It is to the Riddle of the Sphinx that I have devoted fifty years of professional life as an anthropologist.
quote by Gregory Bateson
Submitted by Lucian Velea
Vote! | Copy!
Related quotes
Two Riddles. -- 1710
Sphinx was a monster that would eat
Whatever stranger she could get,
Unless his ready wit disclosed
The subtile riddle she proposed.
OEdipus was resolved to go
And try what strength of parts would do;
Says Sphinx, on this depends your fate;
Tell me what animal is that
Which has four feet at morning bright,
Has two at noon, and three at night?
'Tis Man, said he, who, weak by nature,
At first creeps, like his fellow-creature,
Upon all four; as years accrue,
With sturdy steps he walks on two;
In age at length grows weak and sick,
For his third leg adopts the stick.
Now, in your turn, 'tis just, methinks,
You should resolve me, Madam Sphinx,
What greater stranger yet is he
Who has four legs, then two, then three;
Then loses one, then gets two more,
And runs away at last on four?
poem by Matthew Prior
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
A major difficulty is that the answer to the Riddle of the Sphinx is partly a product of the answers that we already have given to the riddle in its various forms.
quote by Gregory Bateson
Submitted by Lucian Velea
Vote! | Copy!
An Ode to the Sphinx
2500 years after Oedipus and the Sphinx
was written
I sit in my English class
studying her riddle
as the silverfish crawls
and the fruit flies fly
a teenager, I think
no- twelve years old perhaps
we live in the toughest time
we grow; we are no longer a child
with neon signs lighting the streets
the roar of cars and trucks from city
to town and back
a man playing golf on the moon
we grow
we need to get used to our body
there's new power, new responsibilities
never known before, and we grow
we reek of adolescent growth
and in our premature fear
we fight
we fuel our wars with hatred
hatred from fear
still learning our place
not quite child- not quite adult
and the silverfish crawls
and the fruit flies fly
we fight back
when we are shown love
we cower, hold back
trying to figure out what is right
entering the world with no parent
communism
monarchy
democracy
d ictatorship
nuclear war
bombing the head, the torso, the feet
meanwhile the silverfish crawls
and the fruit flies fly
we discover ourselves in time
and now- 2500 years later
the Sphinx returns with a new riddle
The Sphinx is a girl
The Sphinx is a girl
the test for centuries
failed and failed again
this time aiming for the heart
stabbing, crushing, stomping
the fall of dynasties,
emperors,
kings,
and power
she once again seizes control
the toughest enemy...
the loneliness! that's the riddle!
twisted with fear and hope
failed and failed again
the Sphinx is a girl
lost, wandering and waiting
waiting again
waiting
and the silverfish crawls
poem by Greg Friedrich
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
That Fifty Year Old Woman
That fifty year old woman
she is someones mother
that fifty year old woman
she is someones lover
them fifty years of her life
unseen by a cover.
Covered by the leaves
from the autumn trees is the grass
surrounded by blue tape
and nosey people who pretend to pass
a group of actors walk by
they have come from a history class
to make history new
with conversation with questions to ask.
A fifty year old woman
in an autumn so cold
a fifty year old woman
seen dark winter unfold
them fifty years of life
it is all we are told.
The actors, they didn't get any information
they did not get pictures
nothing known about the situation
nothing at all to discuss
fifty years of age is all thats said
on the morning paper on the fifty bus
thats all thats said
a fifty year old woman, shes found dead.
That fifty year old woman
shes not someones mother
that fifty year old woman
how she had no lover
them fifty years of life
unseen by a cover.
