I long to stand up straight for a moment
I long to take a deep breath.
Our buried mountains float away in water.
Some tree branches in the cyclone’s
endless arrangement,
a few dead stone-carved faces.
Under the black sky, we’re terribly afraid.
No one ever shows the path of light,
yet flowers remain wrapped in our hands.
Burning lamps, perfectly arranged flower vases
wax artistry on the red floor,
rows of hearts are scattered.
Some ultimate insult, a reddish glow
pull both close like this.
Autumn merges with the burned body.
Macerated humans and various insects,
In thick fog, words break promises,
just the flip side of truth and lies.
On the other side, I search for your touch
with the strokes of ink and the pen.
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Gopal Lahiri
Picture Nick Victor
@gopallahiri
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Gopal Lahiri is a bilingual poet, critic, editor, writer and translator with 32 books published, including eight solo/jointly edited books. His poetry and prose are published across more than one hundred journals and anthologies globally His poems are translated in 18 languages and published in 19 countries. He has been nominated for Pushcart Prize for poetry in 2021 and Best of the Nets for poetry in 2025. His ‘Selected Poems’ was published recently.
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