I’m a Hindu,
I rose from the land of the seven rivers and more, 
Don’t give me the name of religion 
and stifle me. 
I flow unrestraint, 
I can’t be bound within a frame. 

My gods are diverse 
Just as nature is diverse 
I pray to life in its myriad forms 
The rivers, the caves, the trees, 
The earth, the ash, the fire, the wind, 
I bow down to the snakes, I worship the crops,
I meditate into ether.
The sound of conch shells at ceremonies,
The fragrance of sandalwood smeared on my Ajna, my the third eye, 
Permeates through my house,
I adorn my crown with lotus of thousand petals,
With folded hands I pay my reverence to the sun, moon and stars,
My festivals celebrate all that I see
The seasons, seas and mountains are sacred to me.  
I rejoice in the entwined energy of the masculine and feminine, 
Shiva’s dance 
Durga’s courage 
I greet with a ‘Namaste’ - 
And embrace the divine in you and me. 

The creator, the preserver, the destroyer,
Is the cycle of life itself
And in my language, 
I call it Brahma, Vishnu and Maheshwara 
Don’t label me as organised
I evolve
I change 
I’m not neat 
For the sound of the Aum is even in the chaos 
In the dualities 
In the micro and macro 
In life, death and beyond. 

I’m a Hindu
I’m a survivor 
Whose ancient temples and Vedic verses,
Survived the wrath of hammers and alms in kind
The body can be slayed, morphed, seduced or shamed, 
But the spirit of my land remains untouched, 
It travels with pride through the genes
I sailed through time, through generations 
I cannot be initiated into,
I cannot be expelled out of,
I’m made of this soil 
See it in the colour of my skin,
Its rivers run in my veins,
Its earth I touch with my hands, 
Its sounds reside in my soul, 
Its language gives me a voice,
Its dance I rise to,
Its music I dive into, 
The vibrant earthy hues 
Paints my dreams
I’m known to be eternal
I am expansive
Don’t slam narrow religion on me. 

I’m a Hindu 
Born out of the land of the yogis and mystics 
Where yoga, Ayurveda and mediation 
Are not ‘alternate’ but practices core, 
Where science is no different to spirituality
Where there are no codes to follow 
But Dharma is unique to each individual 
Where breath takes me inwards 
To meet the seven chakras of energy- 
The rainbow which resides in me. 

I’m a Hindu 
Of the land of Bharat 
Where ‘shoonya’- the zero, emerged 
My traditions, fabrics, food,
stories and philosophies evolved from its elements,
Don’t box me into a religion. 
It never was 
It never will be. 

I am fearless
I bow down in your places of worship
Just as I welcome you to mine
I see God in my guests 
Nothing threatens me,
Nothing makes me small,
I’m safe within me 
So I change with times 
I question rules that don’t serve me,
I don’t raise swords to assert my worth, 
But won’t stop to defend when attacked 
The courage of Durga,
The fire of Kali, 
The love of Krishna, 
Are energies which make me 
I’m secure in my fluid identity
No codes to dim my light 
Rather, like a princess I adorn myself to my heart’s delight
I embrace you, I embrace all
I’m a natural heritage,
Unique and native to my land 
Preserve me, 
I’m not a threat, 
See the beauty of variance in me. 

I’m a Hindu 
You can find me in the soft delicate 
 folds of a saree,
In the crimson of a sindoor,
In the jingles of bangles and anklets, 
I’m seeped in the aroma of the jasmine,
In the glow of incense sticks and oil lamps, 
In the petals of the lotus, 
In the cascade of the monsoon, 
In the wet fields of paddy,
In the taste of dal, roti, ghee and kheer 
In the vessels of clay, copper and silver 
In the jingle of the Ghungroo to the beats of the tabla,
Interlaced in the strings of the sitar, 
In the melody of the ragas and taals of Dhrupad,
In the erotic sculptures on temple walls,
In the sticky clay idol sculpted from the riverbed. 

You will hear me in the ripples of Ganga, 
Feel my obeisance in the frozen white of the Himalayas,
My defiance in the scorching sands of Kutch,
My roar in the waves of the Indian Ocean,
My echo from the Dakshin ghats, 
My breath in the lush North East, 
Don’t see me as your version 
Don’t trick me into using your words 
I’m not a pagan,
I’m broader than the ‘-isms’ 
I’m above the right and left, 
Raw and barefoot is my stance 
On the throbbing earth 
I’m not a religion
I’m a Hindu 
I’m a culture, 
Let me be.