Vardhaku: Winter
My contribution to The Weekly Special — Dec 20th-Dec 26th
Ravyne Hawke, the editor of Promptly Written, has great Quote and Concept sparks for us this week.
The Concept Spark spoke more to me: How do you handle ‘loss’ during the holidays?
I chose to answer the question with a vardhaku.
Winter
The unknown
the beats of days
caught between whispers and deep snow,
filled with last kisses and New Year’s Day —
your wide smile in a fifteen-year-old collage.
©2021 Cendrine Marrouat
What Is the Vardhaku?
The Vardhaku is a poetry form I co-invented with linguist and short story writer Justin Smith in 2021, as an invitation to reflect on one’s personal growth.
The Vardhaku is a portmanteau word consisting of the following elements:
- “vardha”, a Sanskrit word meaning ‘the act of increasing, giving increase or prosperity; augmenting; gladdening’ or ‘cutting, dividing’ (Source: Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary)
- “ku”, as in ‘haiku’
The Vardhaku is an expanding five-line poem divided into two parts: The first four lines describe a problem or situation, with the fifth line offering a positive / inspirational resolution. Title and punctuation are optional.
Using a combination of syllables and words, the Vardhaku mainly focuses on conciseness to deliver an impactful message to the reader. It must be composed in one of the following formats:
- 1, 3, 5, 7 words (lines 1–4) / 10 syllables (line 5)
- 1, 3, 5, 7 syllables (lines 1–4) / 10 words (line 5)
- 2, 4, 6, 8 words (lines 1–4) / 11 syllables (line 5)
- 2, 4, 6, 8 syllables (lines 1–4) / 11 words (line 5)
Want to discover more poetry forms? Check out my post below:
That’s it for today!
