I want to be like the epic Kanthari
with my eyes covered.
For there are priests, monks and mullahs
who recite prayers to God in tongues
living on the lips of research scholars.
Isn’t the Almighty a polyglot?
When men learn and speak a host of languages,
will the Lord struggle to understand?
If some bigwigs come to worship
with currencies local or hard,
the priests sing prayers in dialects
which have no written script.
Hymns and slogans in opaque codes and words
have propped up militancy
silent and open to mar the peace.