Alone upon the housetops to the North
I turn and watch the lightning in the sky—
The glamour of thy footsteps in the North.
Come back to me, Beloved, or I die.
Below my feet the still bazar is laid—
Far, far below the weary camels lie—
The camels and the captives of thy raid.
Come back to me, Beloved, or I die.
My father’s wife is old and harsh with years
And drudge of all my father’s house am I—
My bread is sorrow and my drink is tears.
Come back to me, Beloved, or I die.
* * *
(These three stanzas are as quoted by Kipling in
"Beyond the Pale" (p. 174), and collected in Definitive
Verse. and in the Sussex and Burwash editions.
Earlier in the story (p.172) there are two
other stanzas whispered by Bisesa when
Trejago first encounters her.)
Can a man stand upright in the face of the naked Sun;
or a Lover in the Presence of his Beloved?
If my feet fail me, O Heart of my Heart, am I to blame,
being blinded by the glimpse of your beauty?
Alas! alas! Can the Moon tell the Lotus of her love
when the Gate of Heaven is shut
and the clouds gather for the rains?
They have taken my Beloved, and driven her
with the pack-horses to the North.
There are iron chains on the feet
that were set on my heart.
Call to the bowmen to make ready—
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