Triveni Journal
1927 | 11,233,916 words
Triveni is a journal dedicated to ancient Indian culture, history, philosophy, art, spirituality, music and all sorts of literature. Triveni was founded at Madras in 1927 and since that time various authors have donated their creativity in the form of articles, covering many aspects of public life....
DR N. KRISHNA KUMARI
The veil of darkness
Gathering to its bosom the day's twilight
Descends from heights beyond thought
Shipping around the four sides of the universe.
It comes down closer and closer
Drunk red and langerous
The sky shivers
And my heart is filled with tremours.
Even the least traces of light cannot miss
The passionate bite of Evening kiss
Their flaming imprints
Burn the sky within my heart.
These are red ‘Bandhuka’ flowers
Scentless and unfelt
Nevertheless my mind, a beetle
Wheels around these flaming buds.
The greenish house lizard with scarlet tail
Creeps and stirs within me
Innumerable tiny red scorpions
Move briskly all over my mind
With tails raised
Like question marks.
In my eyes no blossoms of desire
In my heart no rainbow of hope
Neither the twinkling stars of eagerness
And because
I do not know what I want
And formless remains the shape of mydesire
This mischievous play of
Evening’s blue fire
Singing over my consciousness
Can only fill me with fear.
–Translated from Telugu by R. S. SUDARSANAM