The Spirit Of India: Song Of A Billion Souls

I am the rhythm of the dhol and the whisper of the veena,


I am the smile in Holi's colour,


And the silence in your Diwali prayer,


And bow with folded hands at Ajmer Sharif.


I beat the drums in a tribal dance in Bastar,


And recite verses from the Vedas under banyan trees,


And fly kites across the sky on Makar Sankranti.


I serve langar in golden bowls at Amritsar,


And offer 'roze ka iftar' to my brother next door.


I am the cheer of children in Shillong's monsoon,


I sow rice in the fields of Tamil Nadu,


I herd yaks in Arunachal...


And fish in the deltas of Bengal.


I dance Garba all night in Ahmedabad's courtyards.


And whisper lullabies on a houseboat in Dal Lake.


I chant on the ghats of Varanasi,


And meditate in the caves of Ellora.


I wear the lungi, the lehenga, the sherwani, the sari,


I am the tilak, the chandan, the rudraksha and the rosary.


I write in Marathi, think in Bengali, sing in Kannada,


And dream in all the tongues of my land.


I am the army fighter's cry in the borders.


The farmer's hope in Vidarbha.


I build software in Bengaluru,


And craft poetry in Kolkata cafes.


I race camels in Rajasthan's sands.


I am not one.


I am many.


I am contradiction and harmony.


I am the one who prays, and the one who protests.


I am youth, I am age.


I am ancient, and I am tomorrow.


I walk through every temple gate and every church aisle,


Every dargah door and gurdwara corridor.


I am welcomed everywhere with 'aadaab', 'pranam','vanakkam' and 'namaste'.


I am the spirit of India.


Authored by: Harsh Goenka