English Original
new moon
another vow
of silence
Jenny Mattern
Chinese Translation (Traditional)
新月
另一個靜默
的誓約
Chinese Translation (Simplified)
新月
另一个静默
的誓约
Bio Sketch
Jenny Mattern is a poet, a crafter of stories, and a cake-for-breakfast enthusiast living in Montana. She has poems published in The Poetry Pea Anthology, Cold Moon Journal, The Solitary Daisy, The Dirigible Balloon, the 2025 One Art Haiku Anthology, and Tranquility: An Anthology of Haiku.
When evaluated in the context of monasticism/spiritual discipline, a "vow of silence" in Ls 2&3, is a foundational practice for prayer, contemplation, and to focus on one's faith.
ReplyDeleteThe "cyclical" nature of L1, "new" moon (the first moon phase almost invisible in the sky), when juxtaposed with "another" vow in L2, shows (not tells) something spiritually significant about the N's practice: (every) new moon (the first day of a lunar month), another vow of silence.
This "silence practice" haiku just reminds us of the following remarks:
We're human, all too human.
-- Friedrich Nietzsche
And
Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try Again. Fail again. Fail better. :-)
-- Samuel Beckett