O Lord of miracles!
I saw a curl of entranced smoke
A marvel of Kings
A wonder of wisdom
An engine with bizarre screech and whistles
From all its parts
Emanated smoke and sparks
On its ironed track
It came gliding like dark monsoon clouds
And leapt ahead like a bevy of soldiers
And breezed past like a bird flapping its wings
On its ironed trail
It moved swiftly ahead
Like a dark-bosomed woman
Like showering clouds
It came sailing from far afield
With both hands
For my faceI built a shield
As I touched it with my hand
To an abrupt halt came the train!
This is the English version of a poem written by Mast Taukali, a 19th century Balochi poet. He is said to have written the following after first encountering a locomotive engine somewhere in the subcontinent
Published in Daily Times, December 4th 2017.