Poetry: Filthy Woman During Ramadan by Noor Hindi
Noor Hindi reminds us of some of the best things of today’s poetry: deep, contemporary faith insights wrapped in the heat of luminous body, with all its parts magnified and hyperbolic. Notice how the subtle rhythms and meter set by the couplets & the casual punctuation perform so well—how “Filthy Woman During Ramadan” makes itself an intimate whisper and confession for us, the readers.
FILTHY WOMAN DURING RAMADAN
My grandmother pulls roses from her ears
and her lips are as plump as a fig as she whispers
Koranic verse. I swear that all the grace in the world
hangs from her knees. I watch her
from the bathroom, ankles deep in muddy water
as I awkwardly attempt wudu. I hide my vibrator
under my tongue and it swells each time I touch
the Koran. This Ramadan, I am too thirsty
to fast. I listen to the loud boom of the athan
five times a day. This reminds me of how much
shame I inherited. I do not belong in mosques.
I belong with women who write letters to secret
men with their earwax, with women who crumble
at the sight of man.
Noor Hindi
Noor Hindi is currently pursuing her MFA in poetry through the NEOMFA. Her poems have appeared or are forthcoming in Jet Fuel Review, Diode Poetry, Whiskey Island Magazine, Flock Literary Journal, and Foundry. Hindi is also a poetry reader for BOAAT Journal. She writes for The Devil Strip Magazine. Check out her poetry blog at nervouspoodlepoetry.com.
