Broken Skin

Today at 15.45 hours India conducted three
Underground nuclear tests in the Pokhran Range
Hope falls softly from your hands
Dreams burn deep beneath the land
Time casts shadows overall, sweating fever
Rain or river, brushing winds beneath your call
Broken skin, distant fear, shattered worlds of endless tears
Hidden fires, distant lies, buried hopes beneath the cries
Broken skin, distant fears, silent lips, so far, so near
Silence, 'tis every hope apart
Two flames burn deep beneath one heart
Teardrops flow faster with the tide
Raging over calmer waters as the timeless land divides
Broken skin, distant fear, shattered worlds of endless tears
Hidden fires, distant lies, buried hopes beneath the cries
Broken skin, distant fears, silent lips, so far, so near
Broken, distant, shattered
Hidden, distant, buried
Broken, distant, silent
Cold games repeat on Eastern shores
Strong winds blow over colder wars
Proud lips stay silent in the rain
(There are half a million voices in the song without a name)
Broken, distant, shattered
Hidden, distant, buried
Broken, distant, silent, shattered
Hidden, distant, buried
Broken, distant, silent
(So far, so close)
Shattered
(There are half a million voices)
Distant, shattered, distant, shattered
(There are half a million voices)
Just five miles from India’s nuclear test site
Children play in the shade of the village water tank
Here in the Rajasthan desert people say they’re proud
Their country’s shown its nuclear capability