Festive fare is here again

Siblings celebrate mutual gain

Brothers and sisters forget all pain

United they revel in Love rain

 

Threads so colorful and vibrant

Silken, cotton and some even woolen

woven, twisted or perhaps just braided

In various styles they are created

 

The Raksha Bandhan auspiciousness

Spreads a subtle, sweet naughty cheer

Sister gathers  the one compared to none

Rakhee thread for her brother is best one

 

Brother awaits this pleasant day too

The adulation and respect follow too

Some naughty mischief comes along

When young siblings have fun too

 

His prim chest widens with joy and pride

When The red dot like mark is applied

This vermilion, saffron or turmeric tint

Then further holds rice grains on forehead

 

She gazes in admiration her sibling’s sight

Treats him Godly in Aarti Oblation with pride

The sacred fire from the hand held lamp

Brings an added glow on bhaiya’s face

 

He touches her feet and seeks blessings

A sister is always considered akin Goddess

They feed each other with a sweet delight

Hugs exchanged forgetting any past fight

 

He shall protect his sister and her honor

Comes the promise from his heart’s corner

Be she near or somewhere in a land far away

He’s recipient of blessings when she sits to pray

 

The age old festival of sibling bond

Celebrated alike by young and old

Adorned wrists of grandpa and grandson

Tell tales of bonding and sisterly affection

 

A unique unbreakable bond between siblings

Withheld remarkably by some measly strings

For this Bandhan is very tight knit

And the love grip is beyond any limit

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Published in The Asian Weekly,Edition 468 (09-15 August 2019)