Modern Slavery

It would seem a waste
Of a lifetime
Of potential

To see a young person
Worshipping
Their entire lives

Someone
Who held them
Captive —
Psychologically or emotionally
Or under lock and key

Cut off —
From the world
Their autonomy

A parent
Of the young person
Witnessing their captivity
Would raise safeguarding concerns
Involve multi-agency
Legal teams
Wonder about capacity
Even call it
Modern slavery

But who sees
That the students
Of beloved gurus
Venerable teachers
Holy masters
Through millennia

And today
Like those young people
Live the same lives
That one would call
Modern slavery

Only worse
Where the teachers
Are the suppliers with drugs

That make students believe
That they are free
To leave