You body a map, a
spaceship. You body geologic
database. Every catalogue
a body, every body
a category. Everything in you perfect-
ly untouched. How little you knew your vessel, the only one given
this orbital life. Sacrilege, blasphemy to ignore self so—you
tender rib, you flinchless eye, release
of cheekbone meridian on exo-
planet lost without ever touching. But grateful
spaceship. You body geologic
database. Every catalogue
a body, every body
a category. Everything in you perfect-
ly untouched. How little you knew your vessel, the only one given
this orbital life. Sacrilege, blasphemy to ignore self so—you
tender rib, you flinchless eye, release
of cheekbone meridian on exo-
planet lost without ever touching. But grateful
yet, so grateful
to star-burst knee carrying soul
to mountain fulfillment, to frozen
vertebrae of neck that held still through shock
of car wreck, of exactly two feet even on days they were
heavy as the collapse of a supernova. Each day you rended beast
to feed your beast—tore symphonies
of ligament and muscle, bone and cartilage and alveoli
whose arrangement you could only destroy, un-
constellated stars that never re-
to star-burst knee carrying soul
to mountain fulfillment, to frozen
vertebrae of neck that held still through shock
of car wreck, of exactly two feet even on days they were
heavy as the collapse of a supernova. Each day you rended beast
to feed your beast—tore symphonies
of ligament and muscle, bone and cartilage and alveoli
whose arrangement you could only destroy, un-
constellated stars that never re-
assembled. All this you
bodied—you endangered god watching
the cyborgs arrive. And now your dreams
change too, hands obsoleted and finite, or legs too binary,
or eyes too blind to extincted earth-
creatures reflecting back bewilderment
in the lapis of their eye-
shine. Feel this tapestry, this silicon
extrusion. Vision the psychotic continuum
you slide into, knowing this
bodied—you endangered god watching
the cyborgs arrive. And now your dreams
change too, hands obsoleted and finite, or legs too binary,
or eyes too blind to extincted earth-
creatures reflecting back bewilderment
in the lapis of their eye-
shine. Feel this tapestry, this silicon
extrusion. Vision the psychotic continuum
you slide into, knowing this
is the required process. To perfect one must break.
The cyborgs gave you all this— night-visions,
synthetic blood,
platelets feeling
earthquakes, memories
The cyborgs gave you all this— night-visions,
synthetic blood,
platelets feeling
earthquakes, memories
of family never
had, knees of alloyed
allegiance, super-
sucker capillaries, carbon-
blades for feet. Oh
had, knees of alloyed
allegiance, super-
sucker capillaries, carbon-
blades for feet. Oh
silicon joints, oh
voice of demon
fallen through
hurricane’s eye. Each
tsunami, each eruption, bodies
voice of demon
fallen through
hurricane’s eye. Each
tsunami, each eruption, bodies
your machine. But gravity pulls only one
way. You want to be grateful
but that’s not what’s required. Perfection
is all you will feel. No-
thing but perfected self, devoid
of embodiment. You’ve met
all the requirements. Oh perfect, perfect
void. Oh phantom limb
that somehow still aches.
way. You want to be grateful
but that’s not what’s required. Perfection
is all you will feel. No-
thing but perfected self, devoid
of embodiment. You’ve met
all the requirements. Oh perfect, perfect
void. Oh phantom limb
that somehow still aches.
© 2025 Shankar Narayan
