Incineration
By Tejas Yadav

 

I lay them down on wooden logs
Scented with water from the Ganges
Oil, petals sprinkled on
Three piles on the river bank.

 

Crows, vultures circle above
Pecking at the remains of Us
Scavengers of nostalgia
What little is left behind now.

 

Why did it have to be so
Who can say, what now?
I set my torch ablaze
Once futile prayers are done.

 

The first pyre said little but
We had a good run.
The second found someone else
The third turned mute, callous
I light it first, watch it disappear.

 

Smoke and ash sting red
Hazy light beats the dawn
Dogs come barking to cremate
Carcasses of our innocence.

 

I turn to the river, strip down bare
Is farewell betrayal or benevolence ?
Long ago screams reach for the sky
Voices hissing, charred, crackling .

 

My toes sink in holy water,
no more waiting, no more.
Razed to the ground, only cinders
And embers after my plunge.

 

Burnt coal, our soot and dust
Flies buzz at the hecatomb.
It's done. No one weeps, no one mourns.
The Ganges flows on, silent forever.

 

Tejas Yadav is an Indian scientist and writer living in Paris, France. Themes of environment, race and mental health inspire him deeply. He believes in publications that support diversity and provide new voices a platform..