SREEDEVI
K
LIGHTNING
O for a
page of cloud
to
record the agonies of my heart
as my
dreary life drags on
sheltering
under a drab grey sky
O for a
silver of moonlight
to
enshroud my flickering flesh
O for a
chalice of raindrops
to wash
away my flowing tears
O for a
single tinge of rainbow colour
to
brighten my shadow dark dreams
O for
the radiance of the shimmering stars
to add
sparkle to my weary eyes
O for
peal after peal of thunder
to
partner my pounding heart
O for
half the light of the new moon
a
blanket enwrapping my slumber
O for a
flash of lightning
to burn
me to ashes
Have
mercy,O leaden sky, Have mercy
on one
without dreams,without desire,without hope
(translated by Indira
Punnoose)
A LONGED FOR JOURNEY
I doze
in the song of a speeding train
always
and only one wish
that
the train never stops or pauses
and I
alone the solitary traveller
summer,
winter, fall, rain
I enjoy
the cyclic seasons through the window
the
Stygian darkness enshrouding my past
the
anguish of my cruel present
the
shattering of all future hopes
my
desperate angst are pieces of luggage
I no
longer carry
the
hurry and scurry of the crowd in the pavement
the
soft calls of love that follow me
none
shall hinder my onward journey
in the
pitch dark of the dense forest
the
quiet silence of the barren desert
the
faraway undiscovered island
the
great lonely mountain ranges
where
none can follow me
nowhere
must my train stop
or even
slow down its fierce speed
(translated by Indira
Punnoose)
SPIRIT OF POESY
In
which abyss of darkness
do you
hide
O
Goddess
O
radiant muse of poetry?
Even in
my sleep
my
heart longs to hear
the
alluring tinkle
of your
anklets
in all
of life's journeys
I
exhaust myself searching
for
you-only for you
Have
you vanished into
the
waters of the Nila?
or
dozed off in the arms of
the
tender moonlight?
or
unknown to me
are you
hiding in silent meditation
in the
depth of my own heart?
In
which bamboo flute
have
you locked up your life-giving song
O
lovely one
Come as
the rain clouds
to
unfurl my imagination of peacock feathers and dance
O come,
come quickly
why
this delay?
While i
wait
with
sad strains of music
on the
outskirts of my fancy
straining
for the sound of your footsteps
With
gilded dress
with
saffron decorated forehead
with
jasmine entwined tresses
with
gentle breeze playing a
bewitching
song on your anklets
as a
flash of lightning you appear
and
stand shyly before me
I awake
I call
out
But you
retreat
without
heeding me
SREEDEVI K
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