Naked Wisdom 59 (translation)

ᎪᎳᎾ, ᎠᏴᏓᏆᎶᏍᎬ ᏥᏍᏆ,
ᎨᏒᎠᏎ ᎠᏓᏅᏙ ᏥᏍᏆ,
ᏗᎬᏟᏐᏍᏙᏗ ᏄᎵᏂᎬᎬ,
ᎤᎳᏂᎬᎬ, ᎠᎴ ᎠᎵᏍᏕᎸᏙᏗ ᎥᎿᎢ.
ᎪᎳᎾ ᎨᏒᎠᏎ ᎠᏆᏤᎵ ᎠᎵᏍᏕᎵᏍᎩ.

Golana, the Thunderbird,
is a spirit-bird,
symbol of strength,
power, and protection.
Golana is our protector.

Text and image © 2019 by Donald C. Traxler.

ᎤᏰᎸᎭ ᎠᎦᏙᎲᏍᏗ 59

ᎪᎳᎾ, ᎠᏴᏓᏆᎶᏍᎬ ᏥᏍᏆ,
ᎨᏒᎠᏎ ᎠᏓᏅᏙ ᏥᏍᏆ,
ᏗᎬᏟᏐᏍᏙᏗ ᏄᎵᏂᎬᎬ,
ᎤᎳᏂᎬᎬ, ᎠᎴ ᎠᎵᏍᏕᎸᏙᏗ ᎥᎿᎢ.
ᎪᎳᎾ ᎨᏒᎠᏎ ᎠᏆᏤᎵ ᎠᎵᏍᏕᎵᏍᎩ.

It Is the Parts / ᎨᏒᎠᏎ ᎢᎦᏛᏗ

It is the parts that we keep hidden
that produce the most light.

ᎨᏒᎠᏎ ᎢᎦᏛᏗ Ꮎ ᎢᏧᎳ ᎠᏍᏆᏂᎪᏓᏎ ᎠᏗᏍᎦᎶᏗᏔ
Ꮎ ᎠᏛᎯᏍᏙᏓᏎ ᎤᎪᏗᏗ ᎤᎸᏌᏓᏁ.

Text and image © 2019 by Donald C. Traxler.

We Live on Multiple Planes of Reality / ᎢᏧᎳ ᎠᎴᏂᏙᎠᏎ ᎤᎪᏗᏗ

We live on multiple planes of reality
at the same time,
not fully realized
in every one of them.
We see a head here,
genitals there,
and something wholly other
beyond the mirror.

ᎢᏧᎳ ᎠᎴᏂᏙᎠᏎ ᎤᎪᏗᏗ
ᎤᏩᎾᏕᏍᎪᏗ ᎾᎿ
ᎤᏙᎯᏳᏄᏍᏛ ᎥᎿᎢ
ᏌᏊ ᎢᎪᎯᏓ ᏀᎾᎢ,
Ꮭ ᎠᏂᎧᎵ ᎠᏙᎴᎰᎯᏍᏗᏔ
ᏂᎦᏛ ᎤᏩᎾᏕᏍᎪ ᎭᏫᎾ.
ᎢᏧᎳ ᎪᏩᏔᏎ ᎠᏍᎪᎵᏁ ᎠᎭᏂ,
ᎤᏤᎵᏓ ᎢᎦᏛᏁ ᎤᎿ,
ᎠᎴ ᎪᎱᏍᏗᏁ ᏂᎦᏛ-ᎧᎵᎢ ᏄᏓᎴᎿᎥ
ᎠᏓᎨᏗ ᎤᏗᏗᏢ.

Text and image © 2019 by Donald C. Traxler.

I am happy to announce that this poetry blog has now received 55,000 visits. This morning I tried to do some analysis of the blog statistics, and got a big surprise. The ᎤᏰᎸᎭ ᎠᎦᏙᎲᏍᏗ / Naked Wisdom series, which currently includes fifty-eight posts, has been amazingly and very durably popular. Over the past month, half of the posts in the top ten belonged to this series, which is the principal teaching vehicle for the Udugi language. Half of the posts in the all-time top ten are also in this series. Of posts that have had one hundred or more visits, 5/6 belong to this series.

I have posted my poems in various languages, including Spanish, French, and Portunhol, but no language has brought the number of visitors and the wide audience that Udugi has brought. This is a result that I had not dared to hope for. I am not yet able to explain it, except to say that Udugi, the language of hope, has captured people's imagination. In the process, it has become an integral part of my poetry.

Thanks to all of you for your continued interest and enthusiasm.

Text and images © 2019 by Donald C. Traxler.

We Are All Africans / ᏂᎦᏛ ᎢᏧᎳ ᎨᏒᎠᏎ ᎠᎬᎾᎨ-ᎡᎶᎯ ᏂᏛᎴᏅᏓ

We are all Africans,
children of happy Pygmies
who gave up the Garden of Eden
sixty millennia ago
to see the rest
of the world.
The naked forest-dwellers
are still inside us.
We must help them
to regain the Garden.

 ᏂᎦᏛ ᎢᏧᎳ ᎨᏒᎠᏎ ᎠᎬᎾᎨ-ᎡᎶᎯ ᏂᏛᎴᏅᏓ,
ᏗᏂᏲᏟ ᎠᎵᎮᎵᏍᏗ ᏈᎩᎻ ᎥᎿᎢ
Ꮎ ᎠᎿᎩᏍᏗᏱᏎ ᎠᏫᏒᏅ-ᎢᏓᏂ
ᏑᏓᎵᏍᎪᎯ ᎠᎦᏴᎵᏗ ᏧᏕᏘᏴᏓ ᎢᏳ-ᏥᎨᏒ
ᎪᏩᏘ ᏩᎵᏃᎯᏯᏍᎬᏁ ᎡᏆ-ᎡᎶᎯ ᎥᎿᎢ.
ᎤᏰᎸᎭ ᎢᎾᎨᎢ-ᎡᎯᏗ
ᎨᏒᎠᏎ ᏙᎢ ᎢᏧᎸ ᎭᏫᏂ.
ᎢᏧᎳ ᎠᏎ ᎠᎵᏍᏕᎸᏗ ᎾᏍᎩᏛᏁ
ᎠᏩᏛᏗ ᎠᏫᏒᏅᏁ
ᎠᏏᏉ.

Text and image © 2019 by Donald C. Traxler.

It Is Through the Body / ᎨᏒᎠᏎ ᎠᏰᎸ ᏗᎬᏩᎶᏒ

It is through the body
that we encounter the soul.

ᎨᏒᎠᏎ ᎠᏰᎸ ᏗᎬᏩᎶᏒ
Ꮎ ᎢᏧᎳ ᏗᏠᎯᏍᏓᏎ ᎠᏓᏅᏙᏁ.

Text and image © 2019 by Donald C. Traxler.