Love poems by Gary Rosenthal

Dante said that at some point in a man's life he might meet a "savvy" woman - so beautiful to his eye, that it might cause the heart's slumbering lord (Amor) to stir and awaken. This is apparently what happened to Dante, who caught a glimpse of the young Beatrice Portinari in his youth, and found that it perfumed his entire life. Some seven centuries later, a similarly initiatory heart-awakening stirs in The You That Is Everywhere, a collection of ecstatic love poems that harkens back to the romantic sensibility of this earlier time.

This was not only the time of Dante, but of Rumi, Hafiz, and the troubadours - and a time when the love of God, and the love of a man or woman for each other seemed to be closely linked. In our own time, when love poems have become almost an endangered species, The You That Is Everywhere has attracted attention for being one of the very few contemporary works that is a descendent of the old, ecstatic, poetic tradition.

Praise for The You That Is Everywhere

"It is easy to achieve a surface effect from the passion and intensity of romantic love but more difficult to sing from the wisdom that underlies all the longing. These poems are not only true to the intensity of one man's deep love for a woman, but exhilarating for their insight, humility, and humor. A remarkable literary achievement and a gift to anyone who dimly remembers, half-anticipates, or heaven-forbid, is presently blessed by the rigors of a passionate love."
     DAVID WHYTE

"... (A) passionate outpouring of love, the poems drawing inspiration from Dante, Rumi and medieval troubadours. While expressive of a fine poetic sensibility, they are also accessible, revealing a very human author who, while tracing a story of earthly love and longing, also encounters the Divine."
   MORGAN VAN WYCK, SHAMBHALA SUN

"This is what Zen has needed - to marry with the troubadour tradition of ecstatic, romantic love."
      ZEN ROSHI JOHN TARRANT

"The You That Is Everywhere debuts the romantic, passionate, wise, intimate, and beautifully crafted poetry of Gary Rosenthal. Rosenthal is a troubadour of impressive romantic sensibility."
      JAMES COX, THE MIDWEST BOOK REVIEW

"The book is a love-story - and has the timeless charm of a modern classic. Anyone who has ever loved deeply will recognizd the territory.  Buddhists and Sufis and lovers of all persuasions are likely to be gifting each other with The You That Is Everywhere for years and years to come."
    ANNE DELACROIX                    
 
"Good stuff, lots of surprise, like finding a penny on the ground and getting good luck for the rest of the day - an unexpected delight."
       SAM KEEN                                                                         

"A modern troubadour has arisen! Rejoice. . . . This book 'has to do with the heart, a river which rose unexpectedly, and flooded my banks with poems. . . .' Highly freeform, modern language dances ruggedly across these pages, flowing with infectious energy and ironic humor. We transit attraction, lust, uncertainty, separation, grief, and renewal in touching, humble, personal revelations . . . stanzas that exude powerful perennial wisdom within robust romance. Rich phrasings such as 'Before I met you I didn't know my heart was in exile' are intricately strung among (other) pearls . . . and impossible attempts at understanding. Intensely real, sincerely spirited. Wow!"
      SANDY MARSHALL, THE NAPRA REVIEW                                                             

"More bologna sandwiches!"
      COLEMAN BARKS

". . . (T)he psychologically astute and contemporary idiom makes one think that if Rumi or Dante fell in love today, their poetry might sound a little like this.  I was left with the sense that our current spiritual culture has finally achieved a sufficient depth to have begun producing some wisdom literature of its own."
      CONSTANCE AVILA, MAGICAL BLEND MAGAZINE