Muriel A.E. Brown
Chenar Leaves: Poems of Kashmir (1921)
Mrs. Percy Brown
Published by Longmans,Green and Co (London) in 1921.
On the road to Kashmir
Himalaya’s noble tree, great deodar!
Towering aloft in thy majestic grace
On mighty rocks, whose clefts give narrow space
For thy strong roots – proud spread thy branches far,
Thy name means “Powerful” for no worm can mar.
Thy heart’s sound strength: in Hindu cult we trace
True services for thee, while its priests will place
Lamps on thy boughs which for God’s worship are.
Ye “Trees of God” in honour of His name
Oft planted by these mountains temples nigh
Now left gray ruins, and unknown to fame
Where echoes faint of prayers on night-winds sigh
Combining with your incense – deodars!
Ye point in solemn vigil to the stars.