Unfathomable in Meditation

Modern poetry  modern verse  contemporary poetry  contemporary verse modern poem contemporary poem

The peony made

Him measure it with his fan,

The daimyo’s fan.

~ Issa

[A haiku expanded by Phillip Whidden]

Some things are large.  Some things are larger yet.

One peony is glorious yet small.

Arrange it in a vase, in a duet,

With yet another flawless one, a tall

One on a longer stem, perfection grows.

Another is so huge it strains belief

Until an Oriental fan’s length shows

No doubt of doubled elegance.  A sheaf

Of blossoms magnifies perfection still

Again.  Above them through a window frame

The Milky Way sends out a starry frill

Across a vaster sky, a star-strewn flame.

..Beyond the peonies and stars aligned

…..Are depths and heights too large for all but mind.