In the introduction to the Bhomāntaka, a twelfth-century Javanese poem by an unknown author, the writer prays that their poem be a temple where the god of love can appear in the material world. Here, the poet is a priest, who through language opens up a space where those who read or hear the poem may meet and enter into communication with Anangga “the Bodiless.” This meeting always takes place in the now of reading, reciting, hearing, where the caṇḍi (temple) is built, word by word, in the moment of encounter with the text. The poem doesn’t know whether it is historical or contemporary: it is always in the now.  

The Poem is a Temple vocalises and re-enact sections from this long-form poem. Viewed as a language temple, the poem might be seen to open up a holy space among both performers and audience, circumambulating questions of what “holy” means today and where bodies begin and end.