Poetry at Sangam

Poetry at Sangam showcases poetry in English and translations as well as essays on poetics and news of new releases.

All the World’s the Poet’s Own Country by Sarifa Khatoon Chowdhury

The poet did not die
even after he was declared dead.
They knew it
and yet they pulled the shroud on him
and whispered,
no more worries now!

And they left.

But the poet was not alone.
A procession of words led by his allies
surrounded him.

Holding fast to the words
that breathe within his chest
he picked up a pen
and started off again.

Ukraine, Sri Lanka
Afghanistan, Africa—
from these nations he collected the essence
of their exchanges with bleeding Time,
stories of people
crushed by grief
from Ethiopia to India.

The poet even wandered
among those masked men
who had declared him dead.

There was one thing they did not know —
geographical borders
cannot confine a poet.
All the world’s the poet’s own country.

 

← Sarifa Khatoon Chowdhury

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