But stranger still is lost Carcosa

Written by thehouseofvines

Along the shore the cloud waves break,
The twin suns sink behind the lake,
The shadows lengthen
In Carcosa.
Strange is the night where black stars rise,
And strange moons circle through the skies,
But stranger still is
Lost Carcosa.
Songs that the Hyades shall sing,
Where flap the tatters of the King,
Must die unheard in
Dim Carcosa.
Song of my soul, my voice is dead,
Die thou, unsung, as tears unshed
Shall dry and die in
Lost Carcosa.
—”Cassilda’s Song” in The King in Yellow Act 1, Scene 2

8 thoughts on “But stranger still is lost Carcosa”

  1. This reminds me, for good or ill, of a book, published by Llewellyn, on the jinn by an American author who tried drawing connections between the jinn, Cthulhu, and Dionysos. Take it for what you will, but it drew me at least a little closer to Dionysos.

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    1. Uh … huh.

      I’ve seen people make stranger connections, I suppose. Especially since I’ve encountered a spirit in his Retinue (or at least in the Labyrinth) that bore a striking resemblance to the King in Yellow.

      Never seen Djinn or anything like Cthulhu, however,

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      1. As I remember, this writer eventually got disavowed by at least one associate for being disingenuous about his credentials. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

        I gave away the book a long time ago, but I think he was drawing on some reference to Dionysos having a throne under the sea? I want to say it was Nonnus, because I became aware of Nonnus around the time (I’ve yet to read it), but you would know better than me.

        At the very least, the classical leanings of the weird fiction writers bled through

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        1. Oh I definitely think that the Gods use creators of pop culture to communicate their messages, especially the crazier ones. Lovecraft, for instance, recounts being visited by Pan as a youth.

          Hmm. I don’t recall anything about Dionysos having a throne beneath the sea, though he’s very close to Thetis, whom he often visits (and she’s like Oceanic royalty) and then there’s the type he got Hephaistos and talked him down after he’d trapped his mom Hera in a throne. However, that could be something I’ve ever never read about, or more likely read and forgot. Especially if it’s in Nonnos. There’s so much wonderfully crazy shit in Nonnos. I’d never read the epic for pleasure, and I don’t always care for the way he portrays the God – but he’s a treasure trove of random info beyond measure.

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          1. I’m tempted now to request the book via ILL at work to see if I can find the exact citation. I wouldn’t pay for that book now, but at least I could dig up that. I’ll let you know know what I find.

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            2. That would actually be kinda significant, because it would mean he’d have a throne in all realms: Olympos (Air), Nysa (Earth) and […] (Water) (as well as Underworld and Labyrinth, which could be stretched to include Fire. Though if we’re going with the classical, Empedoklean elemental system rather than the triadic I’d make Olympos Fire and the Underworld Air.)

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              1. The request is in. Now I just wait a few weeks for it to get posted from another part of the country. 😂 If you might have a chance of getting it sooner from any sources you have, the book is The Vengeful Djinn by Imbrogno and Guiley.

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