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I can only represent you, speak of you,
In tones of exaltation or veneration,
Finding a fitting metaphor and myth
Rolling you into an image and movement,
Converting you into a symbol,
Diligently sifting the Rigveda and Puranas,
Pouring over the Mahabharata,
Or writing in Sanskrit or Brajbhasha,
But even then just like snow or legend
You would escape laughing at my inability
To signify you in words.
Then, I shall embody you in dance and music and
Force you to reveal mythical and philosophical postures
Of a prophetic fulfiller, ideal woman, life benefactor,
Moksha deity and celestial goddess,
Rushing beyond categories, beyond philosophy,
Into an uncontested intellectual space
Where only effulgence and immaculacy remains,
Where the banks of Prayag and Benares become one
In the movements of the Kathak, Odissi and Bharatnatyam,
Where the feet of the dancer liquefy
In the myth of the Vedas and the music of Tansen! |
