Back to Issue 7

Inn of the Seventh Ray by Shadwynn

Cleft-nestled concealment
in a California canyon,
sacrosanct structure coyly veiled
by mission oak, shade of sycamore.

An eviction of deity, renovation
leaving mere sentimental mementos,
religiously deceptive exteriors
stained and spared.

Translucent apparitions
faint with fading day; dying fragments,
their countenance lead-cracked
in windowed mosaic.

Half-hearted illumination
through the hem of an archangel's robe,
its deep purple patterns
cast upon cream-colored cloths,
settings of silverware,
shapely crystal on slender stems.

Film of fruited fermentation
lip-smeared upon goblet glass,
spiritually savored taste
amidst the serenity of an elegant tableau
for vegetarian meditation
at the Inn of the Seventh Ray.

Stained panes still remember
liturgies of bread and wine;
early evening diners
unwittingly foreshadow
the marriage supper of the Lamb,
sacred scenes above them
dusk-dimmed, like so many raftered afterthoughts
among God's restaurant-restored remains.

Bio: Shadwynn is the author of The Crafted Cup: Ritual Mysteries of the Goddess and the Grail (Llewellwyn, 1994). His poetry has appeared in the online journals  Lily, L'Intrigue, Farsight Magazine, Ithuriel's Spear, SubtleTea, Seeker Magazine, ken*again, New Verse News,   and in the Celtic publication Bardsong . He is self-described as a wordsmith and heretical contemplative currently residing in the urban environs of Richmond, Virginia.