“The king got away”

The king got away.

He built forts

And raised armies.

His courtiers flattered him,

Anxious for favours;

Brahmins surrounded him,

They’d ensnared the countryside

With their scriptures.

The poets sang his bravery,

The storytellers told tales,

The chroniclers wrote accounts,

The dramatists made adaptations

For the stage.

The court’s splendour kept everyone entranced.

The poorest woman behaved like a queen.

Religion was encouraged, so was treachery.

A holy war was fought.

A river of blood flowed.

The people shut their eyes and bathed in it.

Their eyes opened. The king got away.

1946