Welcome to “Poetry at The Arts Fuse.” A new poem every Thursday

The Saffron Robe of the Forest Monk

Take me off, monk.
I wish I was empty
like the bowl.

Your chant
that never fills the bowl.

I am so bored by you
clutching the empty bowl.

Take me off.
I want to be alone with Bowl
to savor the bliss
of monklessness.

Corwin Ericson is the author of Swell, a novel, and Checked Out OK. His work has appeared in a variety of publications, including Jubilat, The Massachusetts Review, and Harper’s.

Note: Hey poets! We seek submissions of excellent poetry from across the length and breadth of contemporary poetics. See submission guidelines here. The arbiter of the feature is the magazine’s poetry editor, John Mulrooney.

— Arts Fuse editor Bill Marx