Áine Keenan
LightNews LightNews
banner
ainekeenan.bsky.social
Áine Keenan
@ainekeenan.bsky.social
9.8K followers 600 following 7.1K posts
An Irish Woman In India
Posts Replies Media Videos
Pinned
ainekeenan.bsky.social
Áine Keenan @ainekeenan.bsky.social · Nov 12
If they see breasts
and long hair coming
they call it woman,
if beard and whiskers
they call it man:
but, look, the Self
that hovers in between
is neither man
nor woman
O Ramanatha

Dasimayya, 11th century

#Ardhanarishwara #TamilNadu #India
Ardhanarishwara Temple, Adiannamalai, Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu
ainekeenan.bsky.social
Before I built a wall
I’d ask to know what I was
walling in or walling out,
and to whom I was like
to give offence ...

He says again, ‘Good fences
make good neighbours.’

Robert Frost, 20th century

#Photography #Poetry #SpeirGorm #ImageAndVerse #ArtOfBlueSky #PhotographersOfBlueSky #EastCoastKin
Two men paint a dividing-wall yellow in accordance with the instructions of a third elevated on a higher level on the other side. The one wearing a white vest and green dhoti uses a roller and yellow paint. The other, dressed in a longsleeved orange shirt and blue-check dhoti, uses a simple brush and is having something pointed out to him from above by the third man who has his sleeves rolled up. [In fact, the painters had hopped over this rooftop wall without the other landlord's permission and were hurrying to complete the task as a fait accompli before there could be any complaints!] Ramana Nagar, Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu, India.
November 25, 2025 at 5:41 AM
ainekeenan.bsky.social
I am neither male nor female,
nor am I sexless.
I am the Peaceful One,
whose form is self-effulgent,
powerful radiance.

Guru Nanak, 16th century

#Photography #Wisdom #Poetry #Mystical #Sikh #SpeirGorm #StreetPhotography #India #ImageAndVerse #ArtOfBlueSky #PhotographersOfBlueSky #EastCoastKin
November 24, 2025 at 6:00 AM
ainekeenan.bsky.social
Look, there it stands,
as if insentient.
When it stilled my mind
and drew me to itself
and I came near,
I saw that it was
absolute stillness,
O Arunachala!

Ramana Maharshi, 20th century

#Photography #Poetry #SpeirGorm #Stunday #ImageAndVerse #ArtOfBlueSky #PhotographersOfBlueSky #EastCoastKin
A pink, 40-seat private bus with a large 'FRIENDS' decal on the upper window sits parked on a clay plot of land with Arunachala looming in the background, separated only by a variety of trees and dense undergrowth. The holy hill forms part of the Eastern Ghats and is 2,268 feet in height. Geologists estimate its age to be 2.6 billion years. The Skanda Purana tells of how Shiva appeared as a column of light to settle a dispute between Brahma and Vishnu about which of them was greater. After this had been resolved, Siva manifested in form for the benefit of humanity as the Arunachala Hill.
November 23, 2025 at 8:54 AM
ainekeenan.bsky.social
In another life
I would make you stay
So I don't have to say
You were the one that got away
The o-o-o-o-o-one
The o-o-o-o-o-one
The one that got away

Katy Perry, 21st century

#Photography #Poetry #SpeirGorm #StreetPhotography #ImageAndVerse #ArtOfBlueSky #PhotographersOfBlueSky #EastCoastKin
A Tibetan Buddhist nun in maroon robes and a white shawl stares into her camera's viewfinder whilst a macaque monkey sneaks by with its tail aloft. Skanda Ashram, Arunachala, Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu, India.
November 22, 2025 at 6:19 AM
ainekeenan.bsky.social
Take me to the river,
drop me in the water
Dip me in the river,
drop me in the water
Washing me down,
washing me down.

