An ethics of the inside...

- An agnostic explores the need for the omniscient
Intuition imputes on us good
Fail, our fingers, yet to find it
Sacred scripts dictate decree.
Uber imperatives,
Rules of max, or min,
Excellence Greek,
Offer that
Fixed of
MIND
Or if
Riding in
A decision
Lies matter of good
Influences of mind
That steer the sails of our thoughts
Yield those factors to determine
The fair evaluation deserved
UgH!
For wE
sound HeatheN
one born gluM
weighty akrasiA
a moment holds at baY
and in the good has a daB
perhaps merit to elevatE
with nimbus, like Saint, no fainteR.
An Epistemic imbrogliO,
no sight of matter moraL
but our retaliatE
a question: RectO
not read alooF,
but alonG
versO
gleaneD
?

Philosoverse: maiden contribution

'tis annus mirabilis

on liberty of human species*

a one who errs to opine

does so, as the many, now with ease**

*On Liberty (1859) was published the same year as Darwin's seminal "On the origin of species"

** "If all mankind minus one, were of one opinion, and only one person were of the contrary opinion, mankind would be no more justified in silencing that one person, than he, if he had the power, would be justified in silencing mankind." J.S. Mill in On Liberty

Flight of Eighteen Chariots

Unfastened at pyre, they stride in file
Eighteen chariots, of rich wooly blackness
Without steeds without steer, beckoned by the wise wind
Onto divine destination, for sake of a journeying soul

A trail carved of ash, left in their midst
But carried is more, more than even trunk to branch
A shade upon each flower, in the rustling of storms
And the grace of sunshine, where sense of lull was gone

A homage to departure, the circuit traced of bark
In fraternal file too, did keepers make ready the path
A bid farewell not to follow, splendour of kite colour
But hint of ambling waft, does sail from sandalwood source

Before gates could glisten, came the final fretful march
Many sturdy steps taken, with soles soldiered seventy years on
Once soft and supple, our bare feet had come to form
And our measured maiden moments, fatefully led by her feet now mourned

Snowdon's splash

On the trails, set four in Wales

To catch the sight, from big snow white

Brave in dash, unfazed by splash

But when it fogg'd, the view clouds hogg'd!....

Monuments of the mighty: allusions

The 'restless'
- my mate, Anuj Saigal, who was having trouble sleeping that night













The 'heiress'
- my little sister, Nush, who dragged me out that night









The 'father' - Annapurna 1









The 'gatekeeper' - Annapurna 3









The 'second' - Annapurna 2
















The 'horned prince' - Machhapuchre (trans. Fishtail)

'hapless trysts' - reference to the romantic expeditionary plans of a French couple, who intended to scale the glacier adjacent to Annapurna 1

'the mighty hand' - reference to the Hindu Destroyer God, Shiva

Monuments of the Mighty

Dedicated to my Grandmother, Jayabharathi Patchava, the embodiment of good, purity, and simplicity, who said 'Babu (son, in Telugu), you should write about your travels to all these special places. You used to write well when you were younger'. I hope that her faith is not misplaced, and that youthful talent dies hard:

MONUMENTS OF THE MIGHTY
- stepping out into the night of the Himalayan Annapurna range

Amid the rumble of the restless,
Into darkness, a chase in lumber
Motive: piety to an heiress
Legs resist, desiresome of slumber

But sinews spur forward the follow,
While the heart, pumps for senses un-numb
They awake to a pit of hollow
Within, I'm entranced, seemingly dumb

A show, foreign and silent as mars,
Where performers peer at assembled,
Steeped leaf green in blessings of stars,
They expand the meaning 'feel humbled'

Quartet of anchored protagonists
They grew pre-disposed to encompass,
Intent on ambush of hapless trysts
They, not characters its wise to truss

A father unconcerned yet at helm
His gatekeeper, the third, stands upright
Afar, second's stare brings overwhelm
And yet the horned prince, he draws the light

Often the setting of Hindu myth,
These are the monuments of the land
I relay that belief monolith:
These the abode of the mighty hand!

A fickle flush of feeling

What is this, that brings the beam
Why, from head-to-toe, erupts a stream
Purveys water, it does not
More fitting a warmth, that will cause clot

For a pinch, holds tight, at cheek
As if shine, threatens imminent sneak
Glance above, to reveal source
Mind perplexed, by a matter of course

Lips have savoured, the fine wine
A taste of grace, insight, the divine
Excites, tender in embrace
Why, heart flows, with magic from a face