Jejuri describes a day trip to the town of Jejuri, a pilgrimage town in Maharashtra. Both devotion and commercialism populate the town, and the man we follow doesn’t search for enlightenment; he’s sightseeing. His straightforward voice colors most of the poems, though Kolatkar does hop into the mind of the priest and the god at points. Though the traveler becomes more enchanted with the town as the day goes on, he retains his sense of humor, as in “Manohar”:
what is god
and what is stone
the dividing line
if it exists
is very thin
at jejuri
and every other stone
is god or his cousin
there is no crop
other than god
and god is harvested here
around the year
and round the clock
out of the bad earth
and the hard rock
that giant hunk of rock
the size of a bedroom
is khandoba's wife turned to stone
the crack that runs right across
is the scar from his broadsword
he struck her down with
once in a fit of rage
scratch a rock
and a legend springs
-----------------------------
Slaughter a goat before the clock
Smash a coconut on the railway track
Smear the indicator with the blood of a cock
Bathe the station master in milk
And promise you will give
A solid gold toy train to the booking clerk
If only someone would tell you
When the next train is due
-----------------------------
The door was open.
Manohar thought
It was one more temple.
He looked inside
Wondering
Which god he was going to find.
He quickly turned away
When a wide eyed calf
Looked back at him.
It isn’t another temple,
He said,
It’s just a cowshed.
-----------------------------------------
Five years ago exactly on this day, arun kolatkar passed away
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Tell a friend
Bury
what is god
and what is stone
the dividing line
if it exists
is very thin
at jejuri
and every other stone
is god or his cousin
there is no crop
other than god
and god is harvested here
around the year
and round the clock
out of the bad earth
and the hard rock
that giant hunk of rock
the size of a bedroom
is khandoba's wife turned to stone
the crack that runs right across
is the scar from his broadsword
he struck her down with
once in a fit of rage
scratch a rock
and a legend springs
-----------------------------
Slaughter a goat before the clock
Smash a coconut on the railway track
Smear the indicator with the blood of a cock
Bathe the station master in milk
And promise you will give
A solid gold toy train to the booking clerk
If only someone would tell you
When the next train is due
-----------------------------
The door was open.
Manohar thought
It was one more temple.
He looked inside
Wondering
Which god he was going to find.
He quickly turned away
When a wide eyed calf
Looked back at him.
It isn’t another temple,
He said,
It’s just a cowshed.
-----------------------------------------
Five years ago exactly on this day, arun kolatkar passed away
1 Comment
Tell a friend
Bury
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