with its brightness
Before earth goes silent.

——

Love is sometimes a sight that attracts the eyes, strikes in less than one minute, blinds the eyes for some longer time before gradually clears the mind again. Gradually yet surely 💝 with intensifying silence and lack of reciprocity. Life will be back to its true beauty.

May all beings be happy.

in this case a writer is either a loyalist or a stupid! both not equivalent with the brilliance in his/her writings 😂

Romantic

Learning, love, Poetic
What’s romance, my love?
Is roses stay in the branch
With no disturbance.
They’re unpicked until falling
Gracefully kissing the earth.

——

Yogyakarta is one of the most romantic cities on earth, where life is automatically slowing down and love can be felt sweeter, simpler and longer; my friends said “the most romantic or the cheapest?” i said cheerfully “i love cheap things that make me happy including cheap friends, people with high maintenance cost please go away” 😄

one serene night in Stasiun Tugu

Scent of Flowing Air

Learning, Poetic
No scent is missed,
No inhaled air is empty.
The scent is a box of coloured mist
To bring in imagery.

These nostrils celebrate days
Through haling the loaded air
And propelling power through stories,
Millions of stories shared.

——

can’t leave without scent, good or bad

and its evolving fragrance, softened before dried

sadly this leaf was not so nicely scented 🙏🏼 thrown away

batik has a good scent as it is washed with lerak (soap berry)

frangipani, a flower that is popular as graveyard flower in Java island ♥️ sweet fragrance of the death

i miss the scent of the thin air by the rice field under the blue sky 💝

Pearls in A Strand of Friendship

Learning, love, Poetic, Those People
How’s life, dear pearls of friendship?
Your shadow flashed in the tips of these eyes
All of a sudden.
I wish you all good heart
That shines
Through the orbits
Of all friendly comets
That travel the universe
Bringing verses
About love and friendship
That last forever
With the expanding universe.
You are truly loved
And missed….

——

Brisbane 2017 with Mbak Wien, my friend back in uni the only person able to make me sit in a club for almost 5 hours in a riverbank of a Brisbane river (not sure what river it was though), yet she was not successful to make me drink but jugs of orange juice

a loving daughter and sister, a wife of a kind man, a mother of 2 brilliant boys, a rather crazy friend

when will i see you again? maybe some day when i’m back to down under

God bless you 💝 and all my dear friends 💝

Batik Grompol (Javanese Culture)

Learning, Poetic
There are star clusters
Glowing in the horizon
Sending messages.

——

From Yogyakarta I brought home a pair of batik grompol sheets which I ordered 6 months ago. Happy I must be!

Grompol is a Yogyakartan special classical batik pattern. No other regions can claim otherwise.

Let’s talk about batik grompol today.

Disclaimer: 1) while the primary interpretation is based on what I learnt from the masters; many of it is my own thought based on what I understand on symbols and signs of Javanese, Islam and Hinduism that intertwined in my upbringing. So please be critical. 2) too much information, too little time for me to summarise. Please expect disconnected ideas, connect them by yourselves.

Grompol batik pattern is a sub-category of ceplok pattern in which one geometry pattern is clustered (squares, triangle, circle, lines, etc). In Javanese language ceplok literally means clustering, grouping, gathering based on the same characteristics or criteria (size, colour, shape, pattern, lines, etc). So hypothetically ceplok pattern is always about gathering, uniting, getting together.

Grompol pattern is characterised through the clustering of of 4-petal flower, a flower pistil in the middle, a seed with 4 couples of 3-ceceg and 5-ceceg (ceceg is a terminology used to describe dots in batik pattern) and “wrapped” by a square with 8 points that almost looks like octagram.

Flower

4-petal flower is a symbol of fertile or healthy life. The 4 petals of the flower can be related to four points of the compass: east, west, north and south.

Flower pistil symbolises the centre of life, potential growth in human being. It can also represent the sun, the soul, the heart as centres of discourses to be applied based on contexts.

Flower which is the beauty before fruition is representing an expectation that human being should optimise their state of beauty which in Javanese almost always refers to the developed wisdom in human being manifested as kindness to fellow creature on earth before one dies.

Seed

A round seed surrounded by 4 couples of 3-ceceg and 5-ceceg symbolises seed of life that should be well protected from all directions.

