by Roberto Valenza

nine muses books, 3541 Kent Creek Road, Winston, Oregon 97496,
2001,paper, 200 pp. ISBN 1-878888-39-0

Reviewedby dan raphael

When I went to Katmandu in mid-October, I was struck by the bright heatand smell of cow dung; ten years later, on a bright autumn day in urbanPortland, I still smell the cow dung and dust. Roberto Valenza lived inKatmandu for years, immersed in the city and its cultures, particularlyas a student of Buddhism.

Nepal was until recently the only officially Hindu nation in the world;yet, perched between India and Tibet, it mixes the two religions as seamlesslyas it blends immigrants from those nations with people and attitudes thatare uniquely Nepalese. Roberto is uniquely American, his voice New York,his attitude rock and roll hippie, in Nepal to escape and to discover.

Ramche, small hill town, restaurant full

of healthy bodies with the eyes of the dead staring out

only desire in starched collar and bare feet,

they have seen Playboy

they have been cursed by moslem-hinduism combo

and I'm stoned again on a death-trip,

a self-styled Staten Island Buddhist

("Coming Down to Civilization . . .," pg. 81)

Under the Precious Umbrella embodies this mix of cultures and intentions.Many of the poems concern Roberto's experiences-external and internal- atthe Swayambunath monastery. At times he speaks like a teacher, giving usglimpses of the Buddhist world view, particularly as it relates to self-development.

Not in the forms not in the thoughts

not picturing the pictures of any devil to fly from

just knowing my limits

into forgetting the goal

I wave goodbye to you for a while

("Retreat 33, (On Kim Dole Hill)," pg. 112)

In other poems he is experiencing the highs and lows of psychologicalexploration, ranging between samsara and nirvana. Always around him arethe sights, sounds and smells of Katmandu (when the hashish was legal andcheap, the food and rents cheaper) and other parts of Nepal, as well ashis own visions and speculations,

Each season in Nepal is a quick move

the weather fast changing for us living around

the electric dynamo castle

Buddha's guided missile

with a monkey crew

a celestial harmonium spreads

sound from Newari songs shouted. . .

("Swayambhu," pg. 132)

Perhaps this 200 page book is best viewed as a city in itself, somethingno two visitors will see the same way, each finding some places you wantto visit often, and places you pass through hardly noticing. I most admireRoberto's bravery in his nakedness in this book, the beauty of his involvementwith dharma, the slash of his critical eye (aimed both at the world at largeand himself in particular), and his bacchanalian joy of the sex, sweat anddrugs 70s Katmandu was awash in. Living the life and singing the songs.

No city's homogenous, nor is this book. It's a memoir, it's a diary ofreligious experiences, a concert of beat-influenced social- and self-commentary.My personal favorites are where the language is energized and roaring, likehere in "The Young Tantras":

I carry you to bed in my shallow dreams.

I carry it to bed in my shallow dreams and rise with

a mantra on my dry lips

to cut the bliss baby umbilical cord

when it is not yet quite awake. (pg. 92)

I wouldn't have minded a little guidance before entering this place,some evidence of planning-in other words tighter editing. A few pieces arelike what anyone might dash in a journal while living in an exotic locationor going through personal changes. All cities have their own organizationprinciples-at least in the history of their growth: I'm not sure if thisbook has one. Its more holistic form of organization puts extra stress onthe need for leaving out softer poems that cover similar ground as strongerpieces. A glossary might also have been a good idea.

Still, Under the Precious Umbrella is a place that burbles with harmoniesuniversal and deeply personal-places you've never been that become home,occasionally overflowing with brilliant experience. Make your own trails,jumping around the poem-scape, making sure to take in all the wonderfulartwork and photography (much of it by Roberto himself). Later, wander backto poems and spend a little time in their neighborhoods. This collectiondisplays some of Roberto's personal evolution, and give readers a varietyof paths to pursue for their own growth.

dan raphael lives in Portland, Oregon and has at least thirteenbooks of his poetry under his belt. He performs throughout the Pacific Northwest.He is the proprietor of 26 Books (he published the workof 26 poets plus the fine anthology Playing With A Full Deck).For seventeen years, until 1993, he published NRG Magazine.