Boon
I wrap my dreams
around me and count
the rosary of timeÉ
I am at the Serpent
Shrine, asking for a
boon, for a dark
eternity enveloped
in golden light -
A gypsy woman
crosses my path
and reads my palms;
she foresees distant
shores; she sees the
seven seas drowning
in my eyesÉ
But I do not want
the seven seas, I
just want to be
dyed in my mother's
tri-coloured scarf –
the flag of my identityÉ
I want to sing in saffron,
I want to pray in white,
I want to dance in greenÉ
My eyes dismiss the
gypsy palm reader
and search for the
serpent king with
jewels on his hood;
I shall anoint him
with milk and turmeric,
the essence of my
tears – so that he may
grant me my boonÉ
Notes:
Worship of snakes is part of the pantheistic Hindu beliefs. The Serpent
King (Snake God) is said to have jewels in his hood. Snake idols are worshipped
with milk and turmeric. It is to be understood that Hindu Gods and
Goddesses are metaphors for natural and supernatural powers.