The seed can be interpreted the same as the flower pistil in the middle of a flower. It is generated from the pistil fertilised by the pollens. It is the centre of life, potential growth in human being. It can also represent the sun, the soul, the heart as centres of discourses to be applied based on contexts.

The round shape of the seed indicates the completeness, thoroughness, integration, centredness, perfection, full cycle.

Ceceg is one type of isen (ornament in empty spaces among primary patterns of batik) in batik. Isen is more popular in Central Java than other regions, isen can be in the form of dots or lines or the combination of both repeatedly put in the intended empty spaces without changing the primary pattern, even there is an intension for isen to highlight the primary patterns.

3-ceceg can be interpreted as Trimurti, the three balancing power of Brahma, Wisnu and Siwa (Siva) which are the 3 powerful powers of creation of the universe, preservation of the universe and destruction of the universe.

5-ceceg can be interpreted as 5 types of self regulation: knowing one’s own identity and personality, connecting to inner self, managing the humane desires, living through good sources of life (no corruption, sharing to the needy) and self reflection through traveling or pilgrimage. A human being is expected to continuously strive for perfection of these five without expecting the perfection to happen.

Points of the Compass

Octagram represents 8. Number 8 in Javanese wisdom is about welfare and authority. Number 8 also represents 8 gods guarding the 4 points of the compass in which 1 direction is guarded by 2 gods of specific authority. The compass itself has 9 points – 1 the centre, 8 the directing points.

The 1 point in the middle is sat by Siwa. 8 points are sat by other gods based on what they manage in the natural realm. Those 9 (1+8) are called Dewata Nawa Sanga (nine guardian gods) in Balinese and Javanese culture. Those 8 are wellknown as Asta Dikplaka (eight gods of 8 directions).

  • North (Uttara): Wisnu or Kuwera guarding the north, Sambhu or Isana guarding east north – gods of rain
  • East (Purwa): Iswara or Indra guarding east, Mahesora or Agni guarding south east – gods of music
  • South (Dakhsina): Brahma or Yama guarding the south, Rudra or Nritti guarding south west – gods of winds and growth
  • West (Pascima): Mahadewa or Baruna guarding west, Sangkara or Bayu guarding north west.

Number 1, 3, 4, 5, 8, 9

Like in other cultures, Javanese gives significant role to numbers in their game of meaning.

  • 1 – siji, setunggal, tunggal, ika, eka: It can mean uniting, integrating, the first, the earth, the sun, the moon, queen, king, country or any other thing perceived as singular or superior.
  • 3 – telu, tiga, tri: It can refer to 3 life (spirit life, physical life, life after life), attitude/behaviour/work, celebration/luxury/merriness
  • 4 – papat, sekawan, catur: Number 4 in Javanese culture signifies creativity and intelligence, endurance, perseverance and victory. The 4 points of the compass also represent something about those 4 directions. The power of sun in the east, the power of mountain in the north. The power of luck in the west. The power of maximum ability in everything in the south.
  • 5 – lima, gangsal, panca: self integration, self regulation, supernatural powers
  • 8 – wolu, asta: Number 8 signifies high rank, respected people, physical forms, dragon as symbol of authority

Summary

That it is a ceplok type signifies the clustering, gathering, integrating of certain characters. So this batik is message and prayer for uniting of between or among family members. It is also a message and prayer of integration of human being internal wisdom – a state of maturity. Batik grompol is often worn by bride and groom in their wedding day due to its very sacred meaning of ultimate protection and potential growth through a gathering.

The uniting or integration should be based on clarity of wisdom and protection. It is the wisdom personally and culturally harvested and nurtured. The beholder, owner, wearer of batik grompol is expected to realise that this pattern is a message and a prayer that they are well protected at the same time expected to extend the given protection to all directions as the gods of all points of compass spread their protection to the universe.

The pistil of the flower as the potential growth in human being put as a compass centre in human being life can be interpreted that human being integrated wisdom has as strong power as Siwa who is sitting at the centre of the compass/chakra. Although described as destroying god, Siwa is actually symbol of re-creating, re-cycling. His being sat in the centre of a chakra (wheel, cycle) is significantly describing him as recreation/recycling agent who then distributes the re-created/re-cycled material to different function around him to be re-governed wisely by “different gods” (remember the 8 gods of all directions).

A human being should be able to learn, re-learn and un-learn one’s own life experience and lessons then to better redo or re-process the way one solves problems or to simply treat other creatures.

