BLAZING

 

Depressed she sits 

Helpless she paces 

Frantic, the door she hits 

Last time, she memorizes faces

He left her to this 

Did he ever love her? 

Him she would certainly miss 

For he left only flames for her 

She does not have a choice 

But she won’t give in without a fight 

Protest she will, to the vice 

With all her might

Dusk has set in 

It is time 

She readies herself from within 

For it indeed, is time

Kicking and screaming 

Cursing and screeching 

For her life she’s fighting 

For her future she’s begging

Here is the dreaded place 

The One once dear 

Everything else is a haze 

But his face is clear.

Turning a blind eye 

Turning a deaf ear 

Suddenly they hear her sigh 

Overtaken by her fear

By wood he is covered 

His face she can see no more 

The place she most feared 

Is with him forever more

She is tied down 

With no purchase to move 

Their faces in perpetual frown 

But of this they do not disapprove

The flame is brought near 

One last time she stops to hear 

The end is now near 

Never, she must never fear

The flames contact wood 

A scream escapes her 

The feeling is not good 

Everything else is a blur

High, the flames rise higher 

Blazing, she’s blazing 

Her situation’s dire 

The fire is all consuming

Agony, she’s in agony 

She’s in hell 

Is she screaming? 

No one can tell

And then it’s over 

She’s here no more 

The show’s over 

They go back to lives before

Do they realize? 

The value of the life they destroyed 

Her life was a prize 

And her life they just destroyed

They blaze together 

Never wanted to be together 

Flaming burning together 

Forced to reach the end together

Wow you managed to read the whole thing! Love that, thank you. If you've reached this far, you might have a clue as to what this poem's about. This poem, which I wrote as a 15 year old about 7 years ago now. Why am I bringing this poem up now you may ask? Why am I bringing up a poem of the long ago, banished practice of sati, now?

Well.....the state of the world. When I wrote it those years ago, I was writing because that was one of the first times I did a deep dive into the practice and was sufficiently horrified by what I found. Now, the emotions are different. It's been so many years since the practice was banned, so why does the world look no better. The emotions are different because now even I've been in a position where I've been severely uncomfortable and worried for my safety, all because of a man- an old man on a bus who looked nothing but kind at first. My reaction to the incident worried me after. I didn't make it a problem, I didn't punish him or tell him off, I quietly moved away, because at the time, it felt more important to protect myself. Afterwards, I thought about it a lot, why I chose flight over fight and coming to terms with that decision. But at the end of the day, we do what we need to do to protect ourselves. 

This now- It's coming from a place of frustration and rage, burning rage at the state of the world. At how the world treats the very people they were born from. At what point does this stop being an exception and start being the norm we refuse to name?

At a world where almost every woman has a story of being made uncomfortable, assaulted, or worse.

At a world where "not all men", but 62 million visits to an online "rape academy". A world where it's the woman whose husband physically assaulted her almost every night and then announced that he was leaving her for another woman. When she protested, he proceeded to drown their eldest child to death, and now roams free. "Not all men" but somehow it's always a man who's offended when women choose the bear. At a world, where to this day, a woman is judged on what clothes she's wearing, not admired for her personality, her intelligence or her individuality. In a world where women, everyday, are made to feel uncomfortable in their own bodies. ‘Not all men,’ they say. And yet, it is somehow always the man.”

Every day that religion is entangled with politics in ways that dictate what women can or cannot be feels like a step towards the complete regression of basic human rights. Why is it that hard to separate the two? Are people incapable of thinking about other humans without the context of a higher power judging them? 

This is perhaps the first time I don't have a positive ending. Maybe because every time I hear about something great a woman has done, I get to hear about multiple atrocious things done to women, all in the same hour. Women have every right to be angry- for more reasons than we can count or comprehend. The fact that we haven't burnt it all down is a testament to our grace and restraint. Maybe the question isn't why women are angry. Maybe it's why we still have to be. And sometimes the anger and the rage isn't even loud or frustrating....it's just exhausting.

And to all of the men out there, please, educate yourselves, learn what equality and feminism is about, completely, not some half baked idea that you feel de-masculinizes you. I had a conversation with a man on a train about this once, he said he supported women's rights but was not a feminist. To bring some Gen Z lingo into this...make it make sense. Is there something about the word 'feminist' that repels you? is it the because the word 'feminine' is in it? Where do you think you came from? Learn, be aware and understand that being gentle and kind and supporting women will not take away from who you are, it will only add to it. And to the men who get it, thank you. 

The examples I've used are just the things I've heard in the past few days. There are so many more injustices happening around the world. There is so much more I want to say, but I'm afraid this blog does not have the capacity for it. And don't even get me started on the basic concept of bodily autonomy and individual choice vs the pro lifers. (Although if someone else wants to start I will not be opposed, please go for it)

If anything in this piece feels close to home, please know you don’t have to carry it alone, you’re always welcome to reach out or share your story, at your own pace, either in the comments or, reach out to us personally. Be safe, keep slaying. Until next time!

Picture credit: https://pin.it/1Q65TN2fa

If you want to read more about this: https://edition.cnn.com/interactive/2026/03/world/expose-rape-assault-online-vis-intl/index.html