I remember, once,
I had a human form.
But my actions were,
the most inhumane!
Not a day passed by,
when I had not tortured anyone.
They called me sadistic,
They warned me,
that Karma will get to me.
I had laughed at them
Mocked at their beliefs
I was invincible,
Or so I thought.
But death is inevitable
I never believed in re-births
Until I was re-born myself!
As a tree.
Silent
Unmoving
Indifferent
Goodness is all that I can do
I provide oxygen, food, and shelter.
I need not tell you more,
Karma did have the last laugh!
I remember
And I have repented,
Am repenting,
And will continue to repent,
For every moment of every single day
Of my existence.
NOTE:
According to my grandmother, whom I call Amoomma, there is a legend that says that cursed souls (read: who were horrible in their last lives) will be reborn as trees. A tree can do nothing but good but lacks the many abilities that other organisms have! That was the idea that inspired this poem. π
P.S: And no, that does not meant that we can cut trees! π All jokes apart, we need to save them. For ourselves, for our future generations, for Mother Earth! Here’s what Mother Earth keeps on telling us in her own myriad ways.
This poem was written in response to Michael’s Tale Weaver β #273 β I Remember Once prompt and Sadje’s What do you see # 27 picture prompt. Thank you, Michael and Sadje for hosting these challenges.
The first challenge involved writing our response to the notion of βI Remember Onceβ. The second involved creating an original work inspired by the picture prompt. As you can see, I have combined both the prompts. π
Do check the links for more information about the challenges and to read the entries by other participants. π
Don’t hesitate to like, share and subscribe. π
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Β© 2020 Shweta Suresh. All rights reserved.
Shweta, youβve done it so well. A great story and the combination works so well.
Thanks for joining in the challenge.
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Thank you so much, Sadje. Yay! I’m so happy to hear that. β₯οΈ
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Itβs a pleasure π₯°
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π
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Well written, Shweta, and I really love the idea of Karma as you so described. HA! A tree no less! Now every time I’m in a forest I will look at the trees differently. LOL Much love to you! xo
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Thank you, Amy. This is something that my grandma has told me a lot of times. Everytime I look at a tree, I’m reminded of it. Indian mythology is a vast topic and there are a lot of stories.
I’m glad to know that this poem has touched your heart. Thank you for your constant support, Amy. Much love to you too. Stay safe, take care. β₯οΈ
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Very well written:)
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Thank you π
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So well portrayed π€
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Thank you, Rashmi!
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right Sweta majestic order and morals also motivate us for that π±πΌπ±πΌπ±
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Thank you, Rishabh.
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Beautifully written Shweta..β€οΈ
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Thank you, Anushka. β₯οΈ
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This is lovely!
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Thank you, Harsh!
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This is well written!!!
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Thank you so much! π
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Very well taken up challenge, Shweta and loved the poem from being evil you turned into a tree that gives and gives and never asks. Nice what grandmother has said but I too could say what I too have read that once we take a human birth our life is whole and complete so even if we do evil we will take on a human being only say man, woman and vice versa till our evil, evil stops. We have already passed this stage of trees, plants, rock, fish etc.
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Thank you so much, Kamalji. I’m so happy to hear that.
Oh that’s an interesting theory! I have never heard of that one. Thank you for sharing. π
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You are welcome πππ Shweta. In reality there are three phases from where we have come. Evolution, Reincarnation and Involution. So as humans we are reincarnating and will not go back to evolution stage at all. We are now only conscious of who we are but have to know who we really are as One Soul.
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Oh that’s nice. I learned something new today. Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge. π
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You are always welcome Shweta.
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Hope you have a great Sunday, dear. Take care. β₯οΈ
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You too a beautiful Sunday πππ
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β₯οΈ
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Shweta you know I have published a poetry book called Poet’s Touch and it is available on Amazon Kindle.
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That’s wonderful! Thanks for letting me know. I’ll check it out. β₯οΈπ
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Thank you so much Shweta πππ π Have a great Sunday.
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β₯οΈπ
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Beautiful poem..
Haven’t heard of this story. But yes seems true that trees do not have lots of features like other organisms.
They must feel bad while standing at one place throughout their lives.
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Only giving. Giving and giving! What a life it must be. Makes you feel sad for them.
It’s supposedly a legend. That’s the version that’s familiar to me. But some other legends say that even if humans are reborn, they will be reborn as humans only as Kamalji has pointed out in another comment.
Thank you, Richa. β₯οΈ
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Yes I checked his comment.
This mystery of life is really difficult to crack. We all have different theories about it.
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*her. Yes! There are so many legends! But ultimately it boils down to – do good, and do no harm.
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Oh, is that so? That’s a peculiar way of punishing us for our sins. π Loved the poem and how you brought the prompts together.
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So my Amoomma tells me. Thank you so much for visiting, Dashy! β₯οΈ
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A very peculiar way indeed. Sort of like prolonged community service!
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Beautiful, dear. So true, we are the worst and karma has indeed got back to us.
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Yes! Thank you so much for reading and for your kind words. It means a lot, dear!
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Nice one, Shweta. Re-birth stories in various forms, I’ve heard many, but none as trees. This is something interesting. π
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Glad to know that I was able to spread a new story regarding rebirth. Thank you so much, Aishwarya. β₯οΈ Sorry for my delayed response. π
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Haha, indeed Shweta. π No worries about delay in replying, I’m guilty of it myself. π
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Ohh sorry..
Yes right.
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π
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This is amazing! I love that you shared what inspired you. Love this! π
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Thank you. I’m so happy to hear that. Do keep visiting. β₯οΈ
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I definitely will. β€οΈ
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Thank you so much. β₯οΈ
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Ammomaβs wisdom is news to me. Today on, I will look at trees differently.π
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I’ve been hearing these stories for a long while. Many people have told me the same thing!
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Incredible one! We have a rather romantic notion of plants, trees and nature in its smallest form (even babies!) but when we come to think of it, life is hardest for them. Being a tree, you nourish without getting nourished in return. You provide shelter but donβt have shelter yourself. Karma can be badass. This poem sums it up perfectly.
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Indeed. We tend to romanticize it. In my mother tongue, there’s a saying that claims that trees are the most evil of souls – condemned to a life where they have no option but to do only good. That’s how this poem came to life. Thanks for reading π
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Whatβs your mother tongue, if I may ask? I speak almost all South Indian languages, hence the question. π
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Mine is Malayalam. All South Indian languages! Wow. That’s amazing. I can speak Kannada too and I understand Tamil. What’s your mother tongue?
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Coool! Iβm a Palakkad Iyer (from Palakkad, but born and brought up in Chennai), my mother tongue is Tamil but I speak Malayalam! I love Malayalam so much!! My fav language π₯°π So glad to get to know you! ππ
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