This Old Book

Rilke, Neruda, Hesse

Letters to a Young Poet

This short collection of letters from the older author, Rilke, to a young poet, known as Mr. Kappus, is almost universally loved. Rilke packs wisdom  into every paragraph, every sentence: “Live the questions now. Perhaps you will then gradually, without noticing it, live along some distant day into the answer.”

I have read five separate books of Rilke’s letters and Letters To A Young Poet is not an anomaly. His Letters to Benvenuta, for example, show Rilke in love and in pursuit of this love. Rarely will you read such passion. Each letter Rilke writes is a work of art. In fact, after perusing his correspondence, one might come to the conclusion that Rilke’s transcendent poetry is really his second talent, as painting was Michaelangelo’s.

Letters To A Young Poet is probably the most focused and intense example of this genius. Rilke perceives the youthful heart of Mr. Kappus, because it once was his. The reader understands that Rilke is in a sense writing to himself, to his own daemon. And never has communication between a man and his soul seemed so clear and rich and thoughtful.

Memoirs

Memoirs of famous writers can be surprisingly dull. But Chilean poet Pablo Neruda’s retrospective of his life is utterly astounding. Not only are the anecdotes and interludes beautifully written, but the life Neruda led as a political warrior and exile defies the imagination. As he states, “Poetry is rebellion.” And his whole life was a rebellion against the corruption of power. Unlike many who were martyred by such struggle, he was successful, as a poet and a man. “I have given all I had, I have thrown my poetry into the ring, and I have often bled with it.” All over the world, Neruda’s poetry and presence became a password for Humanity.

My favorite moments in the chronicle come when Neruda describes the personal “profits” of his life-long struggle. Once, he is brought up before a group of ten thousand Chilean miners at a rally. When his name is announced, every single miner sweeps off his hat in reverence for that holy moment. And even better is the incident where he nearly gets in a bar fight with a huge tough, who suddenly realizes that he is about to beat up Pablo Neruda. The gangster breaks down into tears, quoting Neruda’s verse, begging forgiveness, “defeated by poetry.”

Neruda’s memoirs are the memoirs of a man I want to be. Someone who has challenged the people who seek to destroy this world through selfishness and greed. It is the story of a man whose poetry made people think and made people love. “I am omnivorous. I would like to swallow the whole earth. I would like to drink the whole sea.” Me, too, Pablo. Me, too.

Wandering

Over this brave small road, the wind blows... Thus begins Wandering, a holy book, full of the ecstasies of art, akin to the works of Rumi or Machado. I read this rare gem when I want to calm my soul, during times I need wisdom, and before and after my own ramblings throughout this fading world. Wandering is necessary reading for everyone, but especially a creative artist. Why? If you have to ask after closing this book, you are not one. “Sit down anywhere you like, on a wall, a stone, a tree stump, on the grass or the earth: everywhere they surround you, a painting and a poem, everywhere the world resonates beautifully and happily around you.”

Based somewhat on the Japanese poet Basho’s mixture of prose and poetry, Wandering also incorporates Hesse’s watercolors to create a blend of arts, all three of which complement each other. The story loosely follows Hesse as he hikes over the Alps into northern Italy. He tramps around the countryside, finding peace and inspiration, while leaving his middle-class life behind. “Oh warm home that they steal me away from,/Oh, dream of love that they trouble in me,/I flee back to you down a thousand/Close paths, as water returns to the sea.”

This is a personal book for Hesse, with no aspirations otherwise. Nevertheless, the brief chapters and poems read like parables, with the power to teach, to transform, and to touch you. I may end up reading this chimerical work more than any other single volume during my lifetime. That fact speaks better for Wandering than my words ever could.