#martial
A trained martial artist knows how to move
because that is the way he's able to groove.
He often turns quickly and looks all around
then at times jumps or leaps off the ground.
Balanced and ready to show one his skill
by these movements he is able to thrill.
You can easily get captivated by his speed
which seems so very impressive indeed.
A swift block, ****** or kick he deploys
all the measures of self defense employs.
It's amazing what a disciplined life can do
as both the body and mind will benefit too.
_________________
Aug 4, 2024
Aug 4, 2024 at 7:42 AM UTC
My mind...
It must be empty.
It must be sharp.
Hard like diamond
Flexible like water
And cut...
Like a sword I wield in my hands
Mar 13, 2021
Mar 13, 2021 at 5:44 AM UTC
they stormed out the corners, the screamers, the signs,
all black. but no longer occult.
i tried to walk past all the mourners in lines,
but my heart was my pillar of salt.
can heaven forgive me that i could not come?
please carry my soul to your flame!
i’ll tend to my garden and pray you reach home —
but i know that it isn’t the same.
though clouds round you gather, each knight noble stands;
the rain is the least of the cost.
o sable crusaders, my hand in your hands,
i will march with the ghosts of the lost.
Dec 19, 2020
Dec 19, 2020 at 11:16 AM UTC
Martial "Erotion" translations
Epitaph for the Child Erotion
by Marcus Valerius Martial
loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
Lie lightly on her, grass and dew ...
So little weight she placed on you.
I created this translation after the Nashville Covenant school shooting and dedicated it to the victims of the massacre.
Erotion (I)
by Martial
loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
To you, my departed parents, dear mother and father,
I commend my little lost angel, Erotion, love’s daughter.
who died six days short of completing her sixth frigid winter.
Protect her now, I pray, should the chilling dark shades appear;
muzzle hell’s three-headed hound, less her heart be dismayed!
Lead her to romp in some sunny Elysian glade,
her devoted patrons. Watch her play childish games
as she excitedly babbles and lisps my name.
Let no hard turf smother her softening bones; and do
rest lightly upon her, earth, she was surely no burden to you!
Erotion (II)
by Martial
loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
To you, my departed parents, with much emotion,
I commend my little lost darling, my much-kissed Erotion,
who died six days short of completing her sixth bitter winter.
Protect her, I pray, from hell’s hound and its dark shades a-flitter;
and please don’t let fiends leave her maiden heart dismayed!
But lead her to romp in some happy Elysian glade
with her cherished friends, excitedly lispingly my name.
Let no hard turf smother her softening bones; and do
rest lightly upon her, earth, she was such a slight burden to you!
—Martial, loose translation by Michael R. Burch
NOTES: Martial wrote this touching elegy for a little slave girl, Erotion, who died six days before her sixth birthday. The poem has been nominated as Martial’s masterpiece by L. J. Lloyd and others. Erotion means “little love” and may correspond to our term “love child.” It has been suggested that Erotion may have been Martial’s child by a female slave. That could explain why Martial is asking his parents’ spirits to welcome, guide and watch over spirit. Martial uses the terms patronos (patrons) and commendo (commend); in Rome a freed slave would be commended to a patron. A girl freed from slavery by death might need patrons as protectors on the “other side,” according to Greek and Roman views of the afterlife, where the afterworld houses evil shades and is guarded by a monstrous three-headed dog, Cerberus. Martial is apparently asking his parents to guide the girl’s spirit away from Cerberus and the dark spirits to the heavenly Elysian fields where she can play and laugh without fear. If I am correct, Martial’s poem is not just an elegy, but a prayer-poem for protection, perhaps of his own daughter. Albert A. Bell supports this hypothesis with the following arguments: (1) Martial had Erotion cremated, a practice preferred by the upper classes, (2) “he buried her with the full rites befitting the child of a Roman citizen,” (3) he entrusted her [poetically] to his parents, and (4) he maintained her grave for years.
Keywords/Tags: Martial, translation, Latin, Erotion, daughter, slave, six years old, turf, bones, earth, burden, patrons, shades
Coq au vin
by Martial, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
1.
Hosts always invite you to dinner, Phoebe,
but are you merely an éclair to the greedy?
2.
Hosts always invite you to dinner, Phoebe,
but are you **** Amaro to the greedy?
Amaro is an after-dinner liqueur thought to aid the digestion after a large meal.
3.
Hosts always invite you to dinner, Phoebe,
but are you an aperitif to the greedy?
4.
Hosts always invite you to dinner, Phoebe,
but they’re pimps to the seedy.
Ad cenam invitant omnes te, Phoebe, cinaedi.
mentula quem pascit, non, **** purus **** est.
These are my modern English translations of Latin poems by the English monk Gildas. Gildas, also known as Gildas Sapiens (“Gildas the Wise”), was a 6th-century British monk who is one of the first native writers of the British Isles we know by name. Gildas is remembered for his scathing religious polemic De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae (“On the Ruin and Conquest of Britain” or simply “On the Ruin of Britain”). The work has been dated to circa 480-550 AD.
“Alas! The nature of my complaint is the widespread destruction of all that was good, followed by the wild proliferation of evil throughout the land. Normally, I would grieve with my motherland in her travail and rejoice in her revival. But for now I restrict myself to relating the sins of an indolent and slothful race, rather than the feats of heroes. For ten years I kept my silence, I confess, with much mental anguish, guilt and remorse, while I debated these things within myself...” — Gildas, The Ruin of Britain, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
Gildas is also remembered for his “Lorica” (“Breastplate”):
“The Lorica of Loding” from the Book of Cerne
by Gildas
loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
Trinity in Unity, shield and preserve me!
Unity in Trinity, have mercy on me!
Preserve me, I pray, from all dangers:
dangers which threaten to overwhelm me
like surging sea waves;
neither let mortality
nor worldly vanity
sweep me away from the safe harbor of Your embrace!
Furthermore, I respectfully request:
send the exalted, mighty hosts of heaven!
Let them not abandon me
to be destroyed by my enemies,
but let them defend me always
with their mighty shields and bucklers.
Allow Your heavenly host
to advance before me:
Cherubim and Seraphim by the thousands,
led by the Archangels Michael and Gabriel!
Send, I implore, these living thrones,
these principalities, powers and Angels,
so that I may remain strong,
defended against the deluge of enemies
in life’s endless battles!
May Christ, whose righteous Visage frightens away foul throngs,
remain with me in a powerful covenant!
May God the Unconquerable Guardian
defend me on every side with His power!
Free my manacled limbs,
cover them with Your shielding grace,
leaving heaven-hurled demons helpless to hurt me,
to pierce me with their devious darts!
Lord Jesus Christ, be my sure armor, I pray!
Cover me, O God, with Your impenetrable breastplate!
Cover me so that, from head to toe,
no member is exposed, within or without;
so that life is not exorcized from my body
by plague, by fever, by weakness, or by suffering.
Until, with the gift of old age granted by God,
I depart this flesh, free from the stain of sin,
free to fly to those heavenly heights,
where, by the grace of God, I am borne in joy
into the cool retreats of His heavenly kingdom!
Amen
Apr 1, 2020
Apr 1, 2020 at 1:08 AM UTC
Martial Epigrams
You ask me why I've sent you no new verses?
There might be reverses.
—Martial, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
You ask me to recite my poems to you?
I know how you'll "recite" them, if I do.
—Martial, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
You ask me why I choose to live elsewhere?
You're not there.
—Martial, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
You ask me why I love fresh country air?
You're not befouling it there.
—Martial, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
You never wrote a poem,
yet criticize mine?
Stop abusing me or write something fine
of your own!
—Martial, loose translation by Michael R. Burch
He starts everything but finishes nothing;
thus I suspect there's no end to his *******
—Martial, loose translation by Michael R. Burch
You alone own prime land, dandy!
Gold, money, the finest porcelain—you alone!
The best wines of the most famous vintages—you alone!
Discrimination and wit—you alone!
You have it all—who can deny that you alone are set for life?
But everyone has had your wife—
she is never alone!
—Martial, loose translation by Michael R. Burch
You dine in great magnificence
while offering guests a pittance.
Sextus, did you invite
friends to dinner tonight
to impress us with your enormous appetite?
—Martial, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
Coq au vin
by Martial, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch
1.
Hosts always invite you to dinner, Phoebe,
but are you merely an éclair to the greedy?
2.
Hosts always invite you to dinner, Phoebe,
but are you **** Amaro to the greedy?
Amaro is an after-dinner liqueur thought to aid the digestion after a large meal.
3.
Hosts always invite you to dinner, Phoebe,
but are you an aperitif to the greedy?
4.
Hosts always invite you to dinner, Phoebe,
but they’re pimps to the seedy.
Ad cenam invitant omnes te, Phoebe, cinaedi.
mentula quem pascit, non, **** purus **** est.