That fifty year old woman
she was quoted in the paper today
that fifty year old woman will be gone tomorrow
the writers they will show no sorrow
because its the way things work
as people pass
she no longer lies on grass
shes covered in dirt.
poem by Daniel McCann
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
I Am A Man
in the morning of my life
i need four of you
at noon i only need two
in the night of my life
i will need three
now you must know me
i am the answer to the riddle
of the sphinx
i am man
when the night is gone
at dusk
i only need one.
poem by Ric S. Bastasa
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
Riddle
One little riddle
Two little three little
Four little riddle
Five little six little
Seven little riddle
Eight little riddle
Now you know
You gotta go
One little riddle
Two little three little
Four little riddle
Five little six little
Seven little riddle
Eight little riddle
Now you know
You gotta go
Monday morning was the first time
That I noticed something strange
Now I know with your kiss was not the same
Was it all just in my mind
Or was it something I should pay attention to
Then on tuesday having lunch with friends
I thought I saw your car
Leaving from our favorite restaurant but too far
For my eyes to see what I feel
Would be heartbreaking if I saw was true whoo
One little riddle
Two little three little
Four little riddle
Five little six little
Seven little riddle
Eight little riddle
Now you know
You gotta go
(while the chorus is singing)
History
Its history
cause now I see, you lie
One little riddle
Two little three little
Four little riddle
Five little six little
Seven little riddle
Eight little riddle
Now you know
You gotta go
(while the chorus is singing)
You gave me clues
I saw through
Now you lose,
You fool
Wednesday evening
Every time the phone would rang
Youd say hello
When Id come around youd say I got to go
Youre friends never called line two before
And I dont know nobody named tyrone
Oh now its thursday
You left the house to go to work an hour early
You said you had some papers for your boss to sign
But you left your briefcase home
And when I called you job
They said you were not there oh yeah
One little riddle
Two little three little
Four little riddle
Five little six little
Seven little riddle
Eight little riddle
Now you know
You gotta go
(while the chorus is singing)
History
Its history
cause now I see, you lie
One little riddle
Two little three little
Four little riddle
Five little six little
Seven little riddle
Eight little riddle
Now you know
You gotta go
(while the chorus is singing)
You gave me clues
I saw through
Now you lose,
You fool
Friday night
Is the night weve always had our weekend date
But you showed up at the house extremely late
Without any conversation you just went to bed
And said that youre head ached
Now its the weekend
And you know that its the day I do my cleaning
And when I washed your shirts I just could not believe
Im picking hair weave off your seam
Found a letter in your pocket from the week please
One little riddle
Two little three little
Four little riddle
Five little six little
Seven little riddle
Eight little riddle
Now you know
You gotta go
(while the chorus is singing)
History
Its history
cause now I see, you lie
One little riddle
Two little three little
Four little riddle
Five little six little
Seven little riddle
Eight little riddle
Now you know
You gotta go
(while the chorus is singing)
You gave me clues
I saw through
Now you lose,
You fool
One little riddle
Two little three little
Four little riddle
Five little six little
Seven little riddle
Eight little riddle
Now you know
You gotta go
One little riddle
Two little three little
Four little riddle
Five little six little
Seven little riddle
Eight little riddle
Now you know
You gotta go
song performed by by En Vogue
Submitted by Lucian Velea
Vote! | Copy!
Father Joe Murphy
When i was a Schoolboy Father Joe Murphy was a young man
I recall him and his Brothers Doney and the late Johnny Dan
And though of my existence he hardly would know
One cannot help but remember the great Father Joe.
Fifty five years as a priest something to celebrate
The man has been blessed in his great gift of faith
To his own higher self and to his god true
We must give him credit since credit he is due.
Devoted to his god by good example he lead
At living a good life one who does succeed
A credit to Millstreet and the pride of his clan
The great Father Joe is a wonderful man.
In this age of the cheapening values in life
With warring and famines and poverty rife
A story like Father Joe's a great story to hear
There's still hope for humanity it does appear.
Fifty five years a priest is something well worth a boast
To Father Joe Murphy we will drink a toast
He was in his prime years when i was quite young
And surely his praises deserve to be sung.
poem by Francis Duggan
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
Nature is a Sphinx...
