HAPPY DUSSERA

 

DUSSERA 2026

20.10.2026

 

O King of might!
Who walks with a thud and voice resonates with thunder,
Whose chest is so broad as to face a thousand tuskers,
Whose flashing eyes could put to shame any striking lightening,
And who with a finger raised could make the mountains crouch.


O devotee of the Lord of Bull,
Your penance at his alter, in the snow caped mounts,
Brought you a boon by which the whole world trembled.


Then your gaze shifted to the Mother Earth;
Whom you wanted to be under your very feet,
Sublime, submissive and at your service.


For your designs, you had at your service,
The master of cunning, deceit and sorcery
As the artful minister and henchman,
And of a sister whose beauty, a thousand poets would sing, and yet,
Who would spit fire through her eyes and venom through her words,
Bringing out the deep frustration against the prince
Who had scorned her nuanced advances.


The elders who fostered you, showed the way and yet disagreed and
Those ministers who advised against your avarice,
You packed them off into exile as senile;
That brother who would stand for righteousness,
You called a traitor and drove him out;
Another brother stands by you,
Silent but weeping within, knowing very well,
Where all these will lead one to.


The prince who had been exiled by deceit,
By stories cooked up by crooked minds,
And yet had left the throne for the forests,
Has embarked on his pilgrimage,
To reclaim what was snatched away from him,
When he was confused and in mourning,
After his father, had left this world, heart blown to pieces.


He has left his widowed and mourning mother
And all the counselors and Ministers behind.
On foot he has covered the entire stretch,
And reached the threshold of your fortress,
Where you have kept hostage, mother earth,


The prince has raised for his service,
A mighty army of little ones,
Who can riot or mutiny due to tender age,
But would not, due to his countenance.


That tiny messenger who came into your kingdom,
Elbowed the gate keeper and peeped into your court,
Looked you in the eyes and mocked at you,
You have caught, humiliated and imprisoned;
Using all powers that you and your chieftains could muster;
But know Mighty one, known to burn things down,
You have lit a flame to his wagging tail.


Mother Earth is not an inert being,
But a vibrant force, whose consort is the all mighty;
Her consent cannot be taken for granted or
Her patience thought not to wear out.


At her behest, the mighty army shall come,
It shall bring you to your knees,
Empty your head of the crowns worn with fanfare,
Even when you cowered mutely before mightier lords,
And with a shaft, the prince shall suck out of your heart,
That deeply set desire,
To lord over the Earth until humanity would last.


For, the Lord of this Universe,
Gives not a boon to torment;
And drench the earth with tears and blood,
But only to realize oneself.


So, realize now, or you are gone.

The prince or his troops may not burn you down,
But you will fall by the weight of your own deeds;
And sink into the deep trenches of history,
As a being who wasted a grandly taken boon,
And brought disrepute to those who stood by him.

 

 

-        Manimohan