English Literature – Poetry – ☆ An Ode to Ravana ☆– Ms Neelam Saxena Chandra - साहित्य एवं कला विमर्श

Ms Neelam Saxena Chandra

☆ An Ode to Ravana ☆

(We present Ms. Neelam Saxena Chandra ji‘s thought provoking poem based on the mythological character Ravana.)

O Ravana! I bow to you!

With your sword’s might

And your valour’s mysticism,

You could have forced Sita for anything,

And yet, to treat her with respect you opted,

Gave her a choice to decide

And venerated her “No”!

O Ravana! So different you were!

It’s just that the times were also atypical

And despite the innocence of Sita,

Chastised she was,

Even by her husband own,

And, to live a life in exile, forced-

People blamed you for her condition,

No one impugned Ram!

O Ravana! How happy I would be

To see you come back to earth now!

The land, in tatters lies,

And women are not respected anymore-

Her “No” is most often not treated as a “No”

And no one honours her now by asking

If she desires something!