The round seed means a centred human being who has achieved the understanding of integrity, full cycle of life. It doesn’t mean the human being is flawless; it means the human being is aware of one’s flawedness yet accepting the state of imperfection of being human. And through the acceptance the human being keeps bettering one’s self in treating one’s self, fellow creatures and the nature. This is an everlasting interaction and intertwining between micro cosmos (jagat alit in Javanese language which represents human being) and macro cosmos (jagat gedhe, the universe).

And all in all, a human being shall pray to his God or make one’s self sure that to any direction one is heading to, one is safe and peaceful. Religious human being will live through guidance and protection from God. Spiritual human being will find inner centre in one’s self whatever one calls it and focus on what one is doing in honesty and sincerity. Free thinker will boost one’s self confidence and focus on what one is aiming with integrity.

So batik grompol has helped me understand that all my fellow human beings are essentially doing the same things as what I am doing in my life, just explained through different perspectives; and we are only of different pace and timing.

What a beautiful batik pattern. What a beautiful meaning.

my beautiful grompol batik cloths were born through the golden hands and soul blessed to this beautiful lady, Ibu Tien Wartienah

Devotion

Learning, Map It!, Poetic, Those People
Orbit of a star
Keeps it moving yet centred.
Devotional fact—

——

Ibu Tien Wartienah is one of the best batik makers whose work of art has spread around the globe; most of her customers are international art curators and prominent people from many countries incl our own country

she started making batik at 8 years old to help her mother who was also a batik maker; in her 66, she is the most sought-after devoted batik maker — her devotion to batik esp Yogyakartan style is second to none – her eyes were sparkling when she was sharing about batik and what she has done with her skill and art

many of my classical batik collection are made by this humble lady — i’m so blessed to keep guard her work of art and to have met her this visit; thank you, Ibu Tien — your life is blessed by many

Ibu Tien’s half done wax-blocking (nyanthing) work “Kembang Manggar” aka “Satria Manah”

i tried one batik yesterday in Ibu Tien’s home in Imogiri — trust me it is a challenging task 🤓

batik working tools

Dawn and Day in Jogja

Learning, Poetic
It’s colours of peace
And humbleness
That I breathe.
It’s the attar of joy
And cheer
That I gaze upon.

——

dim light, sleep tight

like sleeping in a Dutch era house

i love this armchair

watching in the dark

old chair, old table, old mirror

bathroom traditionally concepted

loro blonyo symbolising Dewi Sri (goddess of earth) and Raden Sadono

disclaimer in all rooms, i love village noise though so i don’t need earplugs

About Warwick Purser

a pool of lotus and water lily

look at the buddy! 🥰

orchids everywhere

mushroom, messenger of the earth at the path to “Omah Demang”, where I stay this time

Home

Learning
There’s a calming vibe
Surrounding a place called home.
A short getaway—

——

Mt Merapi and Mr Merbabu from up the sky

my first landing in Yogyakarta International Airport, the new airport

calming home for the next 3 nights

greeting from beauty coming out of the mud

Twilight

Learning, Poetic
There’s orange swirling
In the west brink, and yellow
Beautifying dark.

——

welcomed by the beauty of twilight — as orange as the robes of bikhus who are chanting mantras welcoming Vesak Day

good evening, dear Self

Score

Bob, Learning, love, Poetic, This Person
Dear, oh
Dear….
You came from
Nowhere
Destroying my scores!

No wonder the soundtrack of my stories
Became messy.

Go eat fish,
My sheets won’t suffice your belly.

Cat has no logic,
Only fun.

——

i used to live with a rescue cat, i named him Bob; he was more interested in tearing my paper apart or sitting on my laptop to playing with his toy or sleeping on my bed 💝

Bob in his dream of being my boss 😁 back in 2010

may all beings be happy 🙏🏼

Love Traveling Through Time

Learning, Poetic
Within a radius
Love is felt.
There’s a radius
Made of meters.
She knows a radius
Made of years
That still pulsates
In the heart of this lover
Longing for rendezvous
That will have arrived
Right after the waves shorten.

Your fragrant name is
Blooming every second
In all lovers’ hearts.

Dear, all bezels of wisdom.
I blow kisses for you.

Salam.

