The time of god...

The thing about practicing at Brahma muhurtham

the 'time of god' three hours before sunrise

is that by the time I am finished

I step outside to cool undisturbed air

stars still overhead in the pre-dawn twilight

distant chanting and prayers 

ringing in surround sound through the neighborhood

only the occasional tuktuk or far off train or dog barking

hint at a city on the verge of waking.  

And then, almost in one fell swoop

the darkness gives way 

to the tangerine and violet rising of the sun

pushing back that impenetrable stillness

that only moments before rang out 

from the center of my chest like church bells,

now an echo of a dream I dare to remember

as a deep sapphire sky fades to bluish white

ushering in the chaos and cacophony 

of another crazy beautiful (extra)ordinary day

in the madhouse that is India,

the motherland that cracks hearts open

and pours in the light...

ॐ असतो मा सद्गमय ।
तमसो मा ज्योतिर्गमय ।
मृत्योर्माऽमृतं गमय ।
ॐ शान्ति: शान्ति: शान्ति: ॥