fbpx

Writers International Edition

Education

ΕΡΩΤΑΣ: Poem by Smaragdi Mitropoulou

Χαμογελάει ο έρωτας
στου ήλιου το πρώτο φως.
Στήνει καρτέρι
σε αυλές με ασβέστη ασπρισμένες
και δίπλα σε πηγές με νερά κρυσταλλένια.
Πρώτος σέρνει το χορό στους ήχους του βιολιού
και τις νυχτιές ταξιδεύει ολόγυμνος
σε άγουρα στήθη και φλογισμένα μάγουλα.
Τις αυγές σκορπά λεμονανθούς
σε ταξιδιάρικα κύματα…
και φυτεύει καρπούς
να γλυκαίνουν τα μάτια, τα χείλη.
Μοσχοβολά ο έρωτας
βασιλικό και θάλασσα.

LOVE

Love smiles
at the first light of the sun.
It lies in wait
in courtyards whitewashed with lime
and beside springs with crystalline waters.
First, it leads the dance to the sounds of the violin
and at night it travels naked
to unripe breasts and flushed cheeks.
At dawn, it scatters lemon blossoms
in wandering waves…
and plants fruits
to sweeten the eyes, the lips.
Love smells
of basil and sea.

Poem by
Smaragdi Mitropoulou

About the Poet

Η Σμαραγδή Μητροπούλου γεννήθηκε στην Αθήνα. Σπούδασε Ιστορία και Αρχαιολογία στην Ελλάδα και τη Μεγάλη Βρετανία. Υπηρετεί στη Δευτεροβάθμια Εκπαίδευση. Το ποιητικό και πεζογραφικό της έργο έχουν αποσπάσει βραβεία και διακρίσεις στην Ελλάδα και στο εξωτερικό. Είναι μέλος του Διοικητικού Συμβουλίου (Executive Board Member) του Writers Capital International Foundation και ισόβιο μέλος (Lifetime Fellow Member) του International Society for Development and Sustainability (ISDS) με έδρα την Ιαπωνία. Έχoυν εκδοθεί και κυκλοφορούν επτά βιβλία της στην Ελλάδα. Ποιήματα της έχουν μεταφραστεί στην αγγλική, κινεζική και ισπανική γλώσσα, καθώς και στα Ταιβανέζικα και στη γλώσσα Μπενγκάλι κι έχουν δημοσιευτεί σε site και περιοδικά στην Ευρώπη, στην Ασία και στη Λατινική Αμερική. Επίσης, ασχολείται με την τέχνη της φωτογραφίας κι έχει συμμετάσχει σε ομαδικές εκθέσεις στην Ελλάδα και στο εξωτερικό.

Smaragdi Mitropoulou was born in Athens. She studied History and Archaeology in Greece and the United Kingdom. She serves in Secondary Education. Her poetic and prose works have received awards and recognitions both in Greece and abroad. She is a member of the Executive Board of the Writers Capital International Foundation and a Lifetime Fellow Member of the International Society for Development and Sustainability (ISDS) based in Japan. Seven of her books have been published and are circulating in Greece. Her poems have been translated into English, Chinese, and Spanish, as well as Taiwanese and Bengali, and have been published on websites and in magazines across Europe, Asia, and Latin America. She is also involved in the art of photography and has participated in group exhibitions in Greece and abroad.

Smaragdi Mitropoulou

Smaragdi Mitropoulou: Where Art, Poetry, and History Converge

Smaragdi Mitropoulou, born in Athens, is a multifaceted poet, artist and historian whose work has transcended borders and won acclaim both in Greece and abroad.

Smaragdi’s educational journey took her through the realms of History and Archaeology, where she honed her deep understanding of the past. Her academic pursuits led her to the United Kingdom, expanding her horizons and enriching her perspective.

But her talents extend beyond academia. She’s an accomplished poet and prose writer, with her literary works earning awards and recognition in Greece and beyond. Her poetry book “One Moment, Just an Eternity” and “Sounds in the Silence” have been translated into English, reaching audiences in the UK and India through Ontime Books and Pharos Books.

Smaragdi is not just a writer; she’s an artist with a unique vision. Her paintings and poems intertwine, creating a mesmerizing tapestry of emotion and history. Her artistic endeavors have taken her to numerous exhibitions across Europe, Asia, and Latin America. Her works have been displayed in prestigious locations such as the Agios Athanasios Art Center in Naoussa, Paros, and the Villa Kosta in Nea Erythraia.

