Respect the Corona
coronavirus is doing the talking and it's up to us to listen
I am sitting on the cusp bordering living and nonliving since ages
wondering what happened to the world once inhabited by sages
violated scarred landscape is wobbling amidst ghoulish oceans
laboriously swallowing drugged air potions
the sun which once lit this earth
is on the verge of lighting it up
and then I see you, yes man you
you, who was born as a willful creator
now crawls like a compulsive consumer
you who once roamed like a daring hunter
now lives like a feeble gatherer
you who talks of equality of all humans
but acts to exploit or exterminate the disadvantaged
you, who have got into the habit of fixing the world
without realizing every nail is in your own coffin
buddy, you didn’t hear the agonized cry of the water bodies
as you shoved plastic down their belly
nor stoop down to wipe the sapping face
of the forests, you butchered continuously
As your unholy aura spread cornering suffocating other living beings
you thought you were winning the game
not realizing that you don’t even know the rules of the game
So I decided to take a plunge and expose your inners
knowing very well how apt you are in masking your exteriors
moving deep I see a number of viruses in you
and get confused as to why they are not hurting you
I identify them as lust, envy, greed and pride
and feel disgusted that you live with them without a cry
You claim you are the strongest
so here I am to check your immunity
and can strike regularly with impunity
till the time you realize
that the universe is not your keep
but a self-sustainable entity operating on the law of equilibrium
that the haves have to share with the have nots
so they don’t keep on eating whatnot
that the fire in amazon may appear distant
but can surround you in an instant
you don't party when your neighbor is mourning
So I have given you 14 days to introspect and contemplate
where were you wrong and differentiate
between a friend, foe and acquaintance
and be away from things and beings that don’t matter
You should thank me as I have brought you closer to your loved ones
and admonished the notion of certainty you held to for so long
you may wash your hands as many times you like
but you have to understand that I am your bad karma
for which only regret remorse and repent will suffice
look I am doing what you preach but never practice or try
as I am being secular and socialist
by hitting everyone without class and divide
those who ruminate over the meaning and purpose of life
are all looking at ways to first sustain life
and once that is done
do whatever makes sense to you
but do it with total involvement
without worrying that it may appear nonsense to others
As for me, in birth or death, I don't laugh or cry
have no emotion as I am not alive
inconspicuous me have increased your perception
now you can see the blueness of the skies
through the thinned out air
and hear sounds you never thought were there
you know I am there but don’t know where
so you are hiding in your place waiting for the shadows to retreat
you can't kill me as I am not alive
my flow unrestricted like ideologies and vibes
I am here to infect many, kill some
but shake the consciousness of everyone
till the time you mend your ways
or get out of the way
to pave the path for a world
where the birds sing without the fear of shot
where the fish swim underwater and not an oil spill
where the glaciers will again weight and skin
where a mother will scamper joyfully
to guide her trail of inquisitive ducklings
into the land, they can now claim as their own
and then the man will be born again
more compassionate and more sane
Every thought comes to coronavirus. Thanks, Shruti Sinha for wonderful prompt ‘Respect’