Nature's a Sphinx. And her ordeal
Is all the more destructive to mankind
Because, perhaps, she has no riddle.
Nor did she ever have one.
poem by Fyodor Ivanovich Tyutchev
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
I Can Write About It, I Can't Write Some More
that is the riddle of the sphinx,
but i will make sure you cannot figure it out
that your answer shall never be right,
for i am the sphinx,
and i still do not want to die.
tell me all the lies so i may live some more.
i will keep this answer till the last breath of my life.
you shall never know it.
be human still, for i am half lion half bird sitting on a hill
challenging those that pass before me
killing them without pity
you are the chosen one to kill me
with an answer
you are the answer but you are blind still
and too dumb
for not loving me and so i live still
perhaps forever,
for i am attuned to this pain
of loving not
and truly not loving still
you, my secret, my truth, my death.
i live, and only through lies, i live and only through your indifference
you must not have the wit
you must never learn to love
for when this happens
i shall be no more.
poem by Ric S. Bastasa
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
Sphinx
The smartest of all
Was the lion woman Sphinx
Asking her riddle
Until one answered it right
She killed herself in despair
poem by Chelsey Ferner
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
Fifty Years Of Marriage
With dye and hair colouring they cover their gray
Their fifty years of marriage they celebrate today
Through fifty years of marriage they have argued their way
In their love hate relationship one well might say.
Their better days one can say for them are long gone
And they age without grace though time is ticking on
Their children are grand-parents and the years on them show
Since they too are ageing and their fastest pace slow.
Fifty happy years together by some we are told
But others who know them well and with their words more bold
Will tell you they never did see eye to eye
But why they stay together one must wonder why.
They have stayed together for so many years
One can hardly say of them the lovely old dears
Since they both are quite quarrelsome and grumpy as well
Perhaps without quarrels life for them would be hell.
Fifty years together and the same bed they share
Yet even in public places at each other they swear
Such marriages as their's suppose never were rare
They are not the World's only dysfunctional pair.
Today their descendants will celebrate the marriage of their Pop and Gran
And applaud this wonderful woman and man
But the truth of their marriage they will never tell
How they seem to enjoy giving each other hell.
poem by Francis Duggan
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
To See Life As A Riddle
Life,
Is what we make it.
But some will sit,
To see life as a riddle.
And life...
Some choose to fake it.
With a doing that's believed,
They can be freed of mistakes.
Yet life,
Is what we make it.
But some will sit,
To see life as a riddle.
Some people have a need,
To play life second fiddle.
Out of tune,
And afraid of taking risks.
Some people live,
Afraid of taking chances...
With dismissing most of it!
Yet life,
Is what we make it.
But some will sit,
As if it is a riddle.
Life,
Is what we make it.
Yet some will sit,
Just to play it second fiddle.
And some will see life,
With no middle but a riddle.
Yes some will sit,
Just to play life second fiddle.
poem by Lawrence S. Pertillar
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
Devoted To You
(boudleaux bryant)
Darling you can count on me
till the sun dries up the sea
Until then Ill always be
Devoted to you
Ill be yours till endless time
Ill adore your charms sublime
Guess by now you know that im
Devoted to you
Ill never hurt you
Ill never lie
Ill never be untrue
Ill never give you reason to cry
Id be unhappy if you were blue
Through the years our love will grow
Like a river it will flow
It cant die because Im so
Devoted to you
song performed by by Carly Simon
Submitted by Lucian Velea
Vote! | Copy!
