Ode to Castelo dos Mouros (Castle of the Moor)

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Posted on November 8, 2013

The Castelo dos Mouros (Castle of the Moors) is situated on a top hill overlooking the village, it is part of the Cultural Landscape of Sintra, recognized as UNESCO World Heritage Site. Head to the edge of the hill and walk along on the pathway inside the wall for views of the surrounding area and marvel at the construction itself.

Over a thousand years of sun, moon, rain
have kissed the rocks, moistened and misted the
turrets of The Castle of the Moor.
Atop the hill are
Vistas.
Breathtaking; we are
Here, in Sintra, Portugal.

You walk along
and feel
it; romance from the time when
Moorish monarchs summered
here (Was it a summer place for Moorish royalty or just a military stronghold?)
With the Reconquista the Castle traded Islam for Christian rule.
Then there was a period
when the Jews of Sintra recited ancient prayers within
the space.
Another type of worship, all within one
Place.

And then, my friend,
There came
1755.
A great shake in Lisbon which
was felt as far as Sintra, a quake
of the earth and the old stones trembled. They shook
to the very foundation — yet
they held.
It is a fortress;
it is meant to hold.
Wonder.

And then there was –
Silence.
Neglect. Disrepair. The gentle
wear
the tear
of the elements.
A champion arrived in 1840. Ferdinand II of Portugal brought
the attention
and craft
to shore up this magnificent carapace.
He wrought
workmen to shore up, to gather –
Oh the dusty bones!
And caused a tree,
yes
a tree, to bloom, in the courtyard to honor the
Time,
the passing of time, which had seen
Kings and conquerors,
lovers and warriors, worship and walk in meditative
Silence.
And us –
Illuminated
by a modern light and an ancient sun.

Oh what land!
Changed hands
And hearts,
which pounded At
the view
from the crest — the great heights of
the Sintra Mountains.
From the pinnacle,
you can…
See
across the way
on a day clear, to Mafra, Ericeira and
Further out, the sea

Here
For us, to be here now.
For us to be –
Here.
Now.
In friendship
holding
our own familial bond as we look upon
the twining,
snaking walls –this is
a monument, a
fortress, castle, sanctuary.

We are the
ones who walk now upon the paths
cleared by
helping hands
clasped in –
Wonder!

Castelo dos Mouros,
The Castle of the Moors
It is
a site
for sight into the distance
and back into time.
Reflecting upon, and honoring, those who brought this
Place into being.
And we are here and that is part of
the story of our hearts and spirits.
Souring from the views, from the heights
which are not for the faint
of heart
but were built as
Fortress
Palace
Castle
Home
Temple
Burial
Site.

We are here now,
walking in this sunshine
which paints
Us
Golden.
We are not conquerors
we come in
Peace.
We come in excitement and love and curiosity and gratitude
to walk these sinewy paths and to play;
to pray
that the memory of
the extraordinary beauty of
The Castle of the Moor in Sintra, Portugal,
stay with us –
and that we be strong
and beautiful
and noble.
Cared for in the memory
of such
Beauty

A history
That we add to with each step
we take
upon the path.

In 1147, after the conquest of Lisbon by King Afonso Henriques, the Moorish garrison of the castle surrendered to the Christians without resistance as part of the liberation of Portugal from the Moors.