1 live poem · Old English
In the flickering candlelight of a Northumbrian monastery, a young boy bent over his wax tablet, carefully forming Latin letters under the watchful eye of his monastic teachers. This child, taken from his family at age seven and given to the abbey of Wearmouth, would grow to become one of medieval Europe's most luminous intellects. Bede the Venerable, born around 673 in the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Northumbria and dyin…
“Should it tell of wicked men, the devout and pious listener, by avoiding all that is harmful and perverse, is moved to pursue what he knows to be good and pleasing to God.”
Neighbourhood:
Classical & Ancient Poets, Devotional Poets, Hymn Writers, Medieval Poets, Mystical & Spiritual Poets
Emotional landscape: Spirituality, Wonder, Sorrow
1 live poem · Mandarin Chinese
Meng Haoran, one of the defining poets of China’s High Tang age, was born around 689 or 690 and died in 740. His life unfolded during the long and brilliant reign of Emperor Xuanzong, an era remembered for imperial confidence, commercial vitality, religious pluralism, and an extraordinary flowering of poetry. Yet Meng’s achievement is distinctive precisely because he did not chiefly write about the glitter of the cap…
Neighbourhood:
Chinese Poets, Classical & Ancient Poets, Classical Chinese Poets, Nature Poets
Emotional landscape: Peace, Wonder, Sensuality