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Fri 12 Dec, 2003 03:50 am
Prayers of a different kind.........
Standing alone
Refusing to pray
Taking the cynosure
In its stride.
Kneeling down,
Crossing their hands,
On the chest -
Someone prays.
Raising their hands,
To heaven,
And kissing the floor -
Another man prays.
Folding their hands,
Sporting a thilak,
Chiming the bells -
A third man prays.
Chopping the head,
Of an animal,
Spraying the blood,
On the altar –
A novice prays.
Standing Alone,
Refusing to pray –
I keep going.
My prayers are done
Behind me –
With no approval from me -
By my good deeds.
(Thilak – a religious mark placed on the forehead in India.)
Sha, You got my attention with this creation. I particularly like your diction. Thank you for interpreting the Thilak. I had always referred to it as a cast mark.
Letty wrote:Sha, You got my attention with this creation. I particularly like your diction. Thank you for interpreting the Thilak. I had always referred to it as a cast mark.
Thank you, Letty.
The thilak in general is a religious mark on the forehead. But, each caste wears the thilak in a particular way to identify themselves with a particular community they belong to.....
Your knowledge about the Indian Customs is a pleasant surprise to me....
Sha, I learned a lot about the Indian culture from my post graduate work at the University of Virginia. My sister also visited India while on a sabbatical and I listened to her adventures with rapt attention. As a child, I loved Kipling's Jungle books, but I must admit that your poetry shows me a side which is much more realistic.
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