Wednesday, 18 March 2015

The Nibelungenlingenlungenlied part I


this is my latest poem first dreamt up during my latter period of recovery in hospital

it is my version of the Siegfried the dragon slayer tale   and stylistically follows that of my earlier  "elen of the hosts"  and "robbinhood"

 

Originating in eddaic  scalds  and based on the  bad families  of the Sigurdy Volsunga saga

the  hero story was  retold to less effect  for medieval audiences  in   the Frankish  set and frankish directed  Das Niebelungenlied   more a "Nibelungen Not" where the  curse and the  volsunger magic are mere scenery   and as a tale  D.N  had little appeal   until caught up in   ill-conceived  attempt to create a Homer rivalling "great story of the North" with  over emphasis on the word "race"  

which  inspired    the  Arier  pitch  of    the musical Dassie versions   before the whole dragon slayer  treasure pile    epic  became hobbitual  in Tolkien's ruining of English myth

 

my new version   the Nibelungenlingenlungenlied will be published in the third collected volumes of my poetry

 

in the first part Siegfried  is a   aimless hero dragging his treasure behind him  and then  fantasising  by the fire encircled brunhilde  unable to summon the courage to ride into the flames

in the second part   having washed away Brunhilde  Siegfried is unfavourably compared to her previous suitors   and the wedding day  is   focused on prophecies of doom

 

 



 

Nibelungenlingenlungenlied

 

 

 

 

Woden trees being with wish rags

riders of the sky wild hunt

long fingers  one of us one of us

neither night 

mare before the Hecate

 

sunset

Siegfried split between two dwarves

wyrd weird

blonde hair and rings the very Teuton

bird eater dragon takes the jaw

Siegfried  at the dragons mouth

gold buries gold

 

sunrise

 dawn adulterous  on earth and sky

praying at a  shrine of pietas fear

Joseph and his child

baby wolf

 

Siegfried wears a red cap  beaker, crow , fat duck

hero

 with dragons teeth  sow retainers  invincibles

what teeth ?

he played knucklebones

played toss

threw bait to slowest fish

-army of one

 

 

A sword pointer than any sword

a horse racer than any horse

armour of chain no weapon can take  but with one weak link over the heart

chain pull

invisible helmet

invisible man

 

most beautiful women in the world

fair  hair like the raven before it took to bad ways

red lips white skin

like pack trampled ground

 

 

most beautiful woman in the world

as illiadated  by a middle aged crone in blackest syren

of classical goddesses flinging some Greek of no importance

off white girls  in  show men statuesque

pop the apple  prize   awarded rubbed smooth

"to the farthest"

 

given to the jolly ho traveller  out of the north pole

sleigh cresset with  wants and goods

boreal cheeks ,apple, nog, brandy

"up Prancer morning star"

goddess  fit for brandy

 

 

 

 

A fire seafaring silk

frester, flaming Helena and Elmo

 

fifty foot tall woman surrounded by a metric of fire

watching her through reeds

chase hair

brushing combing

 

lying flowers at the gather

last of her knife throwing act

bosom belly and words

 and words

broom  and words

invisible man

 

dreams  without flight

woman

broad serving at the boat burial of sexrex Saxon

lucky rex

three ages

of woman

bride, bracks, scold

 

Sieg  hero lied

rescued fair maiden  lied

 

 

looked at his horse  a hay dipper

looked at his sword a hay dipper

invisible man

fear

fire

 

 

 

 

solution worked out on his toes  And Or

bearing  quadral triangulium flow in  stone to stone rivers

 

he bathed

while rubbing himself  to sparks

understand cuck call feather speech 

something of animals

words of bliss as birds do in their aerials

jays balanced on  saint buckthorn  branches chaffer  profics of cunnings, traitors, dooms 

hugging and mugging crows

 

what hear

dirty minded birds -shags, albatossers

creeper

fur prey and compliment

a  fitting weasel  cries "where is my silver"

 

 

water fire

chapel and crib

 

terror in the lake

terrible in the lake

green knight

marsh gas

pot gas

 snake row

filling with water

bones for my supper

bones for her supper

 

carry water sorcered buckets

words  he knew no words                     

 

gravestone backed landowner  serfs  and wood wode grunting lithics 

 bent to rule a straight  Martian dying canali

paid in brass love pennies

 pennies that turned into  fractionals

oak leaves beyond the forest

 

 

bury summer

 marry summer

bury winter

marry winter

 

brushing combing

 

 

the Nibelungenlingenlungenlied  part I

Mark Littler 2015


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