Spirituality empowers us, while religious dogmatism blinds us. Kabir finds the former in Durga. She helps us become socially responsive, in the special feature, in Different Truths.

I do not know whether She came from Kailash or not
I do not know whether the Puja divides anyone or not
I do not want to know because I love to know less
I know that She introduces herself with music
Even when the birds are asleep the Veena starts playing
Departed lovers meet as the sun meets the earth
Roads become crowded with unknown fellows
They belong to different ideologies but have a common thing
A warm smile whenever they hear Supriti Ghosh
Tagore starts penning his creation too with a humming sound
Devotees starts gathering their siblings
Making them well dressed to invite the Mother
Who resides in their every joy and sad phase!
My Durga Puja is not about finding logic
It's about finding the right thing in the wrong
And it seldom needs me to be critical
My Durga Puja is not just a regular meeting
It's about meeting the same people differently
Seeing the same river with a metaphor deep inside
Walking over the same lane with steps that is not a habit
My Durga Puja is not filled with figurative knowledge
It's about engrossing my soul in decorating my home
Making the Durga idol land on my doorstep
Lifting her like a baby to feel the aura in the innocence
My Durga Puja is not about craving for love
It's about believing that my love is mine
She will walk with me miles to enjoy the smell
Of the burning coconut skin creating a silhouette of Florence
Dancing with me along with the tunes of Dhaak
My Durga Puja is not about reading books of defeat
It's about inhaling a new but known smell
It's about getting Samaresh, Sunil, Mahashweta
Together, like friends meeting after a long time
Durga Puja is not meant to be a deception
It is a festival where religions unite deliberately
It’s about getting a new attire to make the world know
What it means to be a companion of evolution
I fail to be in a prison in Durga Puja
For I have known many failed days and night
Where I met the derailed flower
Now I just need them to bloom, like always.

Picture design Anumita Roy, Different Truths

Kabir Deb

Kabir Deb was born in Haflong and completed my schooling from Kendriya Vidyalaya, Karimganj. After that completed his Graduation and Masters from Assam University, Assam. Poetry has been his passion and a hobby from his childhood. He wants change the society with the power of poetry. He believes that society can destroy the most destructive force in the society and create a better tomorrow.