Ocean To Sky

Reverse river running expedition inspired by Sir Edmund Hillary’s 1977 epic journey up the 1500 miles of the River Ganges from the Bay of Bengal to its source in the Gangotri Glacier in the Himalayas.
Pictures of river scenes are available at
http://www.karlgrobl.com/ganges
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Ocean to Sky


I dip an urn and drink to life
Where the vast river runs into the ocean’s arms
There’s water, water as far as the eye beholds
Is it a river or an ocean
As the sun plays hide and seek
As dusk sets in an orange sky
As the tiger's yellow eyes prowl through the mangroves
Through the mysteries of the night

A warm wind beckons
Once again, on your breast I am reborn
There are deeds to do and places to be
Where your breath will carry me

The power boats roar and come to life
Children wave in wild abandon on the green shore
We cut through water
As dolphins dance
As seagulls swoop
As the oil giants pass
Showing off the might of man’s arrogance
And the limits of human sight

And the mirage beckons
A call to action, a journey to the source
There are deeds to do and places to be
Where your breath will carry me

Great cities, sleepy hamlets, ancient steps on ancient banks
An ancient civilization ponders
And meditates on ancient wisdom
We run the river with the Goddess
Intertwined in her memories, her hopes, her fears
Her song of triumph, victories and defeats
We are one with the Goddess
Ever changing, ever flowing, with depth and wisdom
Colored in myth, bathed in reality

A mysterious shroud beckons
Once again, on your breast I journey
There are deeds to do and places to be
Where your breath will carry me

We power our way past the millions
Pilgrims at Varanasi cleansing their souls
At journey’s end into the uncertain path beyond
Past the great confluence at Prayag where the Gods become one
Over the golden waters and unending plains
Where the drama of life and curtain of death
Is played again and yet again
On the lap of the Mother since time began

And the mountain beckons
Once again, on your turbulent path I trek
There are deeds to do and places to be
Where your breath will carry me

Then the clouds billow, a gale wind blows
The cedar branches dance
Our boats test the roughs past the boulders of Rishikesh
Where the saints sit naked through snow and rain
Beyond the limitations of greed and want
Through the waves, rocks and whitewater of life
We float, running upstream against her flow
Overpowered, overwhelmed, torn to shreds
As realization dawns in adversity

And Your heart beckons
Once again, on your breast I am called
There are deeds to do and places to be
Where your breath will carry me

We touch land and trek along unknown pathways
While Tahr, the wild mountain goat
A sentinel from the rocks above
Lets us pass
While mountain birds glide gracefully below
And the gorge resonates with the river Goddess
Dancing the cosmic dance of Shiva
Inviting us to join in the wild dance of life

And the third eye beckons
Once again, on your mind, I am recast
There are deeds to do and places to be
Where your breath will carry me

There on the ice cave above
Knifing through the rocks, trials and tribulations
As the mist clears
As the double rainbow appears
As we near the source and our journey’s end
We empty our urn of ocean water
Of deeds done, of triumphs and achievements
We are drunk, we are full
High on the toil of the doing
Deeds we thought we’d done on our own

Only your divine love cautions
Once again, on your breast I am reborn
There are deeds to do and places to be
Where your breath will carry me

Enthralled by the life giving Gomuk
Where the spirit is born
Embracing Gangotri, from where she flows
Where the glaciers melt
Where barriers are torn
Where the light appears
And doubts are gone
There we go, my friends and I
The journey has just begun
***

Footnote:
The festival of Durga Puja refers to the female life force of the universe as touched upon in the poem. Please see the illustrated article on the festival through this link.
"Festivals of India -- Durga Puja"