Tiger - A Poem

Black stripes on fur white orange & yellow
The mighty tiger is a gentle fellow
When all white he is a spectacle
A rare gene that is a miracle

Lives in the mysterious jungles of India
Completely hidden amid unexplored recess
Where the dense canopy accords no access
Invisible elusive & well concealed
He is forever evasive and on his heels

In ancient myths that unfold
A thousand stories are told
Of the Lord a ghostly marauder
Of the king a bloodthirsty exterminator

In belief a mystical kind
A jungle spirit hard to find
One that fears none at all
All the creatures big and small

He stalks invisibly in the night
Nary a sound nary a sight
He kills with impunity without a fight
In one strike powered by the beastly might

A snarl and deafening roars
A lightening charge always in store
All core of many a jungle lore
He kills not for fun but for need
On wild animals does he feed

A dreadful fear the beast invokes
Among those who dare to provoke
When he learns the taste of man
He is no more a gentlemen

He kills mercilessly near and far
In the day he strikes afar
Even in the night devoid of stars
Terror strikes with ferocious rage
Till he is shot or put in the cage

Of enormous proportions the beast
Of impressive agility & speed
An epitome of power and stealth
He is coveted by those with wealth
For fur claws and bones
They leave unturned no stones
A magical mystical beast indeed
He is frightening none the least

For hunters he is a trophy
For poachers he is a bounty
From hundred thousand to handful
The vanishing tiger is in a status dreadful
Critically endangered and fast loosing ground
The destiny awaits its final round

Save the tiger do not let him perish
From face of the Earth lest he vanish

Uday Patel

Photo Credits Teerath Singh