Talking Heads, 20th century

#Photography #Wisdom #Poetry #SpeirGorm #StreetPhotography #India #ImageAndVerse #ArtOfBlueSky #PhotographersOfBlueSky #EastCoastKin #Scape #WaterScape
Pali Tirtham (water tank), next to Sri Ramanasramam is used for sacred rites and functions. Also called ‘Manakkula’ (‘marriage’), it attracts newly married couples for blessings. Nearby, a majestic peepul tree (ficus religiosa) with statues of Ganesha and other deities carved in stone underneath it is to be found on the roadside bank with a raised platform around it. Chengam Road, Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu, India.
November 21, 2025 at 5:28 AM
ainekeenan.bsky.social
We dance round in a ring
and suppose,
But the Secret sits
in the middle and knows.

Robert Frost, 20th century

#Photography #Wisdom #Spirituality #Poetry #Prayer #SpeirGorm #StreetPhotography #India #Temple #ImageAndVerse #ArtOfBlueSky #PhotographersOfBlueSky #EastCoastKin
Devotees in vibrant traditional Indian clothing pay obeisance with folded hands before the sacred flame at Arunachaleswar Temple, Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu, India
November 20, 2025 at 3:18 AM
ainekeenan.bsky.social
But if you got to go
It's all right
But if you got to go, go now
Or else you gotta stay all night

Bob Dylan, 20th century

#Photography #Wisdom #Poetry #SpeirGorm #StreetPhotography #India #ImageAndVerse #ArtOfBlueSky #PhotographersOfBlueSky #EastCoastKin
A young Indian boy contemplates as he crouches in sand on his haunches with his back to the camera. He's wearing red shorts and a blue and yellow graphic t-shirt. In the middle distance is an empty white plastic chair. And in the background is a man executing a yoga pose in front of a sign reading 'TOILET' in large red letters against a white background. Sri Ramanasramam, Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu, India. 🥳
November 18, 2025 at 7:46 AM
ainekeenan.bsky.social
Every old man I see
Reminds me of my father
When he had fallen
in love with death
One time when
sheaves were gathered ...

Patrick Kavanagh, 20th century

#Photography #Wisdom #Poetry #SpeirGorm #StreetPhotography #Ireland #India #ImageAndVerse #ArtOfBlueSky #PhotographersOfBlueSky #EastCoastKin
An elderly sadhu (Indian holy man) dressed in shades of orange walks along a roadside continuous white line with the aid of a stick, while rickshaws, scooters and a car whizz by. Chengam Road, Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu, India. 👣 Every old man I see Reminds me of my father When he had fallen in love with death One time when sheaves were gathered. That man I saw in Gardner Street Stumbled on the kerb was one, He stared at me half-eyed, I might have been his son. And I remember the musician Faltering over his fiddle In Bayswater, London, He too set me the riddle. Every old man I see In October-coloured weather Seems to say to me: "I was once your father." 🪷 Patrick Kavanagh is considered one of the foremost Irish poets of the 20th century. His work often centered on rural life, particularly in his native County Monaghan, Ireland. His poetry celebrated the ordinary, finding beauty and meaning in the everyday lives of farmers and rural folk. Kavanagh's writing is characterized by its directness, honesty, and unflinching realism. He rejected the romantic idealism of earlier Irish poets, choosing instead to depict the harsh realities of rural life.
November 17, 2025 at 7:32 AM
ainekeenan.bsky.social
No, you can't always get what you want
You can't always get what you want
You can't always get what you want
But if you try sometime you'll find
You get what you need

Rolling Stones, 20th century

#Photography #SpeirGorm #Stunday #ImageAndVerse #ArtOfBlueSky #PhotographersOfBlueSky #EastCoastKin
Babu's kirana (general) store is a small local retail shop that sells daily household goods like rice, pulses, fresh vegetables, oils, snacks, sugar, bottled water and other food staples, along with toiletries, detergents and various necessities. From an anchor to a needle, this specific one also offers an informal accommodation referral service for local guesthouses. Other kirana shops also sell clothing, stationery, toys and basic medicines. These stores are a key part of local communities, a convenient and essential resource for essential supplies within the neighbourhood itself. Ramana Nagar, Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu, India
November 16, 2025 at 6:00 AM
ainekeenan.bsky.social
Everybody needs good neighbours.
With a little understanding,
You can find the perfect blend.
That's when good neighbours
become good friends.

