Ebony and Ivory

Order, order, order

Where is the elephant

The one labelled crazy, Arikomban

And what has he done to upset humans

As they go about their lives in a manner hum drum.

Bring him in, bring him in

There’s no need for him to hide

If he does, man will skin him alive.

The time has come for him to speak

From Chinnakomban to Arikomban

This is not the time to be meek

I want everything in black and white

There should be no areas of grey

To him please do convey

If he wants to save his hide

From this creature called man, gone insane

Who is he to label and blame?

I hear thousands of cases, night and day

I cannot help but notice humans have gone astray

They lead the way, in this foot in mouth disease

They gag and hide the facts, and then declare the creature deceased.

So, Elephas, have your say

Beautiful creature, who once held sway

Over forested lands, so verdant and green

With your ivory tusks, you towered as queen.

Who dares bring you down 

Said the judge with a frown, mankind will drown

If balance is not restored, and the color of truth

Must reign, in blue skies and green forests again

If Earth is to regain her  pristine glory once again.

It is not you, Elephas or Arikomban to blame

We must banish the white elephant and restore your name

So that you can walk proud, and so can we

Hand in hand, Man and Nature, in harmony.

Purobi Tara Chowdhury

7/10/2024

In response to The Color of Truth by  Prof. Hariharan

The Galloping Horse

Poet : Purobi Tara Chowdhury

From timelessness to time

All you heard was the chime

Hour by hour, time was precious

You learnt how to count every dime.

You mounted the horse, and galloped away

Day turned into night, and night into day

Time held you in its clutches

You surrendered to the rein

You heard cries for your time

Not hearing was easier to feign.

One day, you got off the horse with pride

You’d covered so much distance in this life.

Where was the applause, the people you’d known

As you looked around, your life was not your own.

The son who was a toddler had grown

Giving commands to a Chat bot he’d known.

You looked in the mirror, you looked at your clone

How did this happen? The galloping horse had flown.

There wasn’t a tree nor a human to embrace

No shade, no shelter, just the blaze.

As you looked down at your blistering feet

In the scorching heat

You had to learn how to walk this earth again

With a little more presence, to bring back the rain.

The Tusker’s Task

Poet : Purobi Tara Chowdhury

My Lord

1, Elephas, have been tasked

To carry my weight in gold

When merchants have felled timber

In a manner so bold

With no thought of land nor deed

Our herds need no title deed.

Man who has an infinite need

For labor and land, beyond all greed

Now cries foul as I stand my ground

And so it is that I am bound

To petition your Lordship from this pedestal

For who other than you, in the name of justice

Can the human stall, when man kills fellow creatures 

And point out in verdict, that the game

Is not fair at all

Not to our ancestors, both yours and mine

When man seeks to bring down this planet

By design divine.

Do not worship me or dress me up

Or chant paens in praise

When you leave me in a daze

When in elephant corridors I am knocked down

As I move along with the herd to graze.

Do not hide your sins, the game is up

This is my clarion call, as I trumpet away

Your Lordship, I beseech/ plead with you

Save our planet and the day.

I , Elephas, who have walked the Earth

For 55 million years, when it  was green

Plead before your Lordship

Hear my please, even though I may be unseen.