Durga

Fear not, daughter,
for I have armed you.
I have given you beauty:
Wear it as a shield
to deflect their attacks.
Your eyes are daggers:
Use them to pierce the armor
of your enemies and see
what weaknesses lie beneath.
Your lips are a bow, your tongue an arrow
that will strike with truth.
Your hips are a trap,
the perfumed flower of your sex
the bait that will lure in and confine.
With the sword of your mind
you will slay them.

Take up your arms
and go out into the world,
confident in the strength
of your womanhood.
Demons will fall
in the face of your wrath
and lie humbled at your feet.
Mountains will kneel
before you, and men
will sway with your power.

Fear not, for when you speak,
all will hear you roar.

© Elle Lassiter, 2004