Donning
your magnificent crown
You set out
to build an empire,
An empire
too big that no emperor ever built before.
From your
humble abode of Wuhan
You have
travelled far and wide,
Conquered
the whole world in months.
Even the
British Empire where sun never set
Has become
so tiny.
The mighty
British, Persians, Romans and Spaniards
Bow to the
ground and surrender without any protest.
Despite the
most advanced technology at our arsenal,
You have
brought all the mighty to their knees.
Your origin
still unknown,
You cast
intolerance and racism among nations.
Your
atrocities all-pervasive,
Your reign
of terror omnipresent,
The whole
world gripped by your juggernaut;
You are the
king of the kings,
The emperor
of the emperors.
Many fell victims
to your wrath,
Thousands bade
farewell to their loved ones,
Brothers,
sisters, mothers, fathers, and relatives,
Lying inside
a serpentine queues of coffins,
Piling up
to erect the mound of dead;
And many
more are lying in hospital beds,
Hospital
walls reverberated with moans and sobs
Life
hovering in uncertainty between death and life.
Your
lockdown has brought untold misery to us.
With not
guarantee of food and shelter for many poor,
Thousands
brave relentless summer heat and rain,
Walking thousands of miles to be with the family;
Walking thousands of miles to be with the family;
Many have
died mid-way
From
starvation, deprivation, and scorching heat.
Story of
unrelenting tragedy all around,
The world
is engulfed with innumerable personal tragedies.
Very quiet
and tranquil,
You made
the whole world kneel before you.
The whole
earth has gone to perpetual deep sleep,
There is
only fear on the earth,
Fear and
panic let loose on the earth,
Nothing
left on the earth but fear,
Horror,
heartbreak, and panic all around.
The cloud
of uncertainty hovering,
Humanity
has become so alienated and moribund.
We are
looking up at the sky for magic healing;
The stars
and moons are laughing at us.
Everything
is in standstill and all work halted,
Only your
casualties grow to staggering numbers each day.
Our heroes
are fighting with splendid heroism,
But they
are only fighting with the invisible force.
While humanity
is grieving
And living
every moment in fear,
Oh, Mother
Nature, you are all smiling and glowing.
Your pale
and dull look disappeared,
The dust
that masks your beauty is gone,
Your glow
has become increasingly brighter,
Your beauty
so captivating,
All the
beholders enthralled and seduced.
What a
repercussion!
Now you
have gifted this mask to us
And it has
become our new fashion.
The sky is
blue, the air is clean,
Can see
gleaming snows of the Himalayas from afar,
The trees
glitter with fresh green leaves,
The scent
of flowers travels long distance,
Birds are
chirping and signing in glory,
Toxics-liberated
rivers are flowing again with full vigour,
Everyone is
singing and dancing,
Only humans
are in sombre mood.
We are
dreadfully silent now,
Our life so
terrifying and unsettling.
The
marching of hundred thousand hurry feet
Echoing
down the busy street,
The hustle
and bustle of city,
The noise
of honking vehicle and train,
All become dead
silent and deserted;
Everyone is
celebrating the beauty of Nature.
Forests,
rivers, oceans, moon, stars, and Sun,
All
conspiring to punish us,
Seeking
avenge for our cruelty and callousness.
Blinded by
greed and folly,
We
extracted all the natural resources
By all of
us, for all of us,
Ravaged
forests and cut trees with impunity,
Pollute
lake and oceans,
Choking
rivers and polluting skies,
Spewing
intolerable cruelty and unforgivable exploitation,
Human folly
transcends borders.
A
constellation of problems we created;
In a place
where everyone lived in harmony,
Humans
greed prevailed over peaceful co-existence
Between
humans, non-humans and nature;
We have
become so habituated
That we
give no attention to the suffering of others.
Even in
anger, you can’t hide your love for humanity,
Your
punishment comes with a precious gift,
The
long-deprived time together with family.
In the race
of competition and livelihood,
We all
forgot our family;
TV and
mobiles have become
Closest
friends, father and mother of our children.
Oh, Mother
Nature!
We always ignore
your warning;
You sent Ebola,
swine flu, Nipah
When we infiltrated
your territory
And disregard
the distance between us.
Now, you
have taught us the lesson
And we have
learnt it.
Please give
us a chance to amend our past wrongs;
Please show
us a ray across this storm-torn ocean.
The night
seems long,
Dispel the
cloud of fear,
Let the
sorrow and despair sink away,
Let the
magic healing save humanity.
