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Ashok Karra

Ashok Karra

357 posts published

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poetry

Dorothy Aldis, "When I Was Lost"

I still walk nervous. I’ve done a lot to be calmer, to learn to breathe. Exercise, meditation, reflection. On a larger level: the ability to prioritize. But adulthood in this world, at this time, is a nonstop creation of traps. Whether I’m productive or not, expectations emerge from

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra Apr 14, 2021 • 3 min read
Kyla Houbolt, "Slippery;" Emily Dickinson, "Your thoughts don't have words every day" (1452)
kyla houbolt

Kyla Houbolt, "Slippery;" Emily Dickinson, "Your thoughts don't have words every day" (1452)

As Houbolt documents: “that thing I meant to say / slips out of my grasp again / I say something anyway.”

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra Apr 13, 2021 • 3 min read
trump

Is Trump harmless at Mar-a-Lago?

I hate the amount of attention Trump continues to get. However, he is a study in human depravity and a weathervane for American politics. Below, I consider Ashley Feinberg's report of Mar-a-Lago [https://www.trashberg.com/p/what-exactly-is-trump-doing-at-mar], where it almost feels like Trump will remain a giant

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra Apr 12, 2021 • 4 min read
william bortz

William Bortz, "Piety"

Below, I offer a reading of William Bortz's poem "Piety." I am curious to hear about your experience with religion and how it impacts your thinking. ashok DOT raj DOT karra AT gmail.com. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- What is piety? It's not a word I use

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra Apr 11, 2021 • 2 min read
tressie mcmillan cottom

Tressie McMillan Cottom, "New Money"

Tressie McMillan Cottom’s essay “New Money” [https://tressie.substack.com/p/new-money] is another one of those Du mußt dein Leben ändern moments. I hope you’ll make some notes on your reaction after reading and share. I’m still stuck on her first paragraph: > People say they

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra Apr 10, 2021 • 3 min read
yi lei

Yi Lei, "Postperpetual"

Note: I am going to be trying for the next few weeks to figure out how this format works. In this newsletter, I'm offering three things. First, a reading of a poem. Close attention to a few intricately woven words. Then, a prompt for those of you who

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra Apr 9, 2021 • 2 min read
philosophy

A "genuine culture" for philosophy?

Currently reading Nietzsche's "Philosophy in the Tragic Age of the Greeks," translated by Marianne Cowan. This passage about philosophy and "genuine culture" caught my eye. It invites immediate comparison between our age and the ages we imagine. My initial questions: What do we feel

  • Ashok Karra
Ashok Karra Apr 9, 2021 • 4 min read
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