Krishna Prasai
1.
I counseled him much;
Did all I could to appease him
But nothing of the sort worked
For, Yamaraj refused to be bribed.
2.
I can’t tell for sure
If the faggots you gathered
Would cook the dinner this evening
Or cremate a corpse at the river bank.
This is the only truth—
When the faggots catch fire
The smoke that curls up is of the same color
And same is the color of ash.
3.
The cremated one
Had cried a lot while alive;
The only difference, now, was—
The cremators were shedding tears.
4.
The entire bouquet
Feels grossly dishonored
When all its flowers wither and sag
Like a muffler around the neck of a politician
Who has just lost an election.
5.
The high-placed campaigners
Come out boozed from a shot
They drink at a Dalit’s home
And segregate in the name of castes.
Trans: Mahesh Paudyal
[Krishna Prasai is a Nepali poet, essayist and storywriter. He is the chairperson of Jara Foundation, a literary and cultural organization of high repute in Nepali. He is also the pioneer of Zen Poetry in Nepal, and his Zen poems have been translated into several international languages including Thai, Burmese, Assamese, Sinhala, Bangla, Hindi, Chinese, Korean, English, and German etc. Mr. Prasai edited Nepali Samasamayik Kavitahroo, an anthology of contemporary Nepali poetry when he was just 24 years old and exhibited a rare literary talent he possessed. Till date, the works Mr. Prasai has published include Gham Nabhayeko Bela (poems), Ghamko Barsha (Zen poems), Prakshepan (stories), Anubhootika Chhalharoo (travel essays), Never Say Goodbye (poems in English) and many other works published in isolation. Mr. Prasai has also edited Chhariyeka Kehi Prishtha (essays) and three other works, besides translating one book.]