Life in Quarantine: Witnessing Global Pandemic is an initiative sponsored by the Poetic Media Lab and the Center for Spatial and Textual Analysis at Stanford University.
spring-connect
(a tribute to our courageous medical professionals)
the five elements conspire
to assault my senses
with that lethal, invisible nemesis
each agonizing breath borrows
a minuscule puff of oxygen
as i enter the township of solitude
nameless
they remain masked, calm,
faceless
yet we connect deep-
in my desire to cherish, those
outlying undreamt dreams
and their humble urgency
to shield a choking soul
from the fangs of Yama*
doctor and patient follow
time’s footsteps into
the elated intersection
of life’s Venn diagram
we connect in our hopes
(hopes are not wayfarers,
they have a destination)
my focused hope to heal
a fragmented consciousness and
theirs to lend that sanguine glow
to yet another dying flame
we connect in our aspirations-
mine to see them conquered
in fulfilment-smiles
(Orpheus takes the path from light to dark
and back to light)
theirs to watch my exhilaration
in victory-lined eyes
when gasping breaths first met them,
when hopes were but a sea of ash,
i was merely a COVID number
they, the summoned saviours
strangers-in-arms then,
we are soulmates now
we connect in our optimisms
in a two-star constellation
draped in the same dreams,
we battle the same foe
hum congruent hopes
we breathe synonymous desires
we connect in our goodbye gestures-
their plural palms in farewell cheer
my folded hands, grateful tears
their nests woven in my heart,
i say a silent prayer
outside-
an artfully-attired careful spring
in singular poise, in dainty pace
inhales deep, the
ethereal, mystical, morning-mist.
*In Hinduism, Yama, also referred to as Yamaraja, a Rigvedic deity, is the Lord of death and of justice. In the Puranas, Yama is depicted as having four arms, protruding fangs, and the complexion of storm-clouds with an expression of wrath.
Let's keep the music on
“we must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope.”
–Martin Luther King, Jr.
fear-tethered unity across maps
bereft of dots
resonates in unmatched grace
virtual synergy in cyberspace
kindred tears, parallel dreams
remain dressed in their formal best
defying blackholes of the time
promulgation, communication
from sanitized sites of seclusion
from bondages of quarantine
death in a hurry, whirlpools of misery
outsides clad in ghost-shadows
(Goya’s dead escape from his dark paintings)
but the insides, in meditative chants
keep the music on
Vishnu* beseeched, Indra invoked
earth rechristened hell
seas remain formless, skies smothered
the sun limps on crutches of shadows
universe measures its memory’s depth
in recall of moribund songs
of the savage grippe espagnole**
yet raga bhairavi*** meanders in
to keep the music on
heavens wrapped in grey shrouds
muzzled beaks of singing larks
thoughts circle broken mirrors
brutal history carves itself
on the city’s throbbing face
yet, that infinitesimal spark of hope
eludes the ferocity of annihilation
to keep the music on
the wrinkled man whispers love
to moist eyes of an age-bent wife
“tears too have dreams” he says
the third eye of the westward sky
has its own tale to tell—
homeward birds are flying in
with the loving, distant folks and kin
to keep the music on
past water-rapids, through forest-shades
anticipation in green embrace
wings its way to earth’s door–
the rare orchid will bloom again
herons will fly the sky in flocks
gentle zephyrs would sing once more
who says
melodies are extinct?
*Known as the preserver, Lord Vishnu is one of three supreme Hindu deities. Vishnu’s role is to protect humans and to restore order to the world. Indra, in Hindu mythology is the king of gods.
**The Spanish flu of 1918
***Bhairavi is a Hindustani Classical sampurna raga. This raga employs the notes of the Phrygian mode which is one of the traditional European church modes.
Time too has an oasis
they manufactured death today
in a state-of -the-art lab
called it ‘black devil’ the famished raptor
that ravages in malignant manipulations
Artemis* at our threshold
humankind captive in time’s frozen frame,
unable to dream the form of a flower
in metaphysical skyward gaze,
sighs at universes beyond, their lucent suns,
illumined stars, in anticipation
of cupping their moons in eager palms
handcuffed deities in sanitised shrines
echo an uncanny, surreal silence
myth nor mystery can light a lamp
tomorrows lurk in agony
questions spark tearful tales
shadows, just a memory
‘black devil’ on the garden fence
orchid-clusters, withering-roses
in blue autumn isolation,
strive hard to withhold colour,
the subtle hint of sweet fragrance
cuckoos’ carols melancholic
empty rustle of pensive leaves
do jasmines ever blossom in death-land?
‘black devil’ in hot pursuit
City-dreams in smithereens
pallor stretched across the skies
Rabia the frail adolescent
mother’s callused palms in hers,
trudges dazed through dust and haze
homeless, bleeding, migrant feet
on sun-rained, rugged, grey concrete
till dusk turns the corner
where are the pathfinders to promised lands?
a shadow theme to these throbbing words
assuages the restless, perturbed soul–
history’s witness that crafted rogues
only live their carnage in sacred lands
where cosmic rays fall like gems
where plural gods in unison
choreograph the ascent of stars
craft smiles of wistful moons
(liquid notes of Beethoven’s moonlight sonata float in)
where nights wake up from dreamless sleep
to hopes draped in morning mist
where, time too, has an oasis.
*Artemis, in Greek religion is the Goddess of hunting, of wild animals etc. Armed with a bow, quiver, and arrows, she sends plague and death among mankind and animals.
National Science Talent scholar and National Scholarship awardee Dr. Rita Malhotra is mathematician, poet, essayist, and translator. A Mathematics PhD, she was Principal and Professor, KNC, Delhi University and Post-Doctoral Fellow, University of Paris. Her research papers have over 250 citations. Recognitions include The Woman Achievers Award 2020 (ECRF), The World Congress of Poets Honour 2019 and The WIN Canada Award. Compositions, translated into thirteen languages are globally published. Author of 14 books Rita is translator of French, Hungarian, Chinese and Mongolian poets. Affiliations include Academic Advisor Soka Ikeda College Chennai, President Poetry Across Cultures India, Member Executive Committee, TPS(India).
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