Hymns of the Desert: By Aswathy K Babu

By Aswathy K. Babu

I have a Pharaoh’s heart,
and you are my
Egyptian beauty, darling.
Your tresses flow like the Nile –
wild and fierce,
Collapsing on the shores of my heart.
Your ancient eyes, like molten stars,
Harbor the mysteries of this life,
Cradled in the whispers of the desert.

My frozen heart,
Buried beneath this tomb,
Yearns for your lips –
The sweet allure of your temples,
The tremble in your veins,
Sacredness caressing your feet.
And time will be commanded to bend
For the fire of my longing,
Just to hold you against my ribs,
To awaken into life.

The heavens trembled at my pleas,
And God dashed mercy upon me.
So I may embrace my love once again,
Time collapses to make amends.
The pyramids defied their vows,
And the sand dunes reverberate with our promises.
The desert turns herself into a bride,
And our smiles echo forever,
Mingled with the air that made this tale immemorial –
For the voyagers who walked through the desert,
For the people who were curious enough to listen to the winds.

Review: A Timeless Hymn of Love and Longing

Aswathy K. Babu’s Hymns of the Desert is a poem that marries sensual intimacy with mythic grandeur. Rooted in the imagery of ancient Egypt, it transforms love into something eternal, stretching across deserts and pyramids, and echoing in the winds of time.

From the very beginning, the speaker claims “a Pharaoh’s heart” and addresses the beloved as an “Egyptian beauty,” instantly elevating the relationship beyond the personal into the realm of legend. The beloved’s hair becomes the Nile, her eyes “molten stars,” while the desert itself turns into a bride—a striking fusion of passion and spirituality.

The poem’s strength lies in its hymn-like quality: every image feels sacred, every metaphor reverberates with devotion. There is a seamless interplay between desire and divinity—where lips, temples, and veins are as holy as pyramids and stars. The closing lines widen the frame, suggesting that this love story is not just private but universal, carried in whispers for “voyagers” and “the people who were curious enough to listen to the winds.”

Hymns of the Desert is more than a love poem. It is an ode that positions longing as a force capable of bending time, defying death, and immortalizing human passion. Reading it feels like listening to a timeless chant, carried endlessly across the sands.