Transmission

The Flowering of the Rod
[21]

Anyhow, it is exactly written,
the house was filled with the odour of the ointment;

that was a little later and this was not such a small house
and was maybe already fragrant with boughs and wreaths,

for this was a banquet, a festival;
it was all very gay and there was laughter,

but Judas Iscariot turned down his mouth,
he muttered Extravagant under his breath,

for the nard though not potent,
had that subtle, indefinable essence

that lasts longer and costs more;
Judas whispered to his neighbour

and then they all began talking about the poor;
but Mary, seated on the floor,

like a child at a party, paid no attention;
she was busy; she was deftly un-weaving

the long, carefully-braided tresses
of her extraordinary hair.

LINKS
* The poem above is from Trilogy by H.D.
* It is based on the story of Mary (presumably, of Bethany, sister of Martha and Lazarus, rather than Mary Magdalene) anointing Jesus’ feet and wiping them with her hair from the Gospel of John 12:1
* Which is related to the story of an unnamed woman anointing Jesus’ head in the house of Simon the Leper in Mark 14:3-9 and Matthew 26:6-13
* The many artistic portrayals of Mary Magdalene holding a small jar of ointment come from the long tradition of identifying her with other Mary’s and unnamed women in the New Testament.

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