Poetry By Jasmina Khatun

That Girl

Just as the Ganges nestles in Rishikesh’s embrace in childhood,
weaving waves of dreams with the laughter of waterfalls
so does that girl smile without reason,
while her life flows silently in the unseen dawn.
In the currents of youth, she is restless like Haridwar,
her eyes filled with dreams,
her heart brimming with the raw sweetness of love,
trembling in the ecstasy of an exquisite vision.
As the rippling Ganges wets the feet of a young boy,
so too does a silent name echo within her heart.
Bathed in the shimmering morning light,
the river’s bosom gleams
just as she seeks happiness in the touch of love.
Yet, in the wrath of time, sorrow settles on every shore,
dreams wither, love falters in the drifting sands.
Like the soulful ritual flames on Benares’ tranquil waters,
a lamp of sorrow flickers within her heart.
The more love she surrendered,
the more her existence was defiled
under the deathly touch of society.
Like Diamond Harbour’s silt-laden, weary Ganges,
she still rushes forward in relentless floods,
longing to reach the sea’s embrace.
And so is the girl
wounded yet unyielding,
fearlessly seeking love’s hidden path even in emptiness.
I know, society hurls filth
its venomous words strike deep,
yet, like the Ganges, she carries her wounds within.
Just as the river is silently tainted
while washing away sins,
her sacrifices, too, dissolve unnoticed
in the depths of this so-called civilization.
But love
love is eternal, deep like the ocean,
and within her heart, like the Ganges,
remains an indomitable shadow of resilience.
Perhaps she never found love,
perhaps only emptiness remained after all her sacrifices
but within the depths of her soul,
the luminous flame of love continues to burn

Copyright@Jasmina Khatun