Kali’s Dark Grove
Kali!
Today in the dark grove
creepers with their crimson shots
are a fiery mass.
Anklets tinkle, bees hum,
cuckoos sweetly sing.
On Her head is a peacock’s crown,
at Her ears, vihangi bird ornaments.
Her navel is a while lotus
and She has restless khanjana bird eyes.
Bees sip nectar
from her flowery face.
With tamala trees for legs, ankleted
with snakes
She stands on Siva
the silver mountain.
Kamalakanta,
look at this great wonder:
Sankari on the chest
of Sankara.
–Kamalakanta Bhattacarya