When the Goddesses Depart

"All the goddesses have upped and left,

as they are wont to do.

They fought a bit,

showed a few dead bodies,

got us to note the weaponry -

the heads they'd severed, 

the wild rides they could summon -

then dived into inescapable imaginations,

depths they could escape only in a year.

 

Beyond the sweltering of allegories

and the heavy lifting of metaphors,

in the dismal gloom of departure,

will lay the memory of sweat  -

for the celestial after-smell is more dour than Dior. 

 

The goddesses herald hope,

but with intimations of winter,

with the message that battles could be won,     

but not seasons,

and in the inevitability of a divine victory

lies the onus of legacy

left in our care.

Embedded in the lights

which show the way in the dark dawn

lies the start of the real war -

the daily common life.

 

But as long as we know the goddesses as breath,

there's both hope and despair -

we will trudge home with self-injuries,

but we will survive."

 

As autumn begins, and winter peeps into the world, the goddesses begin to come to earth. One after another - Durga, Laxmi, Saraswati. The warmth and energy of their stories prepares us to withstand the rigors of a figurative and metaphorical winter. But in the aplomb, noise and glitter, we often forget that their battles are metaphysical messages and their victories are vision statements.

 

They are celebrations but also reminders. And they are recurrent because man tends to remember the minutiae and forgets the essence.

 

The richness of allegories is our cultural repast, and a yearly reminder that time could pass, but any particular moment is always the right time for new beginnings.

 

If you liked this poem, consider listening to these other poems which talk of the divinity in various forms -

• Making Love in a Cathedral on a Stormy Day
• The Sublime in the Ordinary
• Fear in a Prayer's Home

Find other magical things, like a lovely free chapbook of poems, and other resources here.

 

Uncut Poetry has started a new Podcast called Red River Sessions (on Spotify, iTunes, Pocket Casts, etc), where we will talk to published poets, about their poetry, their craft and what haunts them. It is brought to you by Red River, which is the premier independent publisher of poetry books, and Uncut Poetry. 

 

I am Sunil Bhandari.

 

I am a poet based out of India. My book of poetry 'Of Love and Other Abandonments' was an Amazon bestseller. My second book is 'Of Journeys & Other Ways to Get Lost'. Both are available on Amazon.

Follow me on Instagram at @sunilgivesup.

Get in touch with me on uncutpoetrynow@gmail.com

 

The details of the music used in this episode are as follows -

Sehnsucht by Sascha Ende®
Link: https://filmmusic.io/song/2922-sehnsucht
License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license