GANDHI’S OBJECTS
K. Satchidanandan (India)
A pair of
sandals
That would
never wear out
Made by his
own hands
To walk
towards tomorrow.
A hurricane
lamp
Burning dim
with
the fuel of
compassion
A handful of
salt extracted from
tears shed for
the nameless
by eyes that
had seen death in sweetness.
A wheel
spinning a thread for freedom
Which would
never be completely woven.
A broom that
would clean up both
Inside and
outside. A pen pouring
The affection
of bluebells into small letters
Onto a
postcard made of sandal-paste
That says this
much is enough
To create a
good world. Some books
That glimmer
at times like the
Slave’s desire
for liberty. A globe
That goes
round with the energy of
Brotherhood. A
bucket to wash and beautify
The world
dirtied by someone.
A
stone-toaster ever kept warm
To turn five
pieces of bread into five hundred
A green leaf
still smelling of birds
That lends the
milk-veins of nature
To the goat. A
staff that crosses the earth’s edge
And walks
towards God.
A pocket-watch
that goes on ticking even after
The heart’s
blood has been dripping on it.
( Remembering
K M Madhusudan’s series of paintings,
Gandhi and Objects)
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