Shrine On The Hilltop Poem by Preeth Nambiar

There is a shrine on the hilltop that I visit in the mornings and evenings; the steps to which are steep and slippery. My legs get tired, knees stiff and swollen; but when I climb the steps to the shrine, my spirit sings with the birds living on both sides of the narrow path between the dense woods.

When I feel breathless, I feel the fragrance of the wild flowers spreading into my nostrils; when I sweat because of the long walk, the mist surrounding penetrates into the follicles; when tired I see the breeze lending her fingers to take me to her abode whispering ‘Follow my path'!

The shrine, my heaven on earth is tranquil and when I reach there my body regains the vigour and my spirit, its vitality. I see the ground where the dry leaves are scattered, dust surrounding the sanctum sanctorum. I don't know how long I spend to see my heart contended.

Here is my Lord, I bathe Him with the water from the streams, I dress him with the most precious gems of my heart, and I shower on him the flowers that I collected on my way to the shrine. 'How was your journey my son? ' I hear him asking. I have nothing to tell him and I know he has the answer.

When He finds teardrops rolling down my cheeks, see Him smiling! A smile that arises a hundred questions on my own existence in this universe!