Surrender

Surrender, they say
don’t fight,
accept.
Don’t be deceived
by tricks of mind,
reach inside
find
a self
go delve
as do I
in questions unanswered.
How can one abandon
the quest?
Answers elude
Questions chase
How can I seclude
or, erase
the seismic trigger
for bigger
universal divinity?
Infinity, is what I see
in what they call
transient.
Am I not meant
to strive, to prove
worth of every breath?
There’s no death
you say, for soul
roll the dice -
fate, karma or,
mundane everyday race-
I face
each moment
with zeal
I feel
I see
I hear
Fear,
is just as universal
as love
or peace
or empathy.
Humanity fights
to survive,
and then,
to thrive.
I fight
to be
what I am
destined to be.
If not victory, peace.
I raise the white flag
is this what is seen
as surrender?

Sahmi Eid

Rupahale eid ke chand ne dekha badal paar
Sahma sahma tha nagar, Bujha bujha tyohaar
Bujha bujha tyohaar, lagi sab phiki raunak
Saathi sakha purane, lagaye nayi si ainak

Azad Parinde

Kyunkar bandhan bandhoon tumse
Bandhan mein girhein hoti hain
Ho ummeed ki ya ulftat ki
Dori mein uljhan hoti hai
Jeene ki hasrat rakhti hoon
Kaise tum pe mar jaaoon
Ba-hosh mohabbat karti hoon main
Kyun deewani kehlaoon
Yeh lufzon ke pher hain saare
Sab suni sunayi baatein hain
Hum tum do azad parinde
Chalo sang udd jate hain.

Hichki

Mehfil mein mera zikr nahi
kisi ko meri fikr nahi
Mayoos sa main rukhsat jo hua
Ik hichki ne mujhko rok liya

Aaj Ki Tasveer

Har raat ki subah hoti hai
Har sahar ki shaam hoti hai
Har Ram ki shaan rakhne ko
Sita badnaam hoti hai
Jo chup chup se rehte hain yahan
Woh saare bezubaan nahi
Per apni baat jo keh den to
Har maa pareshan hoti hai...
Is kaha-suni ke daur mein ab
Tehrir kahan taqrir kahan
Zaban se khoon tapakta hai
Talwon mein shaan hoti hai..

Miscoupling

Colors
myraid colors
paint my slumber
no, not the dreams...
i never reach there
my slumber is thick
it engulfs me
all day
and at night,
color blind
i stumble on some carcass
dreams that were out there
in open
far too long
dreams that i dare not let
into my eyes, or heart, or mind
the grind
was water tight
rigid
conforming
no space to see
beyond the stiff walls
no whiff of a horizon
no sky overhead
no fluff of a cloud
everything around
was well formed
solid
imprenetable
everything around
confound
in one shapeless
presence
the present
i was too scared
to dare
inch out
it spread far and wide
how could i hide
in such magnificiance of colors
i let the shades envelop me
myraid shades
when mixed
created a thick dark rivulet
and i sucked in the darkness
sleep walking
from day to day
skipping the nights
where i let dreams rot
not
for lack of faith or belief
it was a relief
to let a miscarriage
prevent the death
of the child of miscoupling

Notes From A Journey

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Being in the periphery,

walking along the banks

uneven

broken at times

smooth and paved at others -

the feet absorb textures.

For, the journey across

unaccustomed earth,

uncharted path,

used to a direction,

limited to the vision of culmination -

infinity is daunting.

Gratification,

Purpose,

Rewards and Attainment -

Hang like bats,

upside down -

circle in the limited sky 

at night,

blind through the day -

isolated from light.

Journeys are seldom complete -

beginnings are marked

milestones celebrated

end is melancholy.

Surrender is difficult,

seeking demanding

experience must be earned.

A body used to buying comforts,

and a mind invested in calculations -

pulls back,

stays on the bank,

in the periphery

even as feet 

absorbing the foreign textures

step onwards, though tentative.

Fascination wins over conforming –

horizon beckons...

And, heart flutters to fly.

Seashore Melody

Disappointments come in varied flavours

I taste the unaccustomed,

wrapped in soft salty breeze

Loud talks, 

incomprehensible, 

don’t converse.

I peek on from outside,

wanting to belong, to be included -

I take tentative steps across the bridge,

I am greeted with warm foreign eyes-

welcomed as a guest,

my otherness amplified.

My skin, my hair, my eyes, my voice, my tongue –

float over the waves, 

denying me the depth.

The ocean roars,

I pick seashells on shore,

hearing in them 

whispers of broken conversations…

My lips move,

I hum, 

breathing in mouthful of harmony

stirring a medley of melodies.

Sea breeze unties the knot on my head,

I let my hair down.