Barry Crocker, 20th century

#Photography #Poetry #SpeirGorm #StreetPhotography #Caturday #ImageAndVerse #ArtOfBlueSky #PhotographersOfBlueSky #EastCoastKin
A defensive black cat with white markings shares food with a much bigger peacock bearing a vibrant blue neckline. Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu, India.
November 15, 2025 at 4:01 AM
ainekeenan.bsky.social
Ya douse an souse
Ya rub and scrub
Ya sputter and splash
all over the tub
You may be cold and wet
when you're done
But ya gotta admit
it's good clean fun

Snow White, 20th century

#Photography #Poetry #SpeirGorm #StreetPhotography #ImageAndVerse #ArtOfBlueSky #PhotographersOfBlueSky #EastCoastKin
Two veshti-clad trainee brahmin priests look on as a third beats a cloth on the steps to clean it after soaking it in an orange plastic bucket. Sri Ramanasramam, Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu, India.
November 14, 2025 at 6:06 AM
ainekeenan.bsky.social
England's not the mythical land
of Madame George and roses
It's the home of police who
kill blacks boys on mopeds ...

Sinéad O'Connor, 21st century

#Photography #Poetry #SpeirGorm #UrbanGaze #ArtChallenges #StreetPhotography #India #ImageAndVerse #ArtOfBlueSky #PhotographersOfBlueSky #EastCoastKin
At a busy crossing point, a passenger on the back of a well-lit motorcycle waves in good humour. Of the three motorcycles in view, nobody is wearing a helmet. Behind them, street traders sell peanuts, coconut juice and vegetables to the passing trade. Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu, India.
November 13, 2025 at 9:02 AM
ainekeenan.bsky.social
Magnified, sanctified
Be the holy name
Vilified, crucified
In the human frame
A million candles burning
For the help that never came
You want it darker

Leonard Cohen, 20th century

#Photography #Poetry #SpeirGorm #StreetPhotography #ImageAndVerse #ArtOfBlueSky #PhotographersOfBlueSky #EastCoastKin
An elaborate 50-foot image of the seated Hindu Goddess Amman brightly lit with multi-coloured LED lights is propped up by the roadside on bamboo sticks and metal wires as part of festival celebrations. She holds a trident (trisula) in one hand and a small hand drum (damaru) in the other. A third hand is empty and raised in a gesture (mudra) to allay fear and offer protection to her devotees, whilst a fourth holds a sword to overcome negativity and fight against evil forces. Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu, India.
November 12, 2025 at 11:23 AM
ainekeenan.bsky.social
Truly I tell you, he said,
unless you turn and
become like little children,
you will never enter
the kingdom of heaven.

Matthew, 1st century

#Photography #Wisdom #Poetry #SpeirGorm #StreetPhotography #Children #Wedding #Nepal #ImageAndVerse #ArtOfBlueSky #PhotographersOfBlueSky #EastCoastKin
A short-haired child in a knee-length red floral dress, white stockings and multicoloured shoes gazes innocently between two women in red-patterned silk saris at a wedding in Kathmandu, Nepal.
November 11, 2025 at 6:51 AM
ainekeenan.bsky.social
To die, to sleep;
To sleep: perchance to dream:
ay, there's the rub;
For in that sleep of death
what dreams may come
when we have shuffled
off this mortal coil,
must give us pause.

Shakespeare, 16th century

#Photography #Poetry #SpeirGorm #ImageAndVerse #PhotographersOfBlueSky #EastCoastKin
Sadhu with matted locks and wearing an orange dhoti lies on a black and purple checked towel on a pavement. His head is on a pillow and a saffron cloth covers his bicycle behind. Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu, India.
November 10, 2025 at 4:11 AM
ainekeenan.bsky.social
Death, be not proud,
though some have called thee
mighty and dreadful,
for thou art not so;
for those whom thou think'st
thou overthrow die not,
poor Death ...

