Power of a Speck

By Somali K Chakrabarti

Butterfly Effect

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A speck of ire can

blaze a fire; the fate of war can

be sealed with a dart,

a butterfly flapping its wings 

may turn the tide miles apart!

 

 

Can a butterfly flapping its wings in China cause a storm in New England?  The idea that a small and imperceptible action can bring about a huge change in another place/ context is known as butterfly effect. This phenomenon is used as a metaphor in this tanka to convey that small actions can sometimes make a big difference.

A Tanka is a Japanese poem consisting of 31 syllables in 5 lines, with 5 syllables in the first and third lines and 7 in the others.

 

 

Lei: A wreath for your soul  is a collection of short poems that combine elements of nature, philosophy, culture, science and spirituality. Take a peek here on Kindle Store.
Lei

 

 

 

 

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42 thoughts on “Power of a Speck”

  1. Wow Somali… Beautiful and powerful Tanka… Yes, that metaphor is apt.. Sometimes small actions can create a huge impact.. I have written a couple of Tanka’s too, and I know how many words we have to ignore which don’t fit exactly in the Tanka.. Well done.. Have a great time.. 🙂

    Liked by 3 people

  4. The butterfly effect, Tanka, Chaos Theory. We never know which small input will have great effect, but we might as well leave the impressions that will bear as they will.

    Liked by 2 people

  5. You are really an expert in the haiku and tanka!

    The phenomenon is called Chaos Theory I believe, though I’m not exactly sure. Kahi padha tha salo pahle. I never thought that this can be so beautifully explained and connected to human reactions!

    You are simply superb! 👍👍

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you Rakesh. Though a butterfly fluttering its wings may not cause a tornado but the chaos theory finds application in context of social behaviour. A small change in an application form resulted in a tremendous increase in organ donation in Netherlands. 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

  9. Such a beautiful poem describing the butterfly effect, Somali. Sometimes the smallest things or smallest actions can have the most impact on others, maybe impact life miles away. It can change the world, and sometimes for the better. Great writing as usual 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

  12. ()°██。./ .˛ .˛..★ ★ 。
    ˛. (´• ̮•)˛°/.♫.♫˛. ˛_Π_____. * ˛*
    .°( . • . ) ˛°./• ‘♫ ‘ •.˛*./______/~＼ *. ˛*.。
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    ¯˜”*°•♥•°*”˜¯´¯˜"*°•♥•°*"˜¯ ´¯˜”*°´¯˜”*°•♥•°

    Like

  15. I think by now you must know that I believe in this concept. A lot. I am so happy to have found this thought in your head too. That makes it two of us and with so many followers, the difference will be huge. You just wrote a post and the butterfly effect has been triggered.
    Thanks for the term. Didn’t know about that 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

  17. Butterfly effect, yes indeed ripples make the wave and the wave makes the tsunami. Nature has the smallest to the biggest particle and it is the small changes that creates the big movement in our life, as in story or movie a small incident leaves an indelible mark in our mind.

    In today’s, interconnected world and with the imposition digital technology, no economy and no culture can be immune to changes in other parts of the world, stock market is wonderful example with one stock exchange sneezing the other catches the cold.

    O! this phenomena is used as a metaphor in Tanka…
    😀

    Liked by 1 person

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