What does your name mean?

A question trending not long ago.

I googled it;
"A constellation/Nakshatra," it told.

My Marathi teacher once revealed,
It means lightning in Sanskrit,
A truth I've always felt.

Everything I’m delighted to hear,

Everything I’ve always believed about myself.

For my mother, it’s a different story.

She wished for me to bear her initials,

The first letter of the alphabet for her firstborn girl.

A name imbued with personal significance.

In a life where choices were others' whispers,

This was the first of many resolute decisions

She carved out for herself.

Yet, I bear another name too,

Given by customs and the stars' decree.

A name I once felt shame to own,

A name I loathed all my life.

Named after a river!


And it's curious how I've come to embrace it.

For now, I wish to flow freely like that river,
Accepting my vulnerabilities,
Nurturing my gentleness,

Just like the river I am named after.