Dua for the Weary by Qurat Dar

My god says, turn everything into an altar
The toilet bowl, the stranger’s knees,
says, there is no indignity in worship.
Says, a prayer is still a prayer even
if it only finds your lips while you
are seized in pain, or need, or
quiet desperation, says,
make a mosque of this body,
a prayer is still a prayer
even if it only echoes in your limbs
rather than over rooftops.

My god says, I want for nothing,
save your pretenses for each other.
A prayer is still a prayer if it holds no
reverence. If it is screamed, or begged,
or sobbed, says you don’t have to want
salvation. You can make a cathedral of
the bus stop, the waiting room, your cell phone,
a prayer is still a prayer if it is to
a forgotten god or
a dying god or
to no god at all.

My god says, I know you are a burial ground,
I carved your mouth into an empty grave,
but a prayer is still a prayer even
if it is silent.

My god says, swallow forgiveness like a river,
show yourself the mercy of an oasis,
whisper lovenotes into your palms,
and make wudu.

Listen to a poetry minifilm of “Dua for the Weary” made by Qurat Dar.

This poem was featured in Issue 08 of Canthius.

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Qurat Dar was the City of Mississauga’s third Youth Poet Laureate (2021-2023) and the 2020 Canadian Individual Poetry Slam National Champion. Her work has appeared in Augur Magazine, the Art Gallery of Mississauga, and in virtual reality, among other places.