“It is said that in Ulthar, which lies beyond the river Skai, no man may kill a cat; and this I can verily believe as I gaze upon him who sitteth purring before the fire. For the cat is cryptic, and close to strange things which men cannot see. He is the soul of antique Aegyptus, and bearer of tales from forgotten cities in Meroe and Ophir. He is the kin of the jungle’s lords, and heir to the secrets of hoary and sinister Africa. The Sphinx is his cousin, and he speaks her language; but he is more ancient than the Sphinx, and remembers that which she hath forgotten.”
The Cats of Ulthar
1920
H.P. Lovecraft
Ulthar is a village in the Dreamlands of Earth. Its people are known for their simplicity, superstitious nature and reverence of cats. In the village, it was forbidden for any citizen of the land to harm or kill a cat.
The Dream Cycle is a series of short stories and novellas by author H. P. Lovecraft (1890–1937) – the style and setting of this series was inspired by the fantasy stories Lord Dunsay. Written between 1918 and 1932, they are about the “Dreamlands”, a vast alternate dimension that can only be entered via dreams.
I have recently posted a Dreamlands prose poem composition (a postcard correspondence from “Tourists” visiting the Dreamlands realm) on the Asemic Tarot blog:
Implied Spaces 