The Sun and the Moon

Aju Mukhopadhyay

With a beautiful red globe
The Sun reminds us each day that it begins
As the day wears on it gets hot
According to its position above the earth
And in the evening it sets in
Displaying huge colours behind it;
Sun’s movement is more or less
Sure and certain with certain exceptions
When its movement is hindered
Or its appearance is shadowed by other bodies;
The Sun is the hope and promise of our life
It leads us holding our hands throughout the day
Takes us to the threshold of the night with
Promise to lead us again the next day
It gives directions to life
It gives health; in it the whole earth thrives.

But the moon is ever changing in its body and mood
Tonight Full Moon another night New Moon
Tonight Sickle Moon dangling at the corner of the sky
Another day it is found in the middle of it at noon
Sometimes it is freckle and fading as if going to die
Sometimes bold; orange-red as if a rival to the Sun;
But the moon takes birth in the romantic heart of man
Its position in evening or night sky moves humans 
To write innumerable lyrics;
Who forgets the peeping moon behind the leaves!
Who forgets the Full Moon ever  
Illuminating the whole forest land at the dead of the night!
Its beauty attracts and moves the blind
Its charm melts the emotive heart of the fool;
Who’s not a lover of the moon? 
Whom the moon does not love?

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Aju Mukhopadhyay is an award winning bilingual poet and author. His poems and stories have been widely anthologised and translated.