Where ends Ramallah, Jerusalem begins
Two neighbors, talk of, last night’s mayhem
Whilst four mothers moan, by their, sons’ coffins
Welcomes, wedding guests, mother of Aleichem!

“Intifada’s begun…?”, “No! Just a, short preamble
On a holy Shabbat, to a long bloodbath…”
And the, martyrs hoisted, to jihad’s carousal
“Allahu Akbar…!”, the new shibboleth, of faith’s aftermath!

The nuptials, march on, like militias and mob
Four requiems, shout down, two wedding vows
Amid rites, of bliss, death’s sacraments throb
Bride’s a wondrous widow, in the shrouds, of ‘heroes’!

They inter jihadis, as the couple, trades kiss
A furor breaks, out of, fear’s shackles
Intifada it is, a land’s, deflowered bliss
Embodies, this enigma, faith’s eternal abyss –
One Wedding And Four Funerals!

© 2018 Vikas Chandra