When I Die
When I die, do not consign me to fire, do not scatter my ashes under breaths of prayer. Myriads of my being that I once was, to drift aimless carried by winds to places whither. When I die, make me a bed of soft Earth and lay me down gentle. Cover me with blanket of moss and tuck me in with soft pebbles. On my heart plant a Peepul. Sing me a song and let me sleep, remember me with smiles and not weep. As slowly I turn to dirt; to be one with the Earth, to rise again from death to birth. My arms be branches, my blood be sap, the endless sky let my mind envelop. A thousand thoughts be fluttering leaves. Fruits for birds, shadow for beasts. I was never a traveller, don't let me wander the sky. A tree I shall always be, for now and all eternity.
