Poetryzine Magazine presents the interview with Chinese - American poet David Haotian Dai
Can you share what inspired you to write “The Cry of Wisdom”?
There were two sources that inspired me to write my poetry book “The Cry of Wisdom”. One was Bible. Bible is full of wisdom words, proverbs and psalms, which inspired me to write similar poems and maxims for the contemporary world. The other was inspirations from Above. I write poems upon sudden inspiration, not from hard thinking. Once wisdom words or poems appeared in my mind, I immediately wrote them down.
How do you approach blending poetry with philosophy in your work?
When a philosophical idea appear in my mind such as “Love Talks Louder Than Money”, Smiles are the Best Cosmos“, “Peace of Mind Brings Peace of the World”, I wrote it down as the title of a poem and crafted it to be a philosophical poem.
Your poetry has been translated into several languages. How do you feel about your words resonating across cultures?
My poetry has been translated into Arabic, Bengali, Uzbek, Russia, French, Italian, Spain etc, crossing cultures and races because my poetry reveals universal values of humanity which resonate with cultures of different nations. The cultures of all nations in the world have the same human values such as peace, love, equality and virtues, and have the common dreams - a peaceful world without war and live a prosperous, happy life. I feel my words of poetry are echoing with universal values of different cultures to inspire the world to be a better place to live.
What was it like to hear your poems set to music? Did it change your connection to the work?
An Italian Master composer like my philosophical poems and decided to collaborate a vocal project named “Peace, Love and Dream International Vocal Event” to promote peace and love with the power of poetry and music. My poem “Peace of Mind” was set to music as a single and demo song for the vocal project. My poems set to music to sing can benefit more artists and inspire more people in the world.
You’ve received literary awards internationally. Which recognition has been the most meaningful to you, and why?
I think the Literary Award bestowed to me by the Italian Institute of Culture at Naples is the most meaningful recognition of my poetry achievement as the panel of judges were professors of literature from Italy and USA. Italy was a hub of western cultures and the great Western poet, Dante was born on this country.
How does your bilingual background influence your poetic expression?
My bilingual background give me two more eyes to see and understand the world. One eye to see the East philosophy and culture - the classic works by LaoZi and Confucius in Chinese; another eye to see the West civilization - philosophy and theories by Plato and Aristotle and so on. As a result, I am able to conbine the East and West cultures together and express them in poetry.
Are there any poets or philosophers who have shaped your creative and philosophical perspectives?
Yes, there are a few East and West poets and philosophers who influenced me a lot, such as Plato, Aristotle, Laozi, Shakespeare, Rumi, Gibran.
Their works reveal the human nature and seek the eternal values of human society. I also try to find such truth and express it in my poetry. I found that although war is the most barbaric action in human society, no philosophers in history defined it as “barbaric beasts action”, but some big poets wrote epics to eulogize war and praised the so call “Conquerors” as heroes. I realized that it is the great books written by thinkers illuminate human civilization; wars that launched by war lords are barbaric beasts action, which destroy human civilization. war lords are not heros, but monsters in human form. In my poetry book “The Cry of Wisdom”, I reveal this truth to enlighten people
What message or experience do you hope readers take away from your literary work?
My literary works spread the message of peac, love and dreams in poetic language. Readers can not only enjoy the beauty of poetry, but also can be inspired by the deep philosophy in my poems.
What are your biggest challenges as a writer? Do you always get expected respond from your literary audience?
As a writer, the biggest challenge is publicity. Like a piece of gold, if it is on a dessert and no one find it, it is valueless. If it is on a showcase, it is shining and valuable. I hope that my works will be known to as many people as possible. Those people who read my works felt inspired and gave very encouraging responses.
Interview by: Ana Stjelja Gad
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