a shirtless man and I
bow to each other –
ashram entrance
***
a cigarette booth
by the mango wood stockpile
for the pyres
***
Manikarnika Ghat cremations lit by Shiva’s fire
***
dusk over the Ganges kites spinning
***
even inside
this guesthouse bedroom –
the great Ganesh
***
evening puja:
the bells’ peal echo
across the sacred river
***
narrow laneway
smells of incense and cowshit —
leaving Benares
First published in Maeve O’Sullivan’s fourth book, “Elsewhere” (Alba Publishing, UK, November 2017)
Photo by Aman Bhargava on Unsplash