Kodi Landscapes

No talk. Just look.

Gnarled Barkleys

Nowhere are trees more alive than in Kodi. I've had long conversations with them and they've imparted a lot of woody wisdom to me over the years and they never ever shy away from a big bear hug. And they're a colourful bunch rivaling the flowers in their quest for a brighter shade of living. The trees, the trees, the trees. sigh.

kodi portraits

Our cars skim the valleys
We call home
I envy them

"Can I have a jacket?"
Asked the cattle herder
"All I have is the T-Shirt on my back"
I smiled.

Not Veerappan
Not even his brother
Just eucalyptus Puttappa

Woodcutter proxy
Noserings of gold
Silvery laughter

Menu Nagaraj
Driving Ms.Dasies and Mr.Fatwhiteman
Bread 'omlete' belches

Aslam bhai
Waiting
For his mango van to come

Clutching
Her lunch
Holding on
To dear life

Wallets
Jackets
And a steely glint

How sharp
Is my sickle?

The Council

Behold, the council of trees
Nested atop the verdant slope
Surveying the vales
For the the western wind

The knights, they protect the king and queen
Royal bark oozing amber
We feel their gaze
On our rain swept backs
Piercing the returning mist

Lancelot stands proud
With weapons of wood
Brandishing and blazing
Towering and swaying

They murmur to one another
Telling secrets of old
Wondering if we'll leave
Before we're told

Silence
Deathly still
A moment to ponder
Then
Whistling through the willows
Shrieking through the trees
The gale returns
To greet the dales


Shiver, shiver, blink, blink
Its time to go
Over the brink
So we bid adieu
To our woody friends
And leave the council of trees.

Kodi chroma

Colours and Kodi are inseparable. A spectrum of green, gorgeous maroons, pulsating pinks, resplendent oranges, alluring violets and the oceanic blue skies. If this 360 degree kaleidoscope were filtered down into the tiniest, delicate form it would be a flower. The kind you could gape at for hours, trying to catch your own distorted reflection in the dew drops, trying to take a deep breath, trying to jump into those petals like a minute bug thirsting for nectar. Ladies and gents may I present the flora of Kodi.

Over the hills and far away

As dawn breaks over the Vattakanal valley, 7 kms away from Kodai, I looked back on a week of spending a lot of time with myself, out of myself, out of my mind, in utero, dying, being born and living. I traversed the waves of the styx and the vagaries of reality. I was nurtured by nature, caressed by the cool cool breeze and driven to the kind of tears only one place has a right to inflict.

I will be back but for now, so long and thanks for all the bread omlettes.


Kodi all this week on Higher Being. Keep it locked.