Seth Jani
The road will not kill you
though you might lose your way
before finding the temple door.
There’s a red village near here
and beyond it a ruined mountain.
Wherever you go, the soul
is a black snake slithering
between stones.
It can drink that ancient water
left by distant angels
in the world’s wild places.
We’re here for the ritual,
for the numinous party.
Take that green wine
and shove it down your wellhole.
If you drink enough
you might mistake the rain
for a glittering slit
in the silk of the sky.
Seth Jani is a poet, publisher and bartender in Seattle, WA. His work has appeared in The American Poetry Journal, Chiron Review, Ghost City Review, Rust+Moth and Phantom Drift, among others. His most recent full-length collection, Field Music, was published by FutureCycle Press in 2023. Visit him at www.sethjani.com.