——

Magical Days

Learning, love, Poetic, This Person
Today I saw magic
Warmly greeted my throbbing head.
“How deep is your love?” Said she.
“To whom?” Asked I.
“Does it matter?” Said she.
And so I was magically charmed
By these heart beats
Chanting a repeated naive rhyme
About how nice I’ve been breathing.

——

only those who know the death is just an inch away can do this wholeheartedly 💝

Everlasting Again

Learning
I’ll live not only 1000 lives,
I’ve lived forever.
I love not only my whole life,
I love everlastingly.

How can I not love the life
Giving me chance to meet you
Again
And
Again
And
Again?

I won’t though beg for another again
If again will end the love
To the now and here.

See you again
In now and here,
Better one
I know not where.

——

the way you treat me will not change my feeling to you; yet will not shorten my distance from you either — love is only for love, never for hatred 💝

Between Two Times

Learning, Poetic
Once upon a time
A seed turned to a fruit
In between two times.
It celebrated its confusion
Of losing itself in every phase.
Why am I soft, while
I was hard?
Why am I hanging, while
I was buried?
Why can’t I remember where
I came from?
How can I know which
Is the truest of me?
The fruit ripened in blue
Fell out weathered.
Rotten
Dried
Cracked
Seeds scattered
Sprouted
Grew taller.
Would the seed forget who she was again?

Once upon a time
A tree remembered who
Greeted the boughs
Harvested the best
Celebrated the flesh
Threw away the seeds who then 
Grew.
It was not an expression of “once again”
Not the same seed
Yet the seed
Of the same tree.
Still the same—

No mourning
Nothing is lost, yet
Nothing is forever.
Knowing is time travel or
A review of history or
A humble diary.
Just wait for one moment to see.
Life is just like that.

——-

from Pinterest

Peeling Onion

Learning, Poetic
How strong?
As strong as money
Which can buy travel vouchers for holiday
And it helps draw long list of visited sites;
A list that shows to the world
That experience comes with style.
Unfortunately some might be just albums of photos with forgotten moment and lost meaning.
Still travelers travel farther than homebody
Who stays in front of TV learning about all countries,
Yet more thoroughly and vibrantly
Even able to write vibrantly. Look at Karl May!
You mean to understand different places
Doesn’t need real traveling?
Might be?
So what’s the strength of money?
Aah! Not that strong in fact.
Wait!
It is still strong.
Not the strongest though!
So,
Is money a lethal weapon?
I know not, said I,
I know not.
Anymore.

How weak?
As weak as fibrous roots
Which can’t give trees strong anchorage
And they give little supplies of food to the deep interior.
Yet fibrous roots don’t destroy building foundation.
Fibrous roots are good for sloping area, 
They help prevent soil erosion.
They are not weak.
At least not that weak!
So,
Are fibrous roots the weakest anchor?
I know not, said I,
I know not.
Anymore.

Aah! Cry, cry
For losing the stance.
Let the tears dry.
Let each layer dry,
When it dries, it is becoming skin
Until all are.

It is just like that
Like peeling onion.

——

from Pinteres

No Cure (Ibn ‘Arabi)

Learning, love, Poetic
Without him I die
   and with him’s no better
With or without him
   longing’s the same

I found him, finding
   what I hadn’t foreseen,
the cure and disease
   as equal fevers

His silhouette flares
   as we draw near
each other and 
   burns more proud

The deeper the harmony
   the sharper the pain
Measure for measure
   as decreed

——

The above is poem excerpted from below book — one that well explains how love consumes good soul. By simply loving life has shown what joy and pain can be perceived as either happiness or unhappiness depending on how deep or how true love is given meaning or taken for granted.

It has taken me quite long journey to finally connect the dots among the manifestation of love, pain, joy, harmony. It takes whole life to refine love and it takes big love to refine life — a vicious circle that keeps the fire burns, light flares and smoke billows bringing hope up to the sky.

“Life is light. Life is true.”

May all beings be happy.

♥️

Tarjuman Al-ashwaq (The Translator of Desires)

All in Store

Learning, Poetic
After a long pause,
Waves of time now delivers
Pretty joy in store.

How should she welcome
A guest that greets with surprise?
A sweet smile in store—

——

buds of secundum are welcoming with joy

Truly Light Life

Learning, Poetic
How much am I true
To this self?
As true as
The pretty
And the ugly
In me
In front of mirrors
Reflecting
What they love to see.
Life is light.
Light is true.

