The Five Garlands

Once I brought five garlands for Thee, O Baba!
The first is of flowers rare and fair.
I wove the garland with my heart
And it gleamed
With inner joy, on feeling Thy Touch!
But Thou…… O Baba!
Took the garland and kissed, but did not wear it
Round Thy Neck…… Soon, the flowers faded
And let fall their petals,
Shorn of beauty, fragrance and life.

Another garland—of pearls,
I gave Thee, O Baba!
Thou didst see it and didst smile and took the garland
In Thy soft and gentle Hand;
And in the end,
Thou didst pluck each one of them
From golden string that held them together
And didst throw them
One by one, on the dust
Caring not for their worth
And glistening whiteness!
I wove

A third garland out of lace
Which shone like a stream of Light
Circling in joy and mirth and spreading its luster
Far and wide
As if it was of Heaven and not of Earth.
But Baba laughed and took it in His Hand
And crushed
With His flaming Fingers
And threw it away!

A fourth garland I wove
Of my smiles
And handed it to Him, for His Joy.
He saw my smiles woven well and skillfully
But they were not the sparks of my soul!
So, he grinned and mocked at them.
He did not care
For my smiles free and fine

At last
Tears flowed from the eyes;
I gathered them in drops and strung them together
Into a sad, shining garland
And offered Him. Ah! Baba closed His eyes and Joy
And heaving a deep breath, extended His Hand
And though it drenched His hand, Face and Heart,
He felt a peculiar joy
And there, my garland rested …. Round His Breast

                                                            ~K. Vaidyanathan, M.A. Ph.D.
  Source: Sanathana Sarathi, Oct. 1960