At its southern door, the Pink City turns a shade of grey
Fuelled by the diesel that pervades and persuades
The never-ending line of polluting vectors of trade
On the incomplete superhighway to Mumbai, and beyond
Overloaded with manifest, under-endowed with sense
The modern-day pretenders to Genghis Khan
See the challenge of six lanes stretching unfettered to eternity
With no comprehension of the carnage that unbridled inertia will bring
But that is tomorrow; today gives a chance
To deviate, to digress, to escape from the chaos
Long before Udaipur, west towards Jodhpur and the Aravali hills
And Nimaj
The dusty, soft-sanded road, brightened by the sari-clad backs in green fields
Gives only a hint of what is over the near horizon
The first water of any form to be seen this day
Collects itself in splendour, under Chattra Sagar
A reservoir of tranquillity, a foyer of calm
Derived straight from the water-colour masterpiece
Subtle land hues of green, yellow and ochre
Join the heavenly blue to the bird-speckled watery haven
For rising above the western edge
Is a ridge, a buttress against incivility
On which the generous share their oasis
With those fortunate to have escaped the Rajasthani day
An oasis in an ocean of impatience
Where the speed of light perceptibly slows
The interlude between sunset and moonrise
Both deliciously captured on that ridge
Rids for a moment the shards of life
Replacing them with the soothed edges of serenity
The delicate heron on the opposite shore
Looks up and smiles at Chattra Sagar
Rajasthan, India, December 2004
