Love Poem: The Boatmans Song 2
Ravindra K Kapoor Avatar
Written by: Ravindra K Kapoor

The Boatmans Song 2

The Boatman’s Song        2/ Many

Urvashi’s heart was aching to hear and to see the elegance  
Of the boatman, while he sing those melodies on earth 
A great longing started sprouting in her bosom  
To visit the earth and to listen those heart touching songs 
Which like a powerful magnet were pulling her towards earth
Where flows the Ganges and lives her unseen love 

To control her ever increasing desire of hearing those songs 
And to see that unique boatman, who lives on earth 
Urveshi tried to engage her more and more 
In the courtly dances and engagements for Indra
But the more she wanted to escape, more she became enchanted
By the echoes of boatman’s songs 
Which were tearing her heart and 
Making her mind almost intoxicated,  
By the melodies of those heavenly songs

The pleasures and comforts of heaven began to pinch her 
Like the piercing thorns 
Even the dance and music, which were her pride and passion
Became dull and charm less in the wake of those songs
For which she was hailed 
As the best among all the Apsaras in the entire universe  

Heaven seems to bring no joy and rejoicing for her any more
Her dancing steps, which were the symbols of perfection and beauty
Even started betraying her 
As her own heart was no longer in her possession any more
And she found that her mind and heart
Were swept away by that unseen boatman
Sailing his boat somewhere on earth

Apsara Urveshi after finishing her dance that day 
Told the God of heaven, Indra
That she perhaps can no longer perform any dance
Owing to agonies of her heart and restlessness of her mind
And her legs were not in tune with her mind to perform
A flawless dance and song by which she had captured the 
Hearts of all Gods and Goddess, what to say of humans on earth

She thought and thought and found that she can only normalize
If she can hear the songs of the boatman 
Singing in full throated ease on earth 
The echo’s of which were hovering in her mind like clouds
And twisting her heart to see that singer sublime


Ravindra 

Kanpur India 5th January 2010 
* Apsara   =   A Nymph dancer of heaven in the court of Indra as per Hindu Mythology 
* Indra      =   The Lord of Heaven as per Hindu mythology
* Urveshi  =   One of the beloved Apsaras of Indra 
* Saraswati = Goddess of knowledge, music & arts
* Jungle      =  Forest