What Jah Feels: The Words of the Scribe by Moses Shehan Denalee is a collection of poems that awaken a spiritual sense in the reader, echoing themes of love, nature, beauty, and spirituality. Each poem is a powerful impulse, an invitation to a new form of consciousness, a call to embrace the present. Some of these poems reflect the soul of a prophet who sees the world differently, perhaps through the eyes of the one he contemplates, where the future and the past are condensed in the single gaze of the present: “So as I sit, I look back. / And taste the future.” The collection features more than 100 poems, each poem so unique it captures a moment and a reality of its own, yet there is an interconnection at the level of thematic development that gives the work its unique spiritual character, with hints of Judaism, Taoism, and Buddhism.

What Jah Feels: The Words of the Scribe is a collection that powerfully showcases the different seasons of the poet’s soul. Imbued with strong imagery and religious symbolism, this collection by Moses Shehan Denalee invites readers to take the journey within, where an encounter between the one above and the human being happens. The elements of nature are used to send out messages that are spiritual in nature. For instance, I enjoyed the way the poet speaks about the rain, a symbol of nourishment and grace: “Where the rain falls, life is abundant / For the nourishment, is from above / A teardrop, multiplied into billions / Can you dodge the raindrops?” Each poem is a world to inhabit, a message to receive, and music to lighten the steps of the reader along the pilgrim way. The poems are intimate, written in a confident voice, and the use of the personal pronoun makes them personal and allows readers to enter into the poet’s worldview.

What JAH Feels: The Words of the Scribe by Moses Shehan Denalee is a romantic, spiritual book of poems, where the individual pieces connect to create a significantly intertwined novel of narrative poetry. Organized as an anthology, the works are a combination of rhythmic and free verse schemes that are able to seamlessly retain elements of both metrical and often musical patterns. As a whole, the work encompasses the exploration of man and the relationship with the deity that has created him, Jah Yahweh, with themes of love that transcend the common physical, human form, heightening to a dynamism that is, ultimately, all-encompassing.

What JAH Feels is a beautiful compilation, and Moses Shehan Denalee provides an intelligent, eloquently written book of poetry. There is a bit of a digestive period as the work progresses, as its highly enigmatic and complex nature requires more than just a cursory read. This is literary poetry at its finest and it evokes a multitude of feelings and an immense degree of reflection, with consideration for the tale and the themes that are undertaken. My favorite is poem number 25, entitled Perfect: A moment a picture, in which Denalee creates a vivid scene where the misperceived tragedy of nature is, in fact, beautiful in its symmetry and unity. “Picture-perfect, tranquillity at best, Where all must reach, united soul to soul, A touch for spirit and body, Picture it, picture-perfect... This is an excellent book of poetry that I'd recommend to readers who are looking for something with depth and deliberation.

What JAH Feels: The Words of the Scribe by Moses Shehan Denalee is a collection of poetry that invites the reader to step into the spiritual dimension of love, and into the heart of the experiences and emotions it captures. In this collection, the author explores his intimacy with God, His creator, with strong themes of Judaism and Eastern philosophy. The style is simple, and at times the poetry feels like frank conversations between Yah and the persona — like the psalmist addressing God or echoing God in his song. The poems are impregnated with rich religious symbolism and references to Biblical images like Jerusalem, which symbolizes the spiritual city and freedom for the people of God.

The spiritual experience is wonderful. The reader hears the poet, like the psalmist, complaining of aridity:
“Many moons had passed, and still no words.
Like still songs, and quiet nights; Devoid of birds,
O’ humble father; teacher of thy works
Why pass these days, without thy scribes writing?”

Jah, the one who feels, the one who becomes “She,” becomes the center of thought and the inspiration of this author. He calls this Divine Being: H Jehovah Jah. His son is Jah Yoshwah and His Chosen Salasi. The author then, in language that feels like a ritual, identifies himself as a descendant of Jah: “I am Shehan, son of Joan, son of Hugh, fathomed son of Bruce / I am what Jah feels.” Each poem stands alone in its beauty and in the message it communicates but put together, they are a language of a questioning soul. At times it suffers the sense of distance from the love of his life. At times it celebrates intimacy. Always, it is enlivening, inspiring, and offering readers words to ponder and words to pray with. I found my spiritual center unfolding with each poem in this collection.

What JAH Feels: The Words of the Scribe is a work of collected romantic poetry penned by author Moses Shehan Denalee. In this extensive collection of verses, we explore ideas of spirituality, the soul and prayer through psalm-like verses that give thanks to a creator known as JAH Yahweh. The theme of true love is explored through different angles and aspects from compassion to romance and the strongest bonds, and in relation to angels and the role which they play in loving, protecting and guiding us in our lives. The author expresses many compassionate and hopeful remarks whilst also giving praise and provoking new spiritual conversations.

Author Moses Shehan Denalee writes with a passion for his topic and produces beautiful poetic verses to express his feelings and inspiration from his creator. From a poetic standpoint, the work is varied in its rhythm and liberating to read, with excellent word choices that paint emotive imagery and enhance the content of the work by their inclusion. Poetry fans are sure to appreciate the attention to detail in the lines and their arrangement. From a spiritual perspective, the emphasis on love and the influence of angels will surely be inspiring to many who read about it, and leave them intrigued to know more about the deep faith that the author possesses. Overall, What JAH Feels: The Words of the Scribe is a poetic experience that can be read, enjoyed and re-read with new perspectives and considerations on spirituality for those who are seeking the true meaning of love.