“through the act of living, the discovery of oneself is made concurrently with the discovery of the world around us. . ."

Monday, May 10, 2010

Homeland


Far away, beyond the green paddy fields

Beyond the thatched huts and palm tops

A hazy gray blending into darker black

Touching the shimmering white clouds

Mountains stand like sentinels.

It has been raining here; the leaves

Underfoot bear my weight in silence.

I pause – leeches, wriggling, reach out

And clamber up my legs; a flutter in the woods –

A bird? A boar? A deer? Who is it that I disturbed?

In the deep forests, everything is dark and moist.

Steam unfurls in the scattering sunlight.

Silently, I watch – across the ridge, a rock shifts –

In awe, with love, oh with so much love, a tusker in sight.

Above my head, Minivets, Scarlet, like flashes of fire.

The soil is black and squidgy; little puddles filled to the brim

Overflow and jump merrily to join a run, running down

Over the stones, tickling the grass, past a meditating frog.

A Pipit hops; skips past a Wagtail.

Bush Chats dart in and out of the trees.

From afar – or is it nearby, a Sambar coughs.

Suddenly, a tree sways overhead –

The forest is filled with calls of the Squirrel –

Giant of Malabar, king of the treetops.

Flycatchers twitter in the bush.

Past the woods, amidst the grass

Gusts of wind hit me, old friends hugging

And roughing up my hair;

From the next hill

A lone Tahr looks askance-

Where you been all these days?

Hills beckon; Sholas raise gnarled and knotted hands.

Mist, tender, comes up slowly, enwrapping me with love.

I am home.

********* Balachandran V balanpnb@gmail.com

13 comments:

  1. "Im Home"
    Dey good indeed. Brought out the soul of the wilderness

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  2. Vivid. Wonderfully picturesque. I’m reminded of an old Malayalam song: “ Kaadu karutha kaadu manushyanadyam piranna veedu…”

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  3. @anil: You know.
    @Arun: Now that you said, yes. I remember the song. Wasn't it in 'Neelaponman'?

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  4. There is no doubt that you are a masterful writer. You are more than descriptive when you can place your reader in the midst of the place you have written about... Excellent....

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  5. Really loved this Balanji.......I felt as if I was walking with you :-)

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  6. Sandy, Kalpana: Glad you guys liked it!

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  7. beautiful. very descriptive. did feel like i too was there :)

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  8. Sumi. Glad you liked it. I am relieved that I could still something like that! Welcome back to my blog!

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  9. I am relieved that I could still WRITE something like that!

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  10. beaueueutiful...felt like being fully home myself.

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  11. Venu: It is an you would have guessed, Eravikulam. But other scenes are from other places. I read it again and again and that brings some solace to me...

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  12. There cannot be another home, Balan. Thanks for reminding the eternal homecomings to the mountains where your spirit will soar high into the heavens, in the swing of cool breeze when soft formless fragments of mist hover around you.

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