Here’s a powerful poem by Smita, a personal prayer in defiance.

Dear God,
Idol of stone,
Shaped like a phallus.
And then, more often than not,                             
A priest discovers you embossed
On a rock; female, eight-armed,
Armed with trident, sword,
Mace, chakra, bow,
Seated on your tiger-throne.
And there, up on a hill,
Or beside a lake,
Someone builds for you,
Your home . . .
You lie through your teeth.
You never fulfill promises.
You don’t take calls,
Nor answer letters or e-mail.
I’ve learned to trust in
Science and logic,
Not you.
Once, when I believed                                                          
Injustice was done,
I went up a million stairs
To your temple
Of the trillion bells
And, amongst a zillion others,
Tied with a sacred thread,
To the temple arch,
My petition of fears and tears.
You did not right the wrong.
Fed up, I realised,
It was I, who had to be strong,
Never expect anything nor depend on you.
It doesn’t matter anymore
Whether you’re fact or
A figment of the imagination.
Just that, whenever,
Like Hanuman  
I cleave open my chest,
Reach out for my heart,
I see on its template
The imprint
Of your face...                                                                                 

Picture design Anumita Roy, Different Truths

Smita Agarwal

Prof Smita Agarwal is a prominent Indian poet writing in English and a culturally active person. She is the author of three collections of poems: Wish-granting Words (New Delhi: Ravi Dayal, 2002); Mofussil Notebook (Calcutta: Brown Critique/Sampark, 2016); and Speak, Woman! (New Delhi: Red River, 2021), which has been shortlisted for the Sahitya Akademi Prize, 2025. She is the editor of Marginalized: Indian Poetry in English (Amsterdam and New York: Rodopi, 2014). She is also a trained singer who has performed on radio, television, and various government-sponsored cultural festivals. Her songs are available on YouTube. She is our National Editor: Literature and Music.