Bonfire of the Vanities

I have smiled at shallow triumphs

And long mourned the loss of what I did not own

I have dwelt long in the shadow of my desires

I have constructed an ego built of my senses

And with foolish bravado fought the chimera of misery

I have looked for God in vain meditations

And reserved action for the pursuit of Mammon

I have sought love in the cravings of flesh

When love was within and all around manifest

I have played to weakness when strength beckoned

And belittled myself to myself

Enough say I, enough this night

This Holi night, as I go back millennia

People hunched around an ancient hearth

A primeval force, pure and cleansing

This bonfire of the vanities