Night of the Scorpion - Nissim Ezekiel



I remember the night my mother
was stung by a scorpion. Ten hours
of steady rain had driven him
to crawl beneath a sack of rice.

Parting with his poison - flash
of diabolic tail in the dark room -
he risked the rain again.
The peasants came like swarms of flies
and buzzed the name of God a hundred times
to paralyse the Evil One.

With candles and with lanterns
throwing giant scorpion shadows
on the mud-baked walls
they searched for him: he was not found.
They clicked their tongues.
With every movement that the scorpion made
his poison moved in Mother's blood, they said.

May he sit still, they said
May the sins of your previous birth
be burned away tonight, they said.
May your suffering decrease
the misfortunes of your next birth, they said.
May the sum of all evil
balanced in this unreal world
against the sum of good
become diminished by your pain, they said.
May the poison purify your flesh
of desire, and your spirit of ambition,
they said, and they sat around
on the floor with my mother in the centre,

the peace of understanding on each face.
More candles, more lanterns, more neighbours,
more insects, and the endless rain.
My mother twisted through and through,
groaning on a mat.

My father, sceptic, rationalist,
trying every curse and blessing,
powder, mixture, herb and hybrid.
He even poured a little paraffin
upon the bitten toe and put a match to it.
I watched the flame feeding on my mother.
I watched the holy man perform his rites
to tame the poison with an incantation.
After twenty hours
it lost its sting.

My mother only said
Thank God the scorpion picked on me
And spared my children.

Comments

  1. I am very much obliged to you for sharing this necessary knowledge. This information is very helpful for everyone. So please always share this kind of information. Thanks once again for sharing it. Spider Pest Control Adelaide

    ReplyDelete
  2. Your blog took to me an entirely significant spot. It is a beneficial and factual article to enhance knowledge. Thanks for sharing an article like this.Pest Control Adelaide

    ReplyDelete
  3. You are giving such interesting information. It is great and beneficial info for us, I really enjoyed reading it. Thankful to you for sharing an article like this. Termite Treatment Perth

    ReplyDelete
  4. You've supplied us with an interesting article. This is a fantastic resource for expanding your understanding of the subject. Thank you very much. pest control brisbane northside

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular Posts

JOHN DONNE AS A METAPHYSICAL POET

The Cherry Tree (Text) by Ruskin Bond: A Complete Study

Waiting for Godot: An Absurd Play by Beckett

The Axe by R.K.Narayan: Text & Summary

THE WAY OF THE WORLD AS A COMEDY OF MANNERS

LONGINUS: SOURCES OF SUBLIMITY

BACON AS AN ESSAYIST

LAMB AS AN ESSAYIST

Where the Mind is without Fear: Objective Type Questions

National Education- Mahatma Gandhi by M.K. Gandhi: Multiple Choice Questions with Answers