BY RUCHIRA GHOSH
God’s most wonderful creation,
Enigmatic, inscrutable, blend of light and shade.
Thy world holds you in awe,
Woman who art thou?
Thy life is replete with escapades
God fashioned you out of Adam’s ribs;
While he lay in deep slumber,
In the primeval Garden of Eden.
You were to be his companion, friend,
Vile woman, you disobeyed your Father,
Satan lured you to eat the forbidden fruit;
Nor did you spare Adam.
God banished you from Paradise,
Doomed to live upon the Earth,
Bear your progeny in sorrow.
Centuries rolled on
Your days spent in toil and struggle
Feeding your man and children
At night as you lay beside him
You were slave to his passions
You increased his tribe.
Was this why thou were created?
No. Through the voyage of centuries
You assumed new forms
Leaving Mankind astounded
Muses, patrons of intellect,
Helen of Troy whose effulgent beauty;
Launched a thousand ships.
Ancient queens of Egypt,
Nefertiti, Hatsheput, Cleopatra,
Who ruled the valleys by the Nile.
Their fame, valour and beauty,
Left gallant warriors wonderstruck.
Joan of Arc, immaculate angel of
A Hundred Years’ War.
God gifted you mercy and grace,
Milk of kindness flows from you breasts;
In every age and clime
Madonna, mother of Jesus
Florence Nightingale, who nursed
The wounded and suffering
Every night by the lamplight.
Lest we forget Mother Teresa
The saint of Kolkata, India
Who touched millions of lives
Helped them die with dignity
Gave foundlings hope and home.
Who’s here that can plumb,
The depths of your heart & mind?
It would be a bleak world, without you,
O woman, nonpareil, Glory be to you!
New Delhi- based Ruchira Adhikari Ghosh hails from a family steeped in English literature. She grew up on a diet enriched with Hans Anderson’s Fairytales, Grimm’s Fairytales, besides Enid Blyton’s works. An English (Hons) graduate from Panjab University Chandigarh, she also holds a Master’s degree in English Literature from the same varsity. A professional journalist, she has regularly contributed to noted dailies viz Times of India, Hindustan Times, The Pioneer, beside upmarket journals like Society and Savvy. She writes simply to give vent to her vibrant imagination and her tumult of emotions.