The Sonorous Mountain

By Vijay Kumar

In life, there are times,

When the music dies

Shrouded by silence, 

It’s quiet as death    

When gloom befalls

And colours fade   

When the spine snapped 

And vision snipped  

When paradise is lost

And purgatory is here 

In a withered soul

When even hope is foul 

When the chips are down

Life fails to revitalize, even the clown  

A spark can be lit, 

For the spirit to uplift

From a musical whisper so feeble,

Listen, you can barely able

A strum, a beat, a hum,

A rendition

Alone or in unison 

A single note

Whirling afloat

Fires an emotion

Assumes agitation

A magic which fires,

The healing, the awakening

Lights a glow in the spirit,

Is musical symphony

Pick from the 

Biwa and the Koto

The Pipa or the Xiao

Didgeridoo and the gum-leaf

The shehnai and sitar    

The Oud or Daf

Harp or cello 

Flute or banjo 

Ribaab or mandolin 

Ukulele Or A-ca-pello 

Or the humble hum and whistle

The organ and the choir

The roar or the tweet 

Of meter and intonations

The Ballad opera or the Tragedie en musique

Rise and fall of the audiences’ distress       

Of melodic motion in the natural world  

The rush of water, 

The pop of a dew-drop

The rustle of autumn leaves, 

The murmur of the brook   

The whistling woods

The ripe fruits fall 

Wail of the squall 

The whine of the cicada

The bell-bird’s call     

Hear, hear the sonata for resuscitation 

Rekindled enthusiasm 

To walk or sail 

With a gentle caress and nudge  

Gets the form (body) and anima (spirit) to budge 

The wafting, 

Invigorating notes

Ride the heady winds, 

Carry the boats 

Get on your journey,

Fight the bends

Defeat the odds,

Eye the fair-end  

With your own music,

Playing in your head

Guiding you back to heights

Beckoning and urging 

To claw and climb 

From the foothills to peaks 

…of your sonorous mountains

By Vijay Kumar