"Beauty is truth,
truth beauty,
that is all Ye know on Earth,
that is all Ye need to know..." - John Keats


Sunday 8 May 2011

Impending Fall...

There is a lone tree,

half its roots coming out of the loose soil in the promontory...

Well it seems to be a powerful one,

a girth as wide and majestic, as would proclaim a kingly feel...



The tree, it is visible,

very close, but a little ahead,

a little beyond the reach,

slowly ebbing away...



The whole dusk, in which it is visible,

a pale shadow, of past and present,

and a pale hue of future...

Smoke rises, it has been doing so,

ever since those very many quakes shook the little place...



The silent stream of water,

now a swamp, then a river,

silent, ghastly silence...

Something terrible has happened,

because though overtly strong and imposing,

it seems there is an overwhelming sea of deathly presence,

a foreboding phenomenon surrounding the tree...



Smoke is not rising,

but it floats sideways...

it doesn't seem to be from a fire,

as fire is life,

and life is an absentee...



I move closer, to get a better look...

The fog, the blanket token of death,

the smoke, rising here and there,

and carried into the east,

where still, lies darkness pervading the whole expanse...



The little stream slithers across the ground,

silently,

water is flowing, ever so slowly,

as though it is still,

and the only crests are my canoe's doing...



Down the upstream course, I travel,

to look at this tree, from which it looks as though

smoke flows into the east...



Now I am near,

and see that veiled monstrous stream,

it ever so gradually pulls down the once mighty roots,

the arteries of the dying tree...



Fog has cleared,

as I have neared the tree,

and what I see is withering leaves,

in the Crimson horizon,

flowing away silently to their fall,

floating away with the Eastern breeze,

and all the majesty seems lost,

rocked by the recent quakes...



All that remains is a dying tree,

with roots in mire,

and leaves taking the darkness' call,

and a sole living witness,

watching the tree take slowly,

the impending fall...



© Karthik Adithya Singaraju

9 comments:

Deepika Vasudeva said...

in the tree nearing its death, i could visualize a person.. and the coincidence is it too wrote a poetry today on a person's nearing doom..
great work or art adithya. you inspire.

Hyde Park Poetry Palace said...

this is superb.

stunning word flow.

Hyde Park Poetry Palace said...

Happy Mother’s Day to Moms in your family,
Wow.
Blessings…
Make a contribution to US if you can.
You Rock!
Love your poetry.

Eileen T O'Neill ..... said...

Karthik,
This is one of your best pieces of writing to date.
I can only think that you are making reference to the Earthquakes in Japan, with the references to the Eastern Winds etc.
I can see that image in your words and all the attendant damage to the environment and the visit of death to that region of the world.
An excellent and full, piece of writing Karthik.
Best wishes, Eileen

Anonymous said...

The suspense was awesome! It keeps the reader on the edge. Wonderfully written. Here is mine: http://jaanpehchaan.wordpress.com/2011/05/07/pensive-parting/

Jay said...

Brooding,bleak and beautiful.Loved the word flow.The words just ebb and flow like the tide,like life.Loved it!!

Anonymous said...

It was sad, but true and intuitive.
The conceptualization was significant to the poem.

Anonymous said...

Mesmerizing write ... nice flow!

Anonymous said...

very sad. but well written