Scars of Faith

Prologue
"I was taught that God listens to every whisper. So I have learned to whisper her name only to Him.

Siyaara.
I say it when azaan ends and the silence feels heavier than prayers.

I memorised every boundary that were told to maintain. I memorised the way her bangles sound whenever she walks.

One was for my Imaan.
The other was for the nights I can't take back.

What does it costs
to love a girl,
whose name I hide
everytime I raise my hands to pray? " - Rahil.

"Everytime I stand in front of Shivlinga, all the places I broke myself trying to be loved are filled in my eyes full of tears.

I was taught that Gods live in stone and flame.
No one taught me what to do when a boy named for mercy started feeling like my prayer.

RAHIL
Five letters. One sin my mother would call it "ninda".

I know every verse from Gita about detachment.
I know exact pitch of his voice when he says "Bismillah" before crossing the street away from me.
One was for my Moksha.
The other was for the nights I cannot confess to my Mandir.

There is a temple where I stand lighting diyas for the Gods I suppose to trust.
There is a Masjid where he bows to God whom I'm not allowed to name.
Between them lies a road lined with "what will people say?"

They named me Siyaara-the star, pure.
And he, Rahil- the traveller.
You were meant for travelling Rahil.
Why did you stop at me?" - Siyaara.

Between azaan and aarti, between halal and forbidden ,
their love grew like a blue orchid -
beautiful, wrong and impossible to break.

These are the Scars of Faith .