I Am Yun Du-Seo Poem by Raj Arumugam

I am Yun Du-seo,
dearest fellow-beings;
I lived in Korea
and this is my self-portrait
I send to you as a greeting
from the past;
I had my life to art
and loved my fellow-beings
and the creatures of the earth;
and I send this to you
just a human face
to a time that will perhaps
be more enlightened
or sunk deep in violence…
I do not know…
But I send you this face of mine
as a fellow-human being
not so much that you might guess
and confer who I was and what I did
and what I stood for and what I agonized over
but I send you this face
that you might see all of us in
and perhaps to see in this portrait
a oneness and sameness
that we can all celebrate across nations
and creed and ages;
celebrate then, friends, if this comes to you
in radiant times,
and if not, make amends…
I, Yun Du-seo,
send my love to my fellow-beings
and all life and creatures of the earth…







(this poem is based on a self-portrait by Yun Du-seo, (Korea,1668–1715))