“Why Hast Thou Made Me Eve?”, she catechized God…An Ekphrastic poem written on Hieronymus Bosch‘s triptych painting, ‘The Garden of Earthly Delights’!
Netherlandish artist, Hieronymus Bosch, created his magnum opus, a commissioned work, between 1490 and 1510. This untitled, unsigned triptych oil painting was done over an oak panel during his 40 to 60 years of age. It was, later, titled as “The Garden of Earthly Delights” and is housed in the Museo del Prado in Madrid since 1939.
Deciphering this elaborate work of art with such intricate details is nearly impossible for me as I fear I wouldn’t be able to do justice with it. So, I have embedded this YouTube video, below and request my readers to watch it before reading my Ekphrastic poem describing The Garden of Earthly Delights.
Since an Ekphrastic poem is considered to be a vivid description of a work of art, I began from the first panel where God is gifting Eve to Adam…and the rest, the hell followed…My Eve is catechizing God for why she, alone, was condemned for the demolition of the Garden of Eden !
*
Why hast Thou Made Me Eve?
Thou held my hands and handed over to Thine
“Did I do any wrong?”, I screamed,
I just wished to eat a fruit
Glossy, shiny ‘Epli’, as red as the lips of mine
But I didn’t tell a soul
Why Thee made me the Predator’s Prey
To be lacerated, denuded and besmirched ?
I stood aghast,
Endured a million incisions on my skin
Each of the cut littered a million critters
Golden Manes, Ravenous, Rapid Goers, Early walkers
Some thorny, some having long tails,
Longer than Thy hands, which sired
those Leviathans, Mammoths, Behemoths…
On my blood and flesh they fed
Because, Thou said.
Thou rode the Unicorn, held my leash
“O God, it hurts”, I cried…
Ah! Did I eat it alone?
Why is he Thy favourite child ?
Why is he bestowed with
‘The Garden of Earthly Delights’?
While, I was made to unfurl in thy abyss,
My hellish domicile.
My soul was passed through a million sieves
Just because I was Eve ?
Why was I always tested ?
Just because thy red shiny Apple I tasted ?
The Paradise Thine,
Thy world was labelled as his shrine
Why is this hell only mine?
He still keeps on loitering before
Thy Elysian pods,
But I, the Eve, acquiesced in because,
Thou art God !
Glossary:
*Epli : Apple in Latin
*Golden Manes, *Ravenous, *Rapid Goers, *Early walkers, *Leviathans, *Mammoths, *Behemoths … Monstrous creatures mostly described in Biblical literature and intricately painted by Bosch in the second and third panels of “The Garden of Earthly Delights”.
Discover more from The Style Symphony
Subscribe to get the latest posts to your email.
Dearest Sangeeta ji, I deeply honor the artist within you for birthing this outstanding piece of poetry! 🙂 Thank you for enlightening your admirers about the ancient artwork! I personally feel that it’s not only the story of Eve but all those women who are living an unfortunate life of unending anguish! Blessings and love to all such tormented souls!
I never knew about the punishment that Eve underwent for her human desires, this poem really brings about the pathos of being Eve !
She was cursed to bear children and endure the labor pain….a boon and a curse we can say. However, the paradise was lost. Both, Adam and Eve were expelled from the Garden of Eden and she was condemned for the same…
Glad you liked the poem. Thank you so much! <3