John Donne, 17th century

#Photography #Poetry #SpeirGorm #India #ImageAndVerse #ArtOfBlueSky #PhotographersOfBlueSky #EastCoastKin
A man dressed completely in saffron clothing to symbolise his renunciation, detachment from worldly pleasures, and a life of penance and spirituality, walks past a spotlit hand-painted board with an account of the death experience as described by Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi. When SRI RAMANA MAHARSHI realized the Self he was a lad of sixteen, still at school. He took a single step and reached the goal. MAHARSHI himself described how this happened It was about six weeks before I left Madurai for good that the great change in my life took place. It was quite sudden. I was sitting alone in a room on the first floor of my uncle's house. I seldom had any sickness, and on that day there was nothing wrong with my health, but a sudden violent fear of death overtook me. There was nothing in my state of health to account for it and I did not try to account for it or to find out whether there was any reason for the fear. I just felt 'I am going to die' and began thinking what to do about it. It did not occur to me to consult a doctor or my elders or friends: I felt that I had to solve the problem myself. there and then. The shock of the fear of death drove my mind Inwards and I said to myself mentally, without actually framing the words: 'Now death has come: what does it mean? What is it that is dying? This body dies: And I. at once dramatized the occurrence of death. I lay with my limbs stretched out stiff as though rigor mortis had set in and imitated a corpse so as to give greater reality to the enquiry. I held my breath and kept my lips tightly closed, so that no sound could escape so that neither the word 'I' nor any other word could be uttered. "Well then," I said to myself, "this body dead. It will be carried stiff to the burning ground and there burnt and reduced to ashes. But with the death of this body am I dead? Is the body 'I'? It is silent and inert but I feel the full force of my personality and even the voice of the I' within me apart from it. So I am spir…
November 8, 2025 at 7:05 AM
ainekeenan.bsky.social
Sometimes I feel like
a motherless child
Sometimes I feel like
a motherless child
Sometimes I feel like
a motherless child
Long way from my home

Van Morrison, 20th century

#Photography #Poetry #SpeirGorm #StreetPhotography #India #ImageAndVerse #ArtOfBlueSky #PhotographersOfBlueSky #EastCoastKin
A young Indian girl, eyes downcast, wearing a school uniform and carrying a rucksack on her back and a tote bag in her right hand walks alone along a road under construction, an earthmover and gravel and clay piles clearly visible behind her. Around her are men weaving through the rubble on cycles. There is a row of three storey buildings in the background. A sign in mostly Tamil script is hand-painted on a nearby wall, with a cellphone number and 'Welcome To Girivalam' text in English. The lyrics are from a traditional spiritual which dates back to the era of slavery in the United States, and the original score of "Motherless Child" was by William E. Barton, D.D., 1899. An early performance of the song was in the 1870s by the Fisk Jubilee Singers, and Van Morrison recorded a version for his 1987 album 'Poetic Champions Compose'. Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu, India.
November 7, 2025 at 4:44 AM
ainekeenan.bsky.social
You’ve got to sing like
you don’t need the money
Love like you’ll never get hurt
You’ve got to dance like
nobody’s watchin’
It’s gotta come from the heart

Susanna Clarke, 20th century

#Photography #Wisdom #Poetry #SpeirGorm #India #ImageAndVerse #ArtOfBlueSky #PhotographersOfBlueSky #EastCoastKin
A scarecrow with arms and legs spread out stands in a paddy field protecting the growing rice from birds. Behind, five coconut trees sway in the gentle breeze. Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu, India.
November 5, 2025 at 5:28 AM
ainekeenan.bsky.social
And the band plays Waltzing Matilda
And the men still answer the call
But year after year
their numbers get fewer
Some day no one will march there at all

The Dubliners, 20th century

#Photography #Wisdom #Poetry #SpeirGorm #India #ImageAndVerse #ArtOfBlueSky #PhotographersOfBlueSky #EastCoastKin
A group of more than a dozen bare-chested, dark-skinned, barefoot and orange dhoti-clad men walk the 14 km along the pilgrim route around the holy hill of Arunachala, Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu, India, a ritual practice known as girivalam or giripradakshina.
November 4, 2025 at 6:56 AM
ainekeenan.bsky.social
House-builder, you are seen,
you will not build a house again.
All the rafters are broken,
the ridgepole destroyed.
The mind, gone to the Unconstructed,
has reached the end of craving.

