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| Shahjahan Masjid in Thatta, July 2017 |
Nowhere, nowhere at all, is any trace of blood Not on the murderer’s hands, fingernails or sleeve No blood reddens the tongue of the blade nor brighten the tip of the spear No blood marks the soil or stains the rooftop Nowhere, nowhere at all, is any trace of blood
This blood wasn’t shed in the services of kings that it could receive recompense Nor was it sacrificed at the altar of religion that it could be rewarded Neither did it spill on in the battlefield that it could be honoured Or memorialized on a battle standard
It cried out, this helpless, orphaned blood But none had the ability to listen, nor the time, nor the patience No plaintiff stepped forward, no one bore witness and so the account was closed While the blood of the dirt-dwellers seeped silently into the dirt
Faiz Ahmed Faiz
