Gopala Came to Me, I Slept…

-

My hair I shred, my blouse I tear,
My breasts I beat, I wail in grief.
Gopala graced my humble hut
And I… I lay asleep!
My lover hugged me in my bed
Cupping these breasts of mine.
With whispered words and gentle love
He sought to break my sleep.
But I… I heard him not! Oh woe!
I lay there like a corpse!
Dreaming all night of Gopala
I dreamt all night of love!
I wake to find my Lord had
Lain with me all night in bed.
Oh! Blessed am I! Ah! Cursed am I!
I weep, I beat my head.
His footprints at the door are there,
Bedsheets are all askew.
My Lord, witness my breasts and hair,
My shame! O Lord, I grieve!

[Footnote: To understand the essence of this poem, please think in the context of the gopis of Brindavan waiting, hoping, praying for a nightly visit from their divine Gopala. Assume the mindframe of a lone gopi who unsuccessfully tried to stay awake for her chance to be with her lover god.]
P Nayak is reminded of Meerabai’s bhajan:
palka par sovat kamini re
gyaan dhyaan sab peehu sang laagi
pal mein lag gayi palkan mori
neechat hi pal mein piya aayo
main jo utthi piya aadar dene
jaag padi piya haath na aayo
aur sakhi piya so kar khoya
main apna piya jaagi gawayo …..

---------------------------------------------------------
I first wrote and posted this on June 10, 2007. This is a repost.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Did Akash Ambani, son of Mukesh Ambani, kill two persons in car crash

-
On December 12 2013, J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah tweeted, “If friends in Mumbai are to be believed, it seems the only people who don’t know who was driving the fancy Aston Martin (worth Rs 4.5 crore) are the Mumbai police.” He was hinting at Akash Ambani, son of Mukesh Ambani) Probably that’s when the limelight hit the spot. During the wee hours of Sunday, December 8 2013, a black Ashton Martin Rapide (registration # MH 01 BK 99) belonging to Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Por ts, crashed into an Audi and a Hyundai Elantra, at Pedder Road, Mumbai. The crash killed two people. There was NDTV coverage, Business Standard articles and other ambiguous reports informed about some details of the car crash; More recently, some news pieces made the rounds on how the Mumbai police was not keen on arresting one of Reliance’s driver, Mr. Bhansilal Joshi – who, as per Reliance, was driving the car at that time. But Joshi wasn’t arrested even after a full confession.
Read more

Short story: The faithful wife

-
[Friendship, love and trust have many meanings. This is an erotic story about all those beautiful emotions.] He lay awake in bed, waiting for her to finish her kitchen winding-up chores and join him. By the time she came in and began undressing for bed, he was very nearly asleep. With drowsy eyes, he gazed at her taking off her saree. She had grown a bit plump of late, but it only made him love her more. "There is more of you to hug now than when I married you," he sighed, wrapping his arms and legs around her in the dim light of the bedlamp. "This is sheer luxury!" She reciprocated by kissing him, and then turned around, determined to fall asleep quickly. Tomorrow was another tough day ahead, and she would have to cook a full formal lunch, keeping in mind his guest. Not just the daal-chaval that she made on days when she was feeling tired. "Turn off the lights, please," she said sleepily. "Not yet," he breathed in her ear. "Let me
Read more

India's "Anaadi" Courts -- where all your fundamental rights disappear

-
Image
Here's something the media never reports: "Anaadi courts" are the instrumentality by which the State deprives tens of thousands of Indian citizens of their Fundamental Right to Life & Liberty. Without due process. For trivial offences like crossing the railway tracks, ticketless travelling and "loitering suspiciously" (combined with inability to furnish bail-bond or engage a lawyer), people are arrested and held in judicial custody for days, weeks or even months in judicial custody, without even being chargesheeted. This is happening daily, without interruption. Hello... Are the Chief Justices listening? Like  ·  Comment  ·  Share  
Read more