The Timeless Karma

 

Camouflaged in white amorphous clouds

The snow clad peaks crouch eternally

Their frozen leap sometimes reaches the stars

Leaving the slithering white serpents in awe

Those that sting the neck they spiral upon

Unfazed , the peaks continue to meditate

Wrapped in the posture of a stoic Yogi

One who emanates the salvation

The clouds that crack to squirt their venom

Shower with their thunder and lightning

Only to find their demise in dismay

The peaks merely drape these flakes

And sparkle their crescent tusk in sun

While the potion swarms back to clouds

Like the eternal loop of a timeless karma.

Delhi

2370

12.24 hrs

18.9.26

The response

 

After the reclamation of a peaceful life

From the clutches of terror and mutiny

When the beast is ousted from woods

Now the pride to establish own land is own

The fear of trap and trespassing death

That lurked in the day and the dark

Dissolves as our lions have roared

And left behind a deafening silence

When even a rustle echoes with a calm

To keep the perenial peril at bay

The mane flutters fearlessly and prominently

The unstated is loud and clear

The creatures untie their taterred gags

To squeak and squeal with joy in a response

Srinagar

2369

18.9.26

11.49

बेजुबां

 

घसीट कर वो बछड़े को ले गए. इसलिए कि बेचारा बेजुबां था. जुबां होती तो कब की पोल खुल गई होती. यही कि गऊ माता और भैंस मौसी नहीं हैं. मेहज़ एