Dragon mountain (i)
Dragon mountain
weeping tears
waters which heal
desperate spirits.
Spine opened wide
sainted man’s sword
crevices so deep
that minds feel fear.
Pale ochre and white
pink ripples like ferns
waters magically restore
all who believe.
Dragon
mountain (ii)
Dragon mountain promises
hope where wind blows around
evil destroyed where peace
abounds on the mountain
climb, then released
anxiety gone
spirits feel peace
where the holy man
destroyed age-old enmity
then peace.
Fable and myths woven
with stories of saints
bending, lacing new legends
tied to other constraints,
reviving spirits
of pilgrims and skeptics,
shrines assure hope
for desperate, forlorn folk
on the mountain, day’s soft
breezes wind calm.
Here is a holy place called holy ground
To walk along its spine on this mountain
To feel the dragon tremble once again
To hear the wind humming no other sound
Except tears from the eyes in small fountains
Bubbling softly far below to the plain.
Old folk tales tell how the dragon devoured
Sacrifices, people deemed innocent
Satisfied leaving local tribes in peace
Till comes the saint and new stories flower,
By slaying the dragon protection sent
All live on in calm from terror’s release.
Gratitude expressed in this small shrine built
Some climb the dragon’s back or pray below
In a holy place, with far reaching views
Crevice along its spine easing all guilt
Old hope made new as today’s reverence grows
To visit the mountain souls are renewed.
Adèle Ogiér Jones
the dragon growls
its belly rumbles
hungry again
for sacrifices
the earth shakes
as it pounds one foot
after the other
pausing, breathing fire
it lifts its head
and bellows to the sky
buildings fall in awe
lives taken carelessly
hills quake, plains open
with cracks devouring
creatures weak and strong
heedless of rank or age
ancient ritual
in this timeless land
wars cannot stop
this incessant hunger
lives given as tribute
but no appeasement
the dragon roams
randomly choosing.
*Growling Earth was first published in the collection by Adèle Ogiér Jones
‘Afghanistan – waiting for
the bus’ (Ginninderra Press, 2007)
Writing creatively as Ogiér Jones, Adèle calls Freiburg i. Br. and Melbourne home. Professional writing is published under her name Adele M.E. Jones. Four major collections of poetry include the Kosovo poems of Beyond the Blackbird Field (Ginninderra Press, 2016), and three chapbooks, the latest of which Bonhommes (Ginninderra Press, 2020) was written for the artwork of Moroccan artist Aziz Kibari. She appears in numerous anthologies such as Mountain Secrets (Ginninderra Press, 2019), and has been shortlisted and awarded in poetry competitions. She has two published novels, the first Desert Diya (Ginninderra Press, 2010) like much of her poetry, comes out of her international and intercultural work.
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