Would you become a pilgrim on the road to love?
Rumi
I am history –
thousands of years old.
I am not a ghost or a shadow but a reality --
emerged from the chrysalis of Zhag Qian’s expedition.
The Han Dynasty in China nurtured and gave me my identity.
Ferdinand Van Richtofen named me the Silk Road.
Marco Polo made me famous through his journal.
I became a romantic epic of many writers and poets.
I am a traveler –
crossed mountains and valleys in my perilous journey.
Paul Solopek, in tracing the path of our ancient ancestors
from Ethiopia to Patagonia called my trails pernicious –
he quoted, “To walk this wilderness, carry a shovel.”
I am a legend –
It was I who first connected the world globally.
Silk, porcelain, spices, and precious jewels
traveled from the East to the West.
The silk and jewels adorned the royalties in Europe.
In exchange, I brought to the East horses and goods.
I am an advocate –
I connected the world
through religion, education, language, and cultural ideas.
Greek, Roman, European, and Indian philosophies traveled,
conjugating humanity into a new wholesome culture.
Colonies of multicultural origin emerged on my trails.
Cuisines of all varieties found homes in different cultures.
Let me be a peacemaker!
Let the old Silk Road be a uniting factor,
Let me embrace the world with love.
Let me follow Jimi Hendrix’s words:
When the power of love overcomes the love of power
the world will know peace.
The Old Silk Road, thousands of miles long,
connecting Asia, the Middle East, Europe, and Africa,
remains an epic, a legend, and an unforgettable eternal story!
I am the Old Silk Road!
BIO:
Dr. Meenakshi Mohan is a scholar, art critic, children’s writer, painter, and poet. She has published worldwide, both in academic and creative areas. She is on the Editorial Team for Inquiry in Education, a peer-reviewed journal published by National Louis University, Chicago, Illinois. She received Panoramic International Award for Literature and the Setu Bilingual Journal’s Award of Excellence in Art and Literature.