A River of Questions

By Gopal Parajuli

Those who frighten others from upright positions
Have been speaking from their sleeping postures
At this time
The country is slipping towards a concealed space
From near the graveyard
In search of the history of water
The temple doesn’t stand with blots of sin
Though Aryaghat holds weapons
The present snatches the word
Or forsakes an oath
The sleeper throws himself on the ghat
Or the helpless shadow of death looms
The law of weapons is not applicable to the country
No one knows
Who stands on the other bank to salute the cremation ground
If the mountain on the head doesn’t rise
And if in alms it begs for water flowing down its own soil
The world of consciousness starts with questions and tenders an answer
To the seekers of peace, the Buddha’s doesn’t give war in alms
Rather, he fears those who conceal the mountains
Water has never abandoned the nation
Today or tomorrow
The ghat arrests those who die
Aryaghat might be a cause of sorrow
But to the nation
Pashupati is a matter of glory

1. Bank of the Bagmati near the Pashupatinath Temple where dead bodies are cremated by the Hindus
2.  A river bank
3.  The Temple of Lord Pashupatinath in Kathmandu 

Translation: Mahesh Paudyal

Gopal Parajuli, (b. 1950) is an experimental Nepali poet of high acclaim. Author of several books in multiple genres including plays, poetry, short stories and epics, Parajuli won the prestigious Madan Puraskar for his epic Arko Ishwarko Ghosana (Declaration of a New God) in 2003. His works published in English include Proposal for a New World, Letter of a Jailbird and A Soldier in Search of Peace. For quite a long time, he edited Garima, one of Nepal’s premier literary magazines. He is known for his experimental cycle poems and epics. He lives in Kathmandu with his family.]