Ears to Hear – Tanka by Gabriel Rosenstock

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Pic by Eanger Irving Couse

 

While the world cries about the burgeoning ecological crisis, below is a bilingual Tanka ( Irish-English ), suggesting that ecological wisdom was there all the while, for those with ears to hear.

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tá ár ndomhan ag éamh
i measc tuilte is dóiteán
nóta ar an ngaoth
       ceol na bpobal dúchasach
       níos sine i bhfad ná an ceo
 
 
as our world cries out
from the midst of fires and floods
what music is this?
       native peoples play a tune
       older than the mists of time
 

 
Eanger Irving Couse (1866 -1936) made drawings of members of the local Chippewa tribe when he was a boy. He is famous for his portrayal of the culture of the Taos people of New Mexico.
 
About the Author
 
Gabriel Rosenstock is a bilingual poet, tankaist, hakuist, novelist, dramatist, children’s author, short story writer, translator and essayist.