The Words That I Have Not Written
for the words i have not written
i accept i have been a coward
the moment these words become transparent
in my mind, i always tell them gently
i have not the strength to write you
you have become subjects beyond
my power and please understand
the consequences of having to write
all of you: waiting to be printed and read
like the Sphinx and its riddle before
Oedipus, if i were to write all of you
i may be able to save a kingdom in distress
but please understand what happens to me next
for like Oedipus i may be compelled to pluck my eyes out
from my face
and i may roam the earth begging for forgiveness
throughout my life
because i have been blind by fate for all those years
writing you is honesty
and it is this honesty that may at the end kill me
and so
i am very sorry
poem by Ric S. Bastasa
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
It is of first-class importance that our answer to the Riddle of the Sphinx should be in step with how we conduct our civilisation, and this should in turn be in step with the actual workings of living systems.
quote by Gregory Bateson
Submitted by Lucian Velea
Vote! | Copy!
My Friend How Can You Ever Trace Me In That Labyrinth?
in that labyrinth once you saw me as the minotaur
i went into hiding and changed my form
i became a faun, and when you found me with my horn and tail
and lots of hair and goat-like musk, i changed again
into another mythological animal,
a dragon spitting fire,
a centaur, a snake with eight heads,
a dinosaur, a sphinx,
a lion, an eagle,
whatever form i assumed, you still find me,
and sometimes i wonder how have you been following me
through and through in this labyrinths of my hiding
and concealment in masks and names
myriad, escapes and exits,
despite all these, you still find me.
i know one thing, but i will not tell you.
The riddle of the Sphinx
you must know, if solved, crumbles my existence
into ash,
or like a leaf, under too much scorching,
crumples me into dusts.
Please do not tell me the answer.
Make me live a little longer inside your innocence.
Let the chaos stay.
poem by Ric S. Bastasa
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
I used to think that cyberspace was fifty years away. What I thought was fifty years away, was only ten years away. And what I thought was ten years away... it was already here. I just wasn't aware of it yet.
quote by Bruce Sterling
Submitted by Lucian Velea
Vote! | Copy!
Devoted To You
Darlin, you can count on me
Til the sun dries up the sea
([...])
Until then, Ill always be
Devoted to you
Ill be yours through endless time
Ill adore your charms sublime
Guess by now you know that im
Devoted to you
Ill never hurt you, Ill never lie
Ill never be untrue
Ill never give you reason to cry
Id be unhappy if you were blue
Through the years, my love will grow
Like a river, it will flow
It cant die because Im so
Devoted to you
Ill never hurt you, Ill never lie
Ill never be untrue
Ill never give you reason to cry
Id be unhappy if you were blue
Through the years, my love will grow
Like a river, it will flow
It cant die because Im so
Devoted to you
Ba ba ba ba ba
Ba ba ba ba ba ba bom
(that was beautiful.)
(great.)
(yay!)
(*clapping*)
(that was great.)
(hey, brian, I [...])
song performed by by Beach Boys
Submitted by Lucian Velea
Vote! | Copy!
What I Cannot Write
what i cannot write
is the answer of the riddle of the sphinx
to me.
i know myself.
hence, i know the answer very well.
i cannot even say it.
thinking about it
shakes my being
like an earthquake
to the foundations
of my house.
i cannot say or write it.
because if i will
everything in me crashes
like September 11.
poem by Ric S. Bastasa
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
Hopelessly Devoted To You
(john farrar)
Guess mine is not the first heart broken
My eyes are not the first to cry
Im not the first to know
Theres just no getting over you
You know Im just a fool whos willing
To sit around and wait for you
But, baby, cant you see
Theres nothing else for me to do?
Im hopelessly devoted to you
But now theres nowhere to hide
Since you pushed my love aside
Im out of my head
Hopelessly devoted to you
Hopelessly devoted to you
Hopelessly devoted to you
My head is saying, fool, forget him.
My heart is saying, dont let go.
Hold on till the end.
And thats what I intend to do
Im hopelessly devoted to you
But now theres nowhere to hide
Since you pushed my love aside
Im out of my head
Hopelessly devoted to you
Hopelessly devoted to you
Hopelessly devoted to you
song performed by by Olivia Newton-John
Submitted by Lucian Velea
Vote! | Copy!