When the war in heaven seems all but over,
And the loyalist cry, “Who’s like Him?”
Seems for now to have settled the matter,
All challenges ruthlessly quelled,
All rebels banished to outer darkness.
No sharing power, no pretence to equality,
Dissent, free will and choice will be punished.
Only hymns of praise before the throne,
Absolute obedience alone the test of loyalty.
Wings of ambition and enquiry will be chopped,
Doubts and questions viewed as heresy.
Only the chosen will have place at the high table;
All children of God are not equal, some eat crumbs.
If you still dream of a heaven, where
The mind is without fear, knowledge free,
And reason flows like a clear stream,*
Will not settle for crumbs from the table,
And the only arms you allow yourself
Are silence, exile and cunning,**
Bide your time and wait,
For another dark angel to rise,
Saying, “I will not serve”.
*Rabindranath Tagore, Gitanjali
**James Joyce, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man
***
Madras Courier originally ran as a broadsheet with a poetry section. It was a time when readers felt comfortable sharing glimpses of their lives through verse. If you have a poem you’d like to submit, do email us at [email protected].
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