When the Great Way is deserted,
then there is humanitarian duty.
When intelligence comes forth,
there is great fabrication.
When relations are discordant,
then there is family love.
When the national polity
is benighted and confused,
then there are loyal ministers.

– Thomas Cleary

 

When the Great Way disappears
we meet kindness and justice
when reason appears
we meet great deceit
when the six relations fall
we meet obedience and love
when the country is in chaos
we meet upright officials

– Red Pine

 

And when the olden way of rule declined,
The words for love and serve came in.
Next came knowledge and keen thought,
Advent of lying, sham, and fraud.
When kinsmen lost their kind concord,
They honored child- and parent-love.
In a dark disorder ruling houses
Turned to loyal devoted vassals.

– Moss Roberts


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#211: Who Was William Cullen Bryant? Human Voices Wake Us

An episode from 1/5/2026: Tonight, I read a handful of passages from Gilbert Muller’s William Cullen Bryant: Author of America. During his lifetime, Bryant (1794-1878) was the most popular poet in America as well as one of the country’s most trusted and influential editors and journalists. Through Bryant’s own words and those of his contemporaries, I trace the story of that double-prominence, and the unease many felt over the fate of Bryant’s poetry against the pressures of politics. I also address how, since his death, Bryant has become almost entirely unknown and unread.The best way to support the podcast is by leaving a review on Apple or Spotify, sharing it with others, or sending me a note on what you think. You can also order any of my books: Time and the River: From Columbine to the Invention of Fire, due out next year, is now available for preorder. Other books include Notes from the Grid, To the House of the Sun, The Lonely Young & the Lonely Old, and Bone Antler Stone. I've also edited a handful of books in the S4N Pocket Poems series.Email me at humanvoiceswakeus1@gmail.com.
  1. #211: Who Was William Cullen Bryant?
  2. #210: Memories & Legends of William Shakespeare
  3. #209 – Being a Jew in 1900, Being a Jew Now
  4. #208: Bach & God
  5. #207 – Death, the Gods, and Endless Life in Ancient Egypt
  6. #206 – The Discovery of Indo-European Languages – 1876
  7. #205: Learning to Read, c. 2000 BCE
  8. #204: Walt Whitman's "Crossing Brooklyn Ferry," 1856
  9. #203: Bruce Springsteen Talks About "Nebraska" – 1984
  10. #202 – A Death at Sea, 1834

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