Solitude

AliterarysanctuaryforwhatShakespearecalled“sessionsofsweetsilentthought,”thisexquisitegatheringofpoemsspeakstotheconsolationsofsolitude.HereisWordsworthwandering“lonelyasacloud”;Poeconfiding“allIloved,Ilovedalone”;Yeats’scommunionwith“thedeepheart’score”;andHanShan’sheartofahermit,“cleanasawhitelotus.”FromSirEdwardDyer’s“MyMindtoMeaKingdomIs,”tothespiritualsearchingoftheTranscendentalists,tothemeditativeverseofJorieGraham,someofthemostindeliblepoemsfromeverytimeandculturehavegrownoutofthealonenessinherentinthepoet’sart.Thepoemscollectedhere,whetherreflectingonthesouloronnature,addressinganabsentlovedone,orhonoringtheself,formabookofrespiteandcontemplation,andabeautifultributetotheinteriorlife.