The land of lost love..

The Search

As anyone who has been perusing my blog knows, I have a strong belief in the concept soulmates. My fascination with the idea of reincarnation started since adolescence, when I saw the famous director, Satyajit Ray's movie called "Sonar Kella" (The Golden Fortress) and heard an evocative recitation of Rabindranath Tagore's poem "Unending Love" (described in detail in Wildaboutthewrittenword's blog post). By the time I had reached my teens, I had read a number of stories on reincarnated lovers by the prolific Bengali writer of historical and mystery novels, Saradindu Bandyopadhay (who readers outside Bengal may recognize as the creator of the famous sleuth, Byomkesh Bakshi). Some of these stories were set in the desert, with one of the pair of star-crossed lovers still roaming the mortal realm as an unfulfilled spirit, trying to lure the living lover. Around this time, I also read Tagore's "The Hungry Stones", the story of a ruined, abandoned palace exerting a strange, otherworldly pull on an unwary traveller. All these served to add fuel to my love of history, romance, folklore, paranormal and reincarnation.

However, the incident in my teens that caused my fascination with the concept of soulmates to really take hold, was  a visit to Rajasthan in western India - the desert land of kings and valour, myths and legends. The abandoned forts sprawling across rocky hills, the peacocks sitting on broken ramparts, the ever-changing sand dunes slowly submerging the ruins, the decorated camels leisurely crossing the desert and the bejeweled Rajasthani dancers swaying sinuously to soulful folk tunes - all combined to fire my imagination. I felt a strange kinship with this land where the past was ever-present, and experienced an inexplicable feeling of having been there before. As I walked around desolate forts, the feeling of deja-vu intensified - I could almost hear the clash of warriors' swords, the hoof-beats of galloping horses, and the tinkling of maidens' anklets resonating across the old stone courtyards.

After coming back from the trip, I had the urge to put down my feelings in words and from that, my first ever poem was born. In later years, as my hold on language and expressions improved, I modified it a bit, keeping the spirit of it unchanged. I've reproduced that poem, "In Rajasthan", here today, urged to do so by a close friend who wanted me to share more of my poems on this blog.

In Rajasthan

A peacock turns to look at me

from the top of a broken pillar,

a solitary eagle circles the sky,

high above the fort ramparts.

The whole of nature  

seems to hold its breath - 

as if these abandoned stones 

are about to breathe secrets.

From far away in the desert,

the strains of an old ballad
drift to me, carried by

the warm westerly wind -

some unknown folk singer 

strumming the sarangi -

its soulful tone merging

with the beat of my heart.

I close my eyes and inhale deeply.

The babul-scented breeze 

tinged with dry sand, 

settles like a shroud over my skin,

bringing with it the smell of the past,
whispering words in a dead language -

as dusk begins to descend 

slowly down the fort walls.

Source: www.distancebetweencities,co.in

I feel as if the wind is telling me 

that it had blown thus, centuries ago - 

when all the lamps of this fort 

had shone brightly, 

and I had meandered with you

along these cobbled paths,

intoxicated by your words -
as the moon had risen over the desert.

Perhaps I had worn a garland 

of fresh blossoms round my neck,

perhaps my silver anklets 

had jingled to the rhythm
of your flute's music,

perhaps the darkness of my hair 

had merged with your tunic -
to weave patterns into the night.

Source: www.notimetotravel.com

But as I open my eyes,
crumbling walls are all I see

standing on this desert land.

Now, through the broken towers,

the howling wind rages,

and the sand creeps slowly 

upon the same golden stones

your hands had once touched.

I turn to leave, confused and sad.

Suddenly I hear a flute playing -

a tune I somehow know as mine.

The velvet-darkness comes alive with promise,

fireflies appear along the narrow lanes,

and my feet head back into the ruins -
to roam all night, searching for you...