Smaragdi is a member of the Executive Board of the Writers Capital International Foundation, connecting writers and artists globally, and a Lifetime Fellow Member of the International Society for Development and Sustainability (ISDS) based in Japan. Her influence stretches across languages, with her poems translated into English, Chinese, Spanish, Bengali, and Taiwanese.

She’s not just an artist and writer; Smaragdi also delves into the art of photography. Her photographic exhibitions, like “Art: An Endless Journey into Light” and “When Resurrection Becomes Inspiration,” showcase her talent behind the lens.

In May 2023, Smaragdi presented two solo photography exhibitions titled “Life to Infinity” at the Art16 gallery in Kerameikos, Athens, highlighting her passion for photography.

Smaragdi Mitropoulou’s journey through art, literature, and history continues to inspire and bridge cultures, making her a prominent figure in the global artistic community.

Panorama International Literature Festival on the theme Prana: the Breath culminates

Madrid (Spain): The month-long Panorama International Literature by the Writers Capital International Foundation aimed at fostering humanitarian values across the globe, culminated in a ceremony which was held virtually. Hundreds of writers from around the world attended the event and also shared their experiences during the festival. This is the fourth season of PILF which had earlier won a world record for being the lengthiest literature festival to promote humanitarian values.

The festival that started on new year’s day was on the theme Prana: The breath focusing on the element of air which is in the spotlight considering the challenge of air pollution faced by the global community. A variety of programmes were conducted globally in connection with the festival including competitions for school students on the theme, a tree-planting drive named ‘giving back to nature’, a photography contest etc. Delegates from different professional fields including Writers, educators and poets, from over 78 countries presented their works on the theme virtually and in offline mode. As many as 16 live sessions were also conducted as part of the event in which authors and other intellectuals from different domains had the opportunity to share their works before the literary and intellectual community in the form of poets’ meet, speeches or panel discussions.

The Closing Day Ceremony presided over by the President of the Writers Capital Foundation and the chairman of PILF, was inaugurated by the chief guest Prof. Jeffrey Levett, Founding Dean of the National School of Public Health, Athens, Greece who also announced the newly established educational mission of the foundation International Centre for Foreign Languages and Literature. PILF Chief advisor and coordinator of Spain Prof. Joan Josep Bracelo delivered the keynote address. Vice President of the World Philosophical Forum and Member of the International Academy of Social Sciences, USA, Prof Steven Roy was the guest of honour.

Johanna Devadayavou, Chief Human Resources Officer of WCIF, who delivered a message to share the vision of a better future by joining the Foundation and to make it a strong solid chain that will assist in uniting the whole world in the name of respect, solidarity, brotherhood, peace and love, also administered the “Pledge for Humanity’ for anchoring in the higher goal. Vicky Papageorgopoulou, president of Who’s Who Awards, Greece disclosed the theme of next year’s Panorama Festival- ‘Agni: Ignite the Fire in You’ to join heads and hands.

Vasiliki Dragouni, editor of Writers Edition Magazine delivered the vote of thanks. Irene Doura Kavadia, Secretary-General, WCIF and Chief Coordinator of PILF who anchored the session also bid farewell to the gathering. Head of Writers Capital Youth Foundation in Greece Vasilis Pasipoularidis, member Georgina Tsismalidou and others spoke during the event. Various awards during PILF 2023 including the Panorama Literary Awards 2023, and Golden Book Awards will be announced in the first week of March 2023. An anthology gathering the works of delegates on the theme is also being published as part of the event.

Importance of Literature

Importance Of Literature

There are a large number of people in society who assume and believe that literature is insignificant and underestimate its potential to bless our minds with exceptional wisdom. Those people generally give an impression that persons who are more interested in sciences and mathematics are only going to have great careers and the students who are more inclined towards humanities or arts subjects such as languages and literature and other subjects are going to survive with the low-paying jobs in their professional life. Commonly, an impression is passed on that literature has no importance. On the other hand, to many people, literature serves as a gateway toward the horizon of learning from history and widens the understanding and knowledge about the world.

 First of all, literature helps us to unlock our minds and perception of the world and allows us to see out of the box. With this, we begin to reflect, ask questions, and understand better.