To this self do I say:
Walk truly as true as white clouds hanging over green trees.
Walk lightly as light as foot steps on green grass.

——

i stole my photo from an Instagram story of someone who secretly took my photo before the Tapa Brata started — i am not a truly physically good photo model but i am a human being making effort to be true ♥️ i hope to see this photo owner again some day only heaven knows when and say thank you for showing my strong arms to the world 😂

Misunderstood

Learning, Poetic
Welcome,
Travelers
To my humble abode.
May you sit,
There is chair to enjoy.
May you stand,
There is painting to enjoy.
This lobby,
A place for every guest
To enjoy the best spread
Of food and beverage.
My kitchen
Is not,
Unfortunately.

Welcome, fellow travelers.
Leave when your storm ends.

——

My best friends once reminded me of how I should be afraid of being misunderstood and my response to them was “I am ok to be misunderstood by those who don’t have enough knowledge and/or love to understand who I am and what I am doing.”

They still say the same thing in different ways. I answer the same way.

Thank you.

💝

White

Learning, Poetic
How are you, dear white?
Everything looks bright on white.
It’s clear on itself.

——

a white mug with ginger & honey tea 💝 get drunk with it and make all work excellent! ☺️

sterilised or warmed? whatever! loving warm white mug in my hand 💕

this champion is quiet when working and resting unlike me talking at work snoring at sleep 🥶

parrrtyyy! no, no, not my party; it belongs to one favourite cleaning lady

Pigeon Orchids

Learning, Poetic
Like pigeon
But not flying,
It spreads fragrance
Along the road I am on everyday.
This sense is trained
To breathe scent.
I am walking
Like pigeon.

——

all these years i thought only this tree is where my favourite pigeon orchid “lives”

i thought only this cluster!

even this morning i thought only this one! i kissed these

walking to the bus stop, i saw a lot more! on that tree across the street

in the tree ahead of me!

in another tree!

and another tree!

then i started seeing the pigeon orchids in almost all of trees along my favourite road! i am so blessed!

Misplaced

Learning
Dear, coachman. 
How can you 
Place 
The horses 
Behind the chaise? 

The sky is darker, 
It is going to rain, 
You like it or not, 
The chaise must be drawn.

——

only if the horses are at the front, the carriage will move on; it is not a VW Beetle, dear self 😁

Hurt?

Learning
No one can hurt me.
I am a feather,
I am water,
Either.

No one will hurt me.
I am a feather,
I am water,
Either.

We are feather on water.
No one can hurt them,
No one will,
Either.

——

no one can, no one will — if one does, one does to one’s self

Water In Me

Learning, Poetic
I’m water 
Humble enough to mold myself 
To this pitcher. 
This life’s a pitcher 
Kind enough to tilt herself 
To the river. 

I’m water 
Flowing by myself 
In myself to the sea. 
This’s the strongest soft 
With what this rocky heart 
Gets shaped through time.

——-

water: naturally willing to be shaped, spiced up, scented, coloured, treated by temperatures — matured through stories 😃

Dreams, Given Up?

Learning, Poetic, This Person
Is she giving up?
She’s waiting for the right time.
Just another leap—

——

💝

played Coldplay all day today as if their concert is happening in my living room 😁

gave up the queue because my medical treatment on May 19 was much more important; if i am healthy, i still can work to earn money for the next concerts somewhere else 🙏🏼 happy watching, all ticket war winners! you deserve your strategy whatever it was

Whereabout

Learning, Poetic
You
Are the beats in my heart.
Whereabout your heart
Am I in?

You
Are the water of a vase.
Whereabout your vase
Am I of?

You
Are the -ness at my nothing.
Whereabout your thing
Am I at?

There is silence,
And it answers me through.
I am nowhere about
You.

—

when the water is gone, all is dead — only dried leaves and air 🙏🏼

Restart

Learning, Poetic
A background
Is redone.
A painting
Is restarted
Again
And again
And again.
Maybe one morning
She will restart
One more
And finally get it done.
There is peeping light
Highlighting the canvas
Naturally
Glowing with a new story
Sweeter to tell.

—-

i don’t know when this work is going to complete – it is constantly a new start because of the artist’s unprofessional insecurity

the recipient is impatiently waiting, a deadline must be set — ok, ok 🙏🏼