And Colder Felt The Chill Poem by Aniruddha Pathak

Amid clamour that night and din,
The clout coffin scandal when claimed,
We shuddered with the stench of sin,
Those in snow were ash grey and shamed.

In sullied caskets feeling ill
Sat still, stunned with a shocked surprise
Robbed of valour, of battle will,
They frost bitten, battered but wise.

Those done to death but not wood-bound,
Peered out from their ash-covered face,
No less shocked and surprised, yet sound
And regained gallons of gallant grace,

To ponder on greed, fractured oath
Of those with and without power-chair,
Yet hungry of power and pelf both
To grab in greed in shameless dare.

And this being business of old,
Let us not lose our lasting rest
To worry whence we have no hold,
But get blest on what we do best.

Yea, lose not your well-deserved sleep,
None can their dark taints sanguine paint,
Let Judgment Day come, said a saint,
They too their karmic crop shall reap.

But we still wondered deep within:
Would those wanton souls saner be?
So wrapped up in a life of sin,
Would they vainness of dark deeds see?

So, there was still a nagging doubt
If sacrifice ours was in vain,
All our proud work, upright and stout,
For all blood spilled, all suffered pain.

And whilst we did wonder some more
The clamour did carry on still,
Piercing hearts' ashen grey core,
And colder felt the nightly chill.
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Some time back there was a ‘Coffin Scandal'. This poem takes off from it and depicts a dialogue between the departed souls of dead soldiers (war with Pakistan in snowy wilderness)and sentinels of life after: Was their sacrifice in vain?
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Satire | 06.08.08 |