Embodied Things: Bunyan's Flute and other poems

 The story begins some time ago, when I set off to walk the Camino from St Jean Pied de Port to Santiago de Compostela in northern Spain. That was in Spring, 2004  I took with me a small figurine of the Buddha, golden in colour. It had belonged to my father, who had recently died. I intended to take it all the way to Santiago. It wasn't actually made of gold. Brass, more like. My father had bought it from the local auction room for a few pounds. But it meant a lot to me because he valued it. It sat on the mantelpiece next to his chair along with various pipes and other smoking paraphernalia. I had to return home for work reasons after only a week of walking and having covered just a hundred miles or so of the 500 mile route. Before I left the path, I buried the Golden Buddha under a tree, in the garden of a ruined church, high on a hillside, overlooking the plains of La Rioca. I made a map, pinpointing the location to the nearest hand's breadth, fully intending to come back la...

This article suggests 6 reasons why the life and work of John Bunyan is of great relevance today, even for non-Christians. While Bunyan himself must be counted as one of the greatest Christian writers, his life and work touched upon universal themes that cannot be entirely contained within one system of beliefs.  I write from the perspective of someone who does not subscribe to any particular faith, yet finds much that is inspiring in what Bunyan did and wrote. Here’s why: 1. Great storytelling . His most famous work The Pilgrim’s Progress has been read and enjoyed by millions, and not just for its religious message, though that of course is part of it. The reasons for its  popularity go far beyond that. Fantastic imagery and compelling storytelling are part of its appeal too. Bunyan's plain colloquial style made him an exceptionally good communicator, with a gift for dialogue that gives the narrative a dynamic quality. The book has an unpolished authenticity and originality ...

“The earliest examples of ekphrastic poetry are not, it seems, principally focused on painting, but on utilitarian objects…Goblets, urns, vases, chests, cloaks, girdles, various sorts of weapons and armour, and architectural ornaments like friezes, reliefs, frescos and statues” (Extract from " Ekphrasis and the Other " by W. J. T. Mitchell in Picture Theory , published by The University of Chicago Press, 1994). I’d always assumed that ekphrastic poetry had to be about visual art like paintings or sculpture. I didn't realize that the term can also apply to poems about more ordinary objects. But in the above quote, this widely-held assumption is challenged. Ekphrastic poetry is seen as a practice that goes right back to the descriptions of the shield of Achilles in Homer’s Iliad . In his essay, Mitchell makes clear that ekphrasis is not solely about the visual aspect of works of art or other objects, but could also be about their smell, taste, feel, sound, and so on. Or it ...

   Nelson Mandela's visit to Bedford, April 7, 2000, shown here with the Mayor  Bunyan and Mandela's lives are separated in time by over three centuries. They lived in very different social and political contexts. Yet they have much in common. Both were prisoners of conscience who spent long periods in prison, relinquishing their own freedom in order to stand up for the freedom of others. Both, too, later emerged from prison as charismatic and inspirational leaders. We tend to take for granted the freedoms they fought for, and the personal sacrifices they made to gain those freedoms. Beyond that, there is another connection - which might be described as coincidental. On April 7th, 2000, Mandela briefly visited the town of Bedford in England in order to re-dedicate a bust of his old friend and anti-apartheid campaigner, Trevor Huddleston. The event lasted less than an hour, but 10,000 people turned up to witness it. A highlight was when Mandela danced to the tune of 'Freed...