MAJHI MAI SARASOTI (MY MOTHER SARASOTI)

Sarasoti is my mother
She teaches me my tongue
How many secrets has she planted
In daughter Bahina’s mind!

For me, dear Panduranga
Your Geeta and your Bhagwat
Come together in the rain
they sprout from the soil!

God has given me darshan
of his own sweet will
and in my heart the sun etches
a form of the formless one!

I hear the sound of your footsteps
In the rustling of every leaf
The wind whispers in my ear
a record of your coming and going!

The fragrance of the entire earth
has gathered in the flower
Come, ask my nose about it
What will the nose ring know?

How long will you keep painting when
all the colours already exist in your eyes
For me, dear Siriranga
every colour plays in the skies!

My tongue savours each juice
that can be found on the earth
only then that taste in my mouth
reaches deep into my core.

*Sarasoti or Sarasvati: Hindu Goddess of Learning