A Haibun:

Haibun, is also a Japanese literary genre in which a prose narrative is combined with Haikus. It is usually an account of a travel or some event. We were taken for a day expedition to Golkonda fort and then asked to write a Haibun about the trip. Here is that Haibun:

Haibun- Trip to Golkonda

It is 9:30. Almost all are here. We are waiting for some people. I am thinking of booking my return tickets. The very thought of climbing three-hundred steps of the Golkonda Fort makes me tired already. My inherent laziness makes me feel tired before I start. At the foot of the fort, we by ourselves hats to protect us from the unusually hot sun.

A poor young mother
Begging in vain for her child
Shaming affluence

The entrance of the fort is very huge. It has a big gate where they check tickets. Carved at the top of the gate are the frescoes of a lion and lioness. But they look very similar to each other and it is not easy to differentiate between them. As we enter the fort, we see fortifications and elephantine rocks lost in unknown antiquity. The fort is well maintained and clean. There are mending works going on, but on an ancient structure, the modern mending work looks-

Like an old woman
Her face shining with makeup
Clad in modern clothes

We roam around and explore further. There are dark stony chambers and remnants of the medieval luxury that was once enjoyed by the Qutub Shah and his descendants.

Pains to see lovers
Carving their names on fort walls
Signs of vanity

As I reflect among these quite monuments, I see before my mind’s eye, the visit of the Great Maratha King Shivaji to this fort sometime around 1675. He came all the way from Maharashtra to pay a friendly visit to Qutub Shah. What a sight it must have been when the two generous kings met amid all the glory! Pages of my class IV history book flash in my mind.

I reflect how Aurangzeb, the famous Mughal emperor, stood his ground fearlessly facing the batteries of Qutub Shah during the siege of the fort by the Mughal Army.

Tourists keep coming
Twitter of the school children
Breaks dripping silence

I am reluctant to go upstairs feeling quite comfortable in the cool shadows of the walls, but I finally collect myself to follow the rest of my friends on the way up. It turns out to be a cumbersome, but rewarding job. We have a nice photo shoot together among the rocky elephants carrying the whole structure on their back. From the ramparts of fort, we can see the city spread in the form of a concrete jungle. The golf course yonder looks like an Oasis in that barren concrete jungle.

Will never forget
Exquisite moments like these
Forever Cherished

Children coming out from the dark alleys among the walls look like rabbits coming out of a hole. The cooing of the doves keeps breaking the occasional silence that resounds among the stones. We feel famished and rush to the canteen to replenish ourselves with snacks and beverages.

Children play around
Demanding toffees, ice-cream
Parents’ refusal

Finally, it is time to depart. Once again, my eyelids become heavy. Sleep catches up and putting my pen away, I finally give in.