The Fire Inside Poem by Unnikrishnan Sivasankara Menon
The Fire Inside
Man wandered the whole day in the scorching sun
In the forests and valleys in search of food
Suddenly he noticed the spreading darkness
Still his stomach filled only half, his stone mace at hand
Ran fast to the safety of a cave.It was cold and thought he,
maybe the fire is still alive in his cave, but quite further away.
Fear, no, dread warded off his sleep
He was still awake when moon slowly rose.
In the cold wintry night, he ran through the moonlight
To the warmth of his cave, where he had his fire live.
To his utter dismay, he found the cave occupied
Fear gripped him again, is it a tiger or a lion?
Without making a sound he entered the cave
And pounced upon the occupant,
Landing a heavy blow on it with his heavy mace
He landed on something soft and supple,
And it got up with a wild cry, trying to get away,
But he would not loosen his grip for his life.
In the faint moonlight and warmth of the dying embers,
he saw it was a woman. And it was a woman he longed for.
She fought to free herself from his firm strong arms
And then all on a sudden, she gave up and smiled at him
Her lips searching for his and he warming up to her.
Moon, not wanting to ogle at them, hid her face behind her veil.
The poem "The Fire Inside" is set in the pre-historic times, well before the Neolithic Era, when man led a solitary life. For food, he hunted wild animals or dug in the forests for rhizomes. He was yet to start eating the wild millets and cereals, may be for want of dehusking technology. And he lived in caves. That is long before he had started community living and agriculture even in an unorganised way. May be that was in the Mesolithic Era or even beyond that. And man identified friends, foes and preys/food mostly by smell.
And, sure, the woman entered the cave which was used by man, attracted by his smell, and lead by her natural instinct.
For, it was the time when man lead almost an animal life. The natural instincts namely, desire for food and sex directed his life.
Powerfully and movingly told! .. You excellently draw the reader into the images and feel of this poem! .. Again very moving! .. Definite 5 Stars! ..+++++
Roti kapRa aur makaan sath main auraat bhi juR jaaye to zindagi ki talaash aur pet aur ki aag buujh jaati hai. Azal se yehi to sawal raha insaan ka. Khoobsurat kaavish.100++
Through this anecdotal story, I just tried to draw a little picture of the life of man in Mesolithic age, much before “civilisation “ set in. Quite glad that you liked the poem. Thank you.
A very enchanting and beautiful poem. In few lines I was able to read a a wonderful love story that makes the heart flutter and mind tingle. Very creative and highly imaginative. So beautifully crafted and presented by a brilliant mind.10+++
Thank you Rose Marie for the most interesting observations on the poem. Your words make my day. Obliged.
A creative poem on man's basic instincts that are the same since time immemorial. To give us a glimpse of prehistoric life by presenting a lovely romantic meet-up certainly makes for great reading. A real poetic delight!
Thank you, Nosheen for the nice comments. Of all animals, only human beings do have a romantic relationship. For others, it is only for procreation. Driven by nature. And full moon kindles desire. So much for moon and man.
Message to Susan, Susie, you wrote: ”You are such a delight to the members of PH! Intelligent, learned, poetic, and kind- -we are blessed by your presence! ”. How can I express my gratitude to Susan for this statement!
This poem has not been translated into any other language yet.
I would like to translate this poem
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4/26/2024 7:31:11 PM # 1.0.0.1119
You explore so many realms in your poetry, my friend and you do so with so much understanding in your heart and soul as well as your keen mind. a million starry-eyed tens! !
Thank you. Moon started to play a major role in man’s life, right from the time he started thinking. May be it is the other way round: his process of thinking was kindled by moon with its waxing and waning, its appearance in odd nights and its disappearance. It’s presence and its absence. Its cool light. All these would have tinkled his nerve cells. Many more such random thoughts shaped this poem.