History and literature are interwoven with each other forever. History produces literature and the latter preserves the former. While we study literature, we also study history at the same time and come to know about heroes, people, customs and traditions, lifestyle, fashion, and interests of that contemporary times. The world of the present era is not akin to that was in the 14th century, the people have changed to a great extent. Without literature, we would not have been able to know about the characters, social and political issues, history, and the people who came before us and walked on the same ground as us.

Reading literature gives us knowledge about history, religion, customs, and traditions; and provides us the opportunity of understanding customs and beliefs other than our own. Literature helps us to understand other systems of living around the world.

Reading literature helps manifolds in strengthening and improving writing skills. Reading plays a pivotal role in enhancing one’s writing skills and style. Do you question yourself after opening a book and reading the content: How did this person imagine and write this? The answer is that most of the authors, playwrights, and poets had read much literature before they themselves became writers.

Literature cultivates knowledge in the mind of the readers and provides wisdom of good and evil; and experiences the call to justice. Though literature can never itself make us a better person it can play a major role in assisting us in the quest. It can enhance our way of living after examining and understanding the meanings and moral lessons hiding in literary texts. (We learn what is healthy and destructive in the world and are challenged to face injustice and its consequences. Literature can challenge us to ask what we can do to eliminate the problems that have been portrayed.

Literature is filled with human reactions and emotions. The psychology of humans is craftsmanly represented in plays, novels, poems, epics, essays, and diaries. As we read and analyze literature, we are at the same time studying human psychology through different characters and gaining more knowledge about it.

We get more significant information about ourselves and our responses by studying literature because we naturally collate our lives with those in literature. We deepen our feeling of human reactions and our own self-responses, as we equate and contrast, not only the views of multiple authors but also our own views. By studying literature, we can become deeper and more self-conscious people.

Literature becomes a great source of entertainment and pleasure when one develops a literary taste. Reading novels, plays, drama, and non-fiction stuff becomes a major hobby of people and they love spending time with books in their leisure time. It is a perfect activity if your hobby serves you with knowledge, information, and pearls of wisdom besides being a source of entertainment.

One of the major aspects of literature, whether it be novel, drama, poems, or other forms, is to address human nature and conditions that affect all people. These may be the need for progress, confusion, and horrors of success and failure, the need for companions and family, the generosity of compassion and empathy, confidence, or the perception of imperfection. Through literature, we come to know that imperfection is not always unfortunate and that being always normal can be boring. We learn the thing that life should be enjoyed and lived to the fullest. In short, we require a literature to make connections with our own humanity.

Our Body is a mirror of our Emotions and our Soul

Our Body is a mirror of our Emotions and our Soul

Have you ever wondered what your soul would look like if it took a human form?
We know it all so well, as proven scientifically, that our emotions cause changes in our body and, ultimately, our health.
Scientists and health advisors, as well as everyday people, have realized by experience that:
 Whenever you ignore or do not “listen” to your discontentment or discomfort, your body will respond to you
with a headache.
 Whenever you oppress your anger, then it will respond with gastritis.
 Whenever you don’t deal with your fears but only try to bury them, they will cause you constipation.
 Whenever you don’t express some “No’s” that have to be said, then your body will respond with stomach
disorders.
 If you don’t follow your passion, it might bring on a sort of cell poisoning (skin diseases, heart disorders, etc.)
 If you don’t listen to your creativity and your talents, this will result in weight gain.
 If you don’t address negative influences by external causes, it will bring on a rash (dermatitis).
 If you don’t speak out your truth, then your thyroid will show you symptoms of malfunction.

We need not only feed our body but the soul and spirit as well. Therefore, if we don’t feed all three aspects of our essence and neglect our spirituality, inevitably we will have a body prone to getting sick.
We are not taught so, but we can find a way to “listen” to our own needs. Every unaddressed and neglected feeling leaves a scar on our body and organs, which is undeniable.
Our body is a mirror of our emotions and our soul. Let us cherish and protect it.

Olga Acheimastou
©Olga Acheimastou

Ghost Marriage

‘Ghost Marriage’: Two people ties knot in Karnataka after 30 years of their death

Do you believe in life after death? Do you think that marriage between two people after death brings their soul happiness?

