Wake Asia Wake - Part One - 8
Wake not to feel that all is maya all futile all cyclic dust
even if it were so the pain lingers pain is cantankerous
in the beggar’s strife-torn eyes in the child’s fly-infested blown belly
Wake! India! Wake!
All is not illusion all is not fake all is not a passing phase
the hurt lingers on in the memory of those who died in pain
forsaken forbidden trodden on and driven under
Wake! India! Wake!
To lose even a day no to lose even an hour
is to put millions on the block
is to set them back by aeons
Wake! India! Wake!
Rise with the sun rise fresh from yesterday’s toil
from poisoning TV commercials and commercials’ mightily airy-fairy movies
from jingling song and bill-cooing in gardens from worshipfuls of Bollywood idols
Wake! India! Wake!
Lull not your finely-tuned senses in lilting goose-pimply melodies
let not your far-sighted perceptions become dulled in spurious imitations
here in the West they marvel at the speechless facial rhythms of a Satyajit Ray
Wake! India! Wake!
How do you manage to listen day in and day out to the sentimental romantic quatrains
set to rumba and samba cinematic background less-than-roaring forties’ dance music
under a decor of piped sky-lancing and prancing tinny gushy melodramatics
Wake! India! Wake!
Before your children grow up thinking reality is a coloured film-strip in hot gasping halls
where plumpy heavily mascara-ed curly moustachio-ed pot-bellied half-men
chase blown-up versions of the eternal Sita oozing midrift flesh heaving in rosy gardens
Wake! India! Wake!
Wake and take the future by the horns it’s no toro that will gore you into the past
you need no muleta for a faena with the dark and terrifying future
the future’s just a bull raised on cow’s milk in green pastures
Wake! India! Wake!
(Continued in Part One - 9)
Copyright © T Wignesan | Year Posted 2012
Post Comments
Poetrysoup is an environment of encouragement and growth so only provide specific positive comments that indicate what you appreciate about the poem. Negative comments will result your account being banned.
Please
Login
to post a comment