To A. G.-M.

You scoffed when I suggested that restraint
In sexual affairs might be aligned
With Spirit’s higher aims. “What earnest saint
Would counsel so?” you challenged. “Love’s defined
By physical displays; are they not wise?
The tantras, like the Kama Sutra, roll
In carnal ardor.”—“Might this symbolize
The love between the godhead and a soul?”
—“Men come to wholeness through their ‘other half,’”
You parried—“so said Plato; human spirit
Best seeks truth on passion’s fleshly path!”
—“If God’s this truth, can groping draw us near it?”
You counter, “Even Jesus had a woman.”
I cry, “Divine? Pah! Sex is purely human!”