Marriage is a legally and socially sanctioned union, usually between a man and a woman, that is regulated by laws, rules, customs, beliefs, and attitudes that prescribe the rights and duties of the partners.
It is strange for common people to hear about the marriage of two people after their death and this comes to reality in Karnataka, between Sobha and Chandappa who died thirty years ago. In the physical absence of the couple, relatives performed the celebratory ceremony which is called ‘pretha kalyanam’ (the ghost marriage).

In traditional Chinese culture, it is shameful to be the parents of an unwed daughter, and unmarried girls are often shunned from society.  In addition, ghost marriage for men lets the family’s lineage carry on. The spouse of a deceased male could adopt a child who would carry on the lineage of the man’s family. Other reasons for performing ghost marriages for deceased males are dreams from the spirits of the males who want to be married.

All the rituals seen in a real wedding can be seen in a ghost wedding where the groom’s parents will hand over the bridal dress to the bride’s family and are performed by respective families. There will be video, camera and refreshments and wedding processions too.

Ghost marriage is performed for those who died soon after birth and are considered a way of honoring the spirits of the dead, believing that the souls will be happy.

 

dont force your children shshi tharoor

STOP FORCING YOUR DREAMS ON YOUR CHILDREN: Shashi Tharoor’s inspirational speech

“I keep telling parents in Kerala why do you force your children to study engineering because of this old-fashioned idea that man is a highly desirable degree.

Yesterday a young man came to see me who was denied a visa to study his dream subject of politics and international relations. He got admission to the London School of Economics but the British turned him down for a visa because he had a bachelor’s degree in engineering and they said why would an engineer want to study international politics. I asked him the same question and he said because my dream was always politics but my parents forced me to study engineering and I had the marks therefore I did what my parents told me to do and I regret it very much today.

I’m so fortunate even though I belong to a much older generation than all of you that I had enlightened parents who’d never forced me to study what I didn’t want to. I still remember when we had to stream in class 9 we had to stream after our school so I chose humanities and my teachers were so upset. They called my parents to the school and they said this is our best science student he has come first in science his entire years in the school how can you let him go to humanities.

My parents, like other good Malayali parents, had wanted me to be a doctor an engineer. So they looked at me in shock and said what’s the matter with you why won’t you take science. I said because I can’t stand the subject and they said well you come first every exam and I said that’s because I know how to take exams but two days after taking the exam I forget everything I’ve studied in science, whereas you asked me about history or literature I can tell you even today.

I’m grateful to my parents that they respected my wish and let me enrol for Humanities and I have led the life I have led as a humanities graduate I continue doing well at exams and I’m sure that helped but at least studying what I wanted to study what enjoy what I enjoyed studying so that to my mind. This is one great lesson that I keep trying to drill into every parent I can come across.

Let your children study what they want to study they’re the ones who have to wake up in the morning and look forward to going to work. Don’t ask them to fulfil your dreams you wanted to be an engineer or you are an engineer and you want your child to follow but they don’t want to be an engineer. Don’t force them!”

Shashi Tharoor 

A MILESTONE IN OUR JOURNEY

I have immense pleasure to address you all to express my sincere gratitude for accepting the magazine close to your hearts. The number of responses that we receive from every nuke and corner of the world itself proves how well our attempt is appreciated. Thank you all for supporting us! Sincere gratitude to the directors of Writers Capital International Foundation (WCIF) from across the world, whose enthusiasm has been a great motivation for our efforts.

Although Internet is the vastest resource in today’s world, there is still a scarcity of a platform where we can find all genres of literature under a single roof. When there are some websites that offer good content, they fail to present them in an attractive way; if someone successfully brings a good design, they fail to bring the best of the content; if everything happens, they lack simplicity in accessing the content. It is considering all these aspects we have conceived the idea of a complete magazine – The Litterateur. All that we offer is a venue where under the shades of the trees we can sit for a while and fill our souls with the nectar of literature to our hearts’ content, in the best digital ambience.

The evolution of the idea of Litterateur Online was not an abrupt process! It came out of a strong drive to bring something powerful and meaningful media to bring quality works into mainstream literature. Writers, fundamentally, are innocent creatures and are often tend to be carried away by false promises by people they trust. When the selfish motives of a few self-proclaimed masters and leaders in social media work, it is often the innocence of those sensitive and sensible writers being deceived. The moment when we realise this, it would be too late and we find ourselves shattered upon the understanding of the world and its deception.

