Rupa Anand
Stopwatch
A shrill voice over loudspeakers screeching yoga asanas at Assi Ghat wakes me up. Looking out the window, a haze of mismatched buildings has replaced the yellow expanse of mustard fields. The old Banarsi haveli I am staying at has morphed into a bed and breakfast motel. Making my way down, I’m careful while descending these steep marble steps.
As I grow older, the oldest city in the world continues to grow younger.
the crescent moon
lingers high
at Varanasi
over the paan shop
a neon blinks violet
About the Author
Rupa Anand is a spiritual seeker turned poet. A cancer survivor (2020), she finds strength in Japanese micro-poetry. Her debut book To the Edgeless Sky and Back was published in 2024. A Pushcart Prize and Touchstone Award-nominated poet, she lives in New Delhi with her beloved cats, aspiring to garden more, travel light and tune in to birdsong more often.