The wild dance of the apocalypse

We swirl around, around
hands on waist, unwound
cliff-clinging close, closer
to the precipice, we dare
the drop, the hungry sea
below, the risk to drown;
losing the tomorrow for today
we dance, obtuse, delighted
in a doomsday disregard,
we dance on carcasses
on flesh and bone

we dance for death, for us
for nothing but our self-
contentment, joy
& rapture
we dance for draught
we dance
for naught
we dance us drunk,
silly
from the greed to own
to crown ourselves
to fill the world,
to be
baptised,
blessed by drums
for books aflame.

we dance for war,
for the last of days
we dance while
… waiting …
… wailing …
… waning …

for apocalypse
to at last, at least
save us from
… ourselves.

Art created by Dall-E by Bing: The wild dance of the apocalypse

Today Mish asks us to write poetry inspired by dance at dVerse. I could not avoid to write one on the theme of an apocalypse of our own creation.

January 30, 2024

39 responses to “The wild dance of the apocalypse

  1. “we dance us drunk,
    silly
    from the greed to own
    to crown ourselves
    to fill the world,
    to be
    baptised,
    blessed by drums
    for books aflame.”

    That part really got me.

  2. An apocalyptic dance indeed, a frenzy of all that makes us at once less than human and all too human– I love the way you ended it, in breathless relief almost, of human self-extinction.

  3. Wow! An incredible flow that pulls you in with the rhythm and enjambment. I love that you took “dance” and went dark. This is amazing as it burns itself up. Timely and true.

  4. Very striking write, Bjorn, I like that you show us a perspective of dancing that we often do not think about. The poem , combined with the picture, made me think of the Dancing plague of 1518.

  5. A great write on you doomsday poem. The picture is awesome. I especially thought this really summed it all up:
    losing the tomorrow for today
    we dance, obtuse, delighted
    in a doomsday disregard,

  6. Losing tomorrow for today…yep! It is a precarious dance that we’ve been dancing for half a century (so I read today…fossil fuel industry being well aware since 1950’s about how their activities will eventually impact the climate and humanity). A very important poem.

  7. That’s some wild dance of the apocalypse, Björn, which started a long time ago and seems to be nearing its climax. I love the rhythm and movement created by the line lengths, and the horror of some of the lines, for example:
    ‘we dance on carcasses
    on flesh and bone’
    and the selfish, devil-may-care attitude in the lines:
    ‘we dance for death, for us
    for nothing but our self-
    contentment, joy
    & rapture’
    and
    ‘we dance us drunk,
    silly
    from the greed to own
    to crown ourselves’.

  8. .Unwound, cliff-clinging close’ and so it began. The rhythm, diminishing as it flowed, until it came to its powerful end. An epic work of art Bjorn. Epic. No way can it be forgotten, dismissed. Thank you for leaving a comment on “Last Dance” .. Gordon was a force of nature, with a voice strong as your poem.

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