Even the Rain
by Agha Shahid Ali
What will suffice for a true-love knot? Even the rain?
But he has bought grief’s lottery, bought even the rain.
“our glosses / wanting in this world” “Can you remember?”
Anyone! “when we thought / the poets taught” even the rain?
After we died — That was it! — God left us in the dark.
And as we forgot the dark, we forgot even the rain.
Drought was over. Where was I? Drinks were on the house.
For mixers, my love, you’d poured — what? — even the rain.
Of this pear-shaped orange’s perfumed twist, I will say:
Extract Vermouth from the bergamot, even the rain.
How did the Enemy love you — with earth? air? and fire?
He held just one thing back till he got: the rain.
This is God’s site for a new house of executions?
You swear by the Bible, Despot, even the rain?
After the bones — those flowers — this was found in the urn.
The lost river, ashes from the ghat, even the rain.
What was I to prophesy if not the end of the world?
A salt pillar for the lonely lot, even the rain.
One Thought
A very strong poem…some of the images are very powerful…others I’m still working on….but I love the overall power in this poem.
[Reply]
kendrajk Reply:
February 26th, 2010 at 6:44 pm
It is a very strong poem, the reason I picked it for this week. I really like it, but you’re right there are some difficult things that need to be worked over
[Reply]