Kathasaritasagar
She rests upon the arms of mountains, the snowflakes floating gently Their notes join her glacial melodies. Softly trickle in her tales, collecting into crystal pools of reflection. She then springs forth Her tinkling laughter, a-glitter in the sunlight, Her gentle murmurs, resplendent in the moon’s light, Her many arms reach out in embrace. Hear her angry rush over a scattering of rocks, Her tears brim over the edge of a waterfall, Unbounded she flows. I wonder, A journey as old as time, Do we flow with her, or she flows, Into our ocean within. The ocean of rivers of stories. - Shruti Jalali (July 3, 2023)