Buddha, 5th century BCE

#Photography #Poetry #SpeirGorm #ImageAndVerse #PhotographersOfBlueSky #EastCoastKin
Against the backdrop of a blue sky at dawn, a seated Buddha statue with a row of circular pillars on either side. Had ached to experience Wat Mahathat (Temple Of The Great Relic), Sukhothai without hordes of other tourists. So as dawn broke, an unlocked side entrance allowed the stillness, inwardness and poise of this sublime Buddha steal my breath away. Thank you, Thailand.
November 3, 2025 at 5:22 AM
ainekeenan.bsky.social
Oh ...
You better watch out,
You better not cry
You better not pout,
I'm telling you why...
Santa Claus is coming to town!

Bruce Springsteen, 20th century

#Photography #Wisdom #Poetry #SpeirGorm #Christmas #StreetPhotography #India #ImageAndVerse #ArtOfBlueSky #PhotographersOfBlueSky #EastCoastKin
Rear of an Indian private bus with an image of a child wearing a Santa hat. Christmas in India is always a little surreal. Outside of the tiny Christian population, there's little to tell it is actually happening - no carols, no ornament-laden trees, no manic advertising. But when you least expect it, something like this appears!!!
November 2, 2025 at 6:53 AM
ainekeenan.bsky.social
𝗜𝗻𝗱𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗵!
𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴
𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲
𝗔𝗹𝗹 𝗔𝘁 𝗢𝗻𝗰𝗲 ...

#Photography #Wisdom #Poetry #MysticPoetry #SpeirGorm #India #StreetPhotography #ImageAndVerse #ArtOfBlueSky #PhotographersOfBlueSky #EastCoastKin
Large Highways Department roadside traffic sign with icons of four different visual instructions and the accompanying text 'Follow Traffic Signs'. Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu, India.
November 1, 2025 at 10:01 AM
ainekeenan.bsky.social
And at last I see the light
And it's like the fog has lifted
And at last I see the light
And it's like the sky is new
All at once everything looks different
Now that I see You

Tangled, 21st century

#Photography #Poetry #SpeirGorm #ImageAndVerse #ArtOfBlueSky #PhotographersOfBlueSky #EastCoastKin
Holding a sparkler at Halloween. Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu, India.
October 31, 2025 at 6:06 AM
ainekeenan.bsky.social
Suppose you cut
a tall bamboo in two;
make one half a woman,
the other a man;
rub them together
till they kindle:
tell me now,
the fire that's born,
is it male or female,
O Ramanatha?

Dasimayya, 11th century

#Photography #Poetry #Mystic #SpeirGorm #ImageAndVerse #ArtOfBlueSky #India #EastCoastKin
Statue of Ardhanarishwara, the Hindu deity representing the synthesis of masculine and feminine energies of creation illustrating how Shakti, the female principle, is inseparable from Shiva, the male principle, and vice versa. This particular piece was hand-carved recently in Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu, India under the tutelage of a Christian master sculptor. Personal collection.
October 30, 2025 at 7:03 AM
ainekeenan.bsky.social
Oh, who are the people in your neighborhood?
In your neighborhood.
Say, who are the people in your neighborhood?
The people that you meet each day.

Sesame Street, 20th century

#Photography #Poetry #SpeirGorm #StreetPhotography #ImageAndVerse #ArtOfBlueSky #PhotographersOfBlueSky #EastCoastKin
Sari-clad woman holding with her left hand a metal container of fruit for sale on her head as she walks along a street beside an ochre-wearing sadhu with silver-grey matted locks and a beard cycling a bicycle with his possessions in the front basket. Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu, India.
October 29, 2025 at 5:37 AM