Faith, a Name for Hope and Other Poems

By Amrita Valan

Faith, a Name for Hope

We all worship differently
At the altar of God

Heaven allures 
Earthy blue green beauty
A labour of love
Needs to satiate a 
Wanderlust
An Eden, El Paradiso
Swarga dham
A better place to go
Across the bridge 
Spanning Time
And eternity
We long for reassurance
Searching seeking
Hoping praying
Wishing at the sacred well
Wailing by the stone wall
Imaginary altars of God.
We all worship
We all kneel
Before the beautiful knowledge
Somethings are upon faith.

Curious Christ

He could have used his
Influence,
Made things better for us
A swish and a flick
Of Divine intercession
Patriarchal privilege?
Would a Heavenly Father
Deny grace?

Grace shouldn't be earned
'Tis mercy's bequest
sayeth learned theologians.

But the Lord put his only
Begotten one
A sinless son
To ultimate test.

If he earned Grace 
By redeeming all
Not as Divinity, 
Through human suffering
Shouldn't we all?

In cannibalism 
I cannot trust
My redemption 
Cannot be through
His flesh, and
My bloodlust.
I want to earn my passage
Over the toll booth
Of truth, 
Not faith.

Is it but only my foolish 
Twelfth night dream?

Perhaps I allay His suffering, 
When 
I turn away sin.
By repentance
By grief
By making amends
Grace is what 
I give myself?

Passive Aggressive Or… Serendipity?

Bhagwad Gita
Hath many wise 
aphorisms
One is to carry your enemy
upon your shoulders
if necessary,
"Skandhenaavi Baheshatru"
This Sinbad's burden 
is the weight of hypocrisy
I long to lay down.
Atlas shrugged
Lord Krishna.
May brave humans
do the same.

I understand endgames too well
yet ends don't justify means
I ask you this, 
God of Love
Can I wage war
as the wages of 
Others' sins
and not err?

You smile my lotus lord
Your heart flowers petals
of mercy
Stars dance diamonds
in divine dusk orbs
Your feet shine
Velvet reprieve.

Are you telling me
Love is worth
fighting for?

Bending for?
Carrying the backstabber?
till
He unsheathes the knife
rendered blunt by
My submission?

Shrugging requires
an auspicious moment,
A "Shubh Muhurrat."

Till then
I kill with kindness
my God of Love
Identical 
to the way you slay me.