Poetry: “WHEN MY FATHER TELLS ME TO TAKE MY EARRING OUT” by Arya Vishin
“When he handed them over, earrings dripping with teeth—the heavens / howled in protest & the silver tigers cried out.”
Arya Vishin tactfully uses imagery inspired by the epic story, Mahabharat, to delve into the nuances of devotion. In the end, reclaiming a sense of pride and dedication to one’s own life. The erratic spacing adds a layer of excitement that deepens the poem’s unique beauty.
WHEN MY FATHER TELLS ME TO TAKE MY EARRING OUT
I think of Karna from the Mahabharat, whose ornaments made him
invulnerable, unable to be killed in combat & even knowing that
he still gave it all up when asked, speaking of no choice
in the matter. & with that dagger I bet he traced the cartilage slowly,
his fingers still dripping carmine the blood of his chest not yet coagulated
when he handed them over, earrings dripping with teeth—the heavens
howled in protest & the silver tigers cried out. they say he was
tricked into it but the truth is he was kind & he wanted to die remembered
& he worshipped his father more than his own life so he pushed his
kundala boon into someone else’s hands. my father almost named me after him:
Karan ear for those auriferous earrings
but he didn’t which is to say I am leaving my single gold hoop in
& I will live forever
Arya Vishin
Arya Vishin is a mixed Kashmiri-American writer from San Jose, California. He can be found on Twitter @thewodensfang.
