A giant slab from a stonehenge
In that cranium
An echinoderm replaces the heart
(Preferably a seastar)
A dead horse's tail in the mouth
Few insects in the larynx
(For days I need voice)
Sands in the sockets
(It is forbidden to unscrew the eyes)
Angular stump when right leg’s gone
An unplumbed hole in the navel
(For winds to sink in)
Crab claws for the scapula
(If I turn to my crutch or
to their gullets to kill)
My adhesive scalp holds last winter’s
dislocated autumn leaves
Instead of ears I have plonked
gawping beaks of different birds
For the spine an old baobab
(There is no thirst
There is no blood
Inside me
All waters from a drying stream)
Dr Asijit Datta is currently working as Assistant Professor in the School of Languages at Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology, Bhubaneswar. Until very recently he was serving as Assistant Professor and Head of English at The Heritage College, under Calcutta University. In July 2021, he was selected as Assistant Editor at the Journal of Posthumanism (Transnational Press, London). He has previously taught at Presidency University, Vidyasagar University, Ramakrishna Mission, Narendrapur, and Bethune College. He completed his M.A. in English from Presidency College in 2009 and received his Ph.D. from the Dept. of Film Studies, Jadavpur University in 2017. His academic interests pertain to Posthumanism, Beckett Studies, Modern European Theatre, World Cinema, and Psychoanalysis. He has also published several academic papers on Beckett Studies, Disability Studies, Posthumanism, and Film criticism in reputed books and national and international journals. For the last two years, his evolving project has been building up an independent academic channel on YouTube for students, academicians and teachers. He has received critical acclaim and multiple awards for stage direction and scriptwriting.