A monk turned so still 
that those behind him, 
who sat, stood and slept 
overtook him, and creepers 
with blue, white and purple flowers 
started crawling over him,
 
the finest portrayal for me
of restfulness.
 
Locked down in my house
the way turtle is in its shell,
rather a corpse in the coffin, 
I brood if confinement would free us.
 
A moment of peace 
in this raging city, which is calm now,
as the wilderness slowly reclaims—
a rock python enters the office space 
and spotted deer graze on unruly lawns,
the world has slowed down 
but we refuse to rest.

Debasis Tripathy was born in Odisha, India. His poems have appeared or are forthcoming in Decomp, UCity Review, Rogue Agent, Leon Lit, Vayavya, Mantle Poetry, and elsewhere. He lives in Bangalore.