To a Dead Woman - Buddhadeva Bose

''I will not forget'---vows so arrogant 

life does not forgive. So, let leave vain promises. 

A fleeting spark you were, may your liberation spread along 

unimagined pathways, the enchantment of your lovely face fade,

fade into the grass, the leaves, the dance of the seasons, the oceans, the blue of the sky.

In this night, in the solitude of my heart I keep aflame 

only these words---You were here, once you were here.


Buddhadeva Bose