It is time to wake-up to reality and to identify what is good and sustainable for the future as a writer. For the very same we need formal platforms beyond the virtual world where certificates evolved out of the imagination of graphic designers has nothing to offer but a few hours or days of excitement. All that we need to do is to seek opportunities to refine our skills in writing, to invite more experiences in life for rich content in the works and to further expand vision globally. Who on earth, would not wish his or her name famed across the world? However, I earnestly believe that the same should not be the only aim of writing. The very moment we complete a workbrings the greatest reward of it and a great work, even if you hide it in your shelf, will come out to the limelight one or the other day.

“When you aim for perfection, you discover it’s a moving target.” Thus says George Fisher andI understand we have a long way to go before we translate the concept of a complete magazine into reality. On this occasion, I am glad to inform you all that we are ready with the print edition of Litterateur Online named The Litterateur. We have a panel of editors who would select the best works from Litterateur Online, however we regret that we are unable to publish all works in the print edition due to limited pages in it. Primary responses show that the magazine will have extensive reach across the globe and I am sure this will take your name and fame beyond the political barriers.

We have one country known as earth, we have one religion known as love and we stand for those mighty values of humanity! Let us all dedicate ourselves for the noble causes of humanity that would turn earth a better place to live!

Warm Regards,

Editor-in-Chief

AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY: WILLIAM WORDSWORTH

William Wordsworth was born in 1770, in Cockermouth, Cumbria, to a middle-class family. He loved the beauty of the Lake District, and was close to his four siblings, particularly his sister Dorothy. But when William was seven, his mother died and the Wordsworth children were separated and lived with different relatives. William’s father then died five years later. The death of both parents at a young age had a huge impact on William, who recalled feeling lonely as a child.

While studying at Cambridge University, William spent one summer vacation travelling through the Alps, and was overwhelmed by the beauty of the mountains. He returned to France again the following year, and fell in love with a French woman, Annette Vallon. They had a daughter together, Caroline. But tensions between France and Britain meant William had to return home. He continued to support Annette and Caroline throughout his life, but his guilt at leaving them featured in many of his poems.

In 1795, William inherited some money from a friend, which helped to fund his work as a poet. He also moved to Somerset with his sister Dorothy. Dorothy was a poet, too, and wrote many diaries. She was said to have a great influence on William’s writing.

The poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge lived close by in Somerset and became great friends with William. Together they created Lyrical Ballads (1798) – featuring poems such as Coleridge’s Rime of the Ancient Mariner and Wordsworth’s Tintern Abbey. Many consider this to be the start of the Romantic era in English literature.
In autumn 1798, William, Dorothy and Coleridge travelled to Germany. William was homesick and began working on a poem about his life. The Prelude is now regarded as his greatest work – an epic poem (written in 14 books), created over several years. It deals with the experiences that shaped William’s life, and rather fittingly was only published after his death.

In 1799, William and Dorothy moved back to the Lake District, and Coleridge relocated nearby. Some of William’s best work was written in the decade that followed, including one of his most popular poems I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud (commonly called Daffodils).

In 1802, William and Dorothy returned to France. William wanted to tell Annette about his forthcoming marriage to a childhood friend, Mary Hutchinson. He and Mary had five children together, and continued to live with Dorothy who never married.

William was devastated when his brother, John, died in a shipwreck in 1805. Seven years later, tragedy struck again when two of William’s young children passed away. Many of his poems reflect these losses, but when another daughter died in 1847, aged 42, the grief caused William to give up writing completely.

William became the UK’s Poet Laureate in 1843, a position he kept until his death, aged 80, from a lung disease. Although Wordsworth wrote no poetry during this time, his work had already touched the lives of ordinary people, reflecting their everyday experiences as well as their deepest emotions.

BEACH OUTFITS – WHAT TO WEAR AT THE BEACH THIS SUMMER

Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry’s standard dummy text ever since the 1500s, when an unknown printer took a galley of type and scrambled it to make a type specimen book. It has survived not only five centuries, but also the leap into electronic typesetting, remaining essentially unchanged. It was popularised in the 1960s with the release of Letraset sheets containing Lorem Ipsum passages, and more recently with desktop publishing software like Aldus PageMaker including versions of Lorem Ipsum.