Keywords/Tags: Martial, translation, Latin, epigram, verse, recite, wit, discrimination, country, air, dandy, wine, wife, dinner, appetite
Apr 1, 2020
Apr 1, 2020 at 1:02 AM UTC
As the artist
Kicks and punches
And strikes the air
With fierce creativity
Their moves
And body
Create a beautiful
Image
Only seen
But the imagination.
Feb 22, 2019
Feb 22, 2019 at 12:08 PM UTC
Art
I am able to
Digitally
Make images
Art
Am able
Draw
To make images
With a pencil
Art
With I kick or punch
I form patterns
And images
With my moves
Yet protecting my self
Alas my back.
Feb 21, 2019
Feb 21, 2019 at 5:41 PM UTC
In New York
In the Bronx
There was a street fighting
Punk rocker of a young men
Who was attracted
And eyed
An female martial artist
No older
Nor younger than him
When she was walking home she
Noticed him
Not afraid
She approached him
And took his hand
And the two went into an
Alley where they make out
When they kissed
The street punk
Soon realized
That he was in something he never
Knew existed
In love
Her as well.
Dec 28, 2018
Dec 28, 2018 at 9:59 AM UTC
These are my people
And these mats are our home.
We connected through the passion
Embedded in our bones.
Everyday we’re here
We’re renewed on our mats.
Theres sweat, tears, and blood on our Gis,
On our rash guards and spats.
We strive to train hard
And always remember
This family we’ve created
We’ll never surrender.
-ARI
Oct 9, 2018
Oct 9, 2018 at 1:25 PM UTC
So much work and determination for that moment.
Weeks of training, to predict all the opponent's moves.
Tears of frustration, blisters and bruises all over your body.
Looking at others enjoying food you're not allowed to touch.
Running, with a burning feeling in your chest.
All for that moment, those 4 minutes that can change everything.
Judges lined up, blue and red flags in their hands.
The fear of them not raising your color in the end.
The surrounding sounds go away.
Fighting gear on, nodding to you coach's distant words.
The sweat starts running under your helmet, heart's racing fast, the adrenaline kicks in.
The sign is given, it's time.
The mat feels bigger than it looks.
With shaky legs you walk out, to bow for your opponent.
Facing each other, you'll never forget the eyes of your enemy.
The whistle blows, the moment has arrived. It's time to put the weeks of training into action.
One final deep breath.
Fight. Fight for the time you've sacrificed.
Fight with all your might, to earn that medal around your neck.
Cause in that moment it's worth everything.
Oct 1, 2018
Oct 1, 2018 at 4:52 PM UTC
I study, I’ am a Martial Art
I practice, I’ am a Martial Art
I fight, I’ am myself
Aug 28, 2016
Aug 28, 2016 at 5:29 PM UTC
(On the death of a daughter)
The death I must pronounce upon
For you, parents, the wait was long
Across this land unjustly tried
Your silence only proof you lied.
In pitch darkness, dragged overland
By Dingo jaws and human hand
Guilty and gaoled, she would have read
In her sixth year, were she not dead
Just six weeks, never spoke a word
Now flies the night, free as a bird
Over deserts ochre and red
On Uluru she rests her head
Wakens and plays in sunlight stark
Darts in rock shadows, cool and dark
In Rainbow Spirit surely trust
She lies lightly in sand and dust.
© M.L.Emmett
Apr 18, 2016
Apr 18, 2016 at 4:56 AM UTC
उन्दै समनिफ्रायनो आंहा सासे मोजां गेलेगिरि जानायनि थांखि आरो मिजिँ दंमोन।
बे मिजिँ खानाय गोरबोनि दुमायनाय मोनसे जिरादआ आंखौ उसु-खुथु खालामबाय थायोमोन।
आं सम सम बेबादिनो गामिनि लोगोफोरजोँ बायदि रोखोमनि गेलेनाय आयदाखौनो गेलेयोमोन।
नाथाय आं जेरावबो रोँद्रायै नङा।
मोनफ्रोम गेलेनाय आयदाखौनो आं मोजांबो मोननो हायोमोन।
नाथाय थेवबो आं बांसिन मोजां मोन्नाय गेलेनाया केरेत् (सौनाय, जोनाय, बारनाय बायदि) मोन।
उन्दै समनिफ्रायनो आं बे रोखोम गेलेनायखौ टि. भि. सेनेमा (सावथुन) फोराव सम सम नायनो खाबु मोन्दोँमोन।
बे इसेल' खाबुआनो आंखौ आरोबाव बांसिन मोजां मोन्नो गोसोखौ होबावदोँमोन।
आंहा बारा बारा सासे मार्टियेल आर्टिस (Martial Artist) गेलेगिरि जानो गोसो थौहाबसिनदोँमोन।
बेबादिनो आं सानसेखालि आमटेकानि फुर्णिमा फोथाराव गेलेग्रा Wushu मुंनि गेलेनायाव गेलेजेन्नायसै।
आरो उनाव आं 2 अक्ट 2010 मायथाइनि नबेम्बर (2/11/2010) आव बेँटलाव थानाय Wushu Assiociation of Chirang आव गावनि माखासे लोगोमफोरजोँ मुं थिसन्नायसै।
नाथाय एसेबां गोसो थासेयावबो आं फुरायै बे गेलेनायखौ गेलेनो मोनाखिसै।
इं 2012 मायथाइआव गोजौ फरायसालिखौ उथ्रिनाय लोगो लोगो बङांइगामियाव लजिँ थानानै फरायनांनायाव नागारनो गोनां जाबाय।
लोगो लोगो आं सान्नायसै आंनि मोनसे मिजिँआनो बायबाय।
मानोना आं फरायनायखौबो खम खालामनो हाया।
Aug 26, 2015
Aug 26, 2015 at 4:50 AM UTC
It is winter and it is cold,
or am i just feeling old.
The shortest day is past so it is time,
to celebrate anew with a party sublime
and it costs naught, not a dime,
the event once a year, one-time.
A great event, a party, an event, a Do,
catch up on events and acquaintances renew.
Chase away this cold winters blue,
with friends and food and a good brew.
This Saturday coming as foretold,
come celebrate this special day twofold,
to reconnect with friends of old
and to dispel the winters cold.
Sijo Robert Z
Jun 22, 2015
Jun 22, 2015 at 3:58 AM UTC
On this chilly night,
so do not get a fright,
but rug up and come into the light,
at Mordialloc Training, Tonight.
We will do the warm-up, as is right
do some push ups for our might
and after this have a bite,
of some new chocolates, Tonight.
After this you will be ready outright,
with some cardie-vascular workout, quite,
and we will keep the schedule tight,
and do some partner-work too, Tonight.
So come and warm yourself by active rite,
maybe with a bit of sparring, no not fight,
and we will make it a delight, alright, alright,
when you come to Kung Fu training Tonight, Tonight.
Jun 20, 2015
Jun 20, 2015 at 12:24 AM UTC
Regular training tonight, that's right,
nothing new, no fright i cite.
So we will start at last light, to ignite and incite,
your skills to manage conflict and fight.
But also your health and your might,
to improve, increase and help forthright.
So, it's cold alright, alright, but despite this blight,
come training tonight, tonight; Alright?
Sijo Robert Z
Jun 20, 2015
Jun 20, 2015 at 12:22 AM UTC
Not every one knows who shall pass in the end,
Watching the training of Monk ***** Defence.
Who will manage the attack real well and defend,
And who will step aside and run away with good sense.
The time to compete is nearly at hand,
With a new weaponry style to commence
Come to training today and see how you withstand
The attacks on you person with Monks ***** bare hand defense!
And after all this that excellent Brew
That we will share and enjoy immense.
Look forward to training with You,
That most awesome of styles which we call Shaolin Self Defence
Jun 19, 2015
Jun 19, 2015 at 8:06 PM UTC
Black Gold, liquid energy, a morning obsession;
that here is the question, can we have another session.
Coffee is the great brew to share, an obsession,
with friends and family; and just to re freshen;
The time for the Saturday morning training,
just one-and-a-half hour remaining.
I am not complaining to be abstaining,
and refraining from the brew so sustaining
but it has to wait till one pm, after training.
So, i will see you, after the training of kung fu,
for this liquid black brew and something to chew,
today with my mordi kung fu crew,
so until then when i see you, adieu
Jun 19, 2015
Jun 19, 2015 at 8:04 PM UTC
VIOLENCE,
Nothing is as beautiful and as disgusting
To see MEN and WOMEN strike and grapple on UFC is wonderful
leaving everything they have out there with respect
only their technique and skill to speak for them
in the name of martial arts
To see "men" and "women" scrap and stomp on worldstar is sickening
leaving no downed alone,no honor nor respect
only their cowardice and anger speak for them
in the name of Violence.
Jul 8, 2014
Jul 8, 2014 at 7:45 PM UTC
*With gestures increasingly erratic with every strike
And punts as constant as ink gliding across ivory
Our vigilant artisan gathers his wisdom on combat's eve.*
May 21, 2014
May 21, 2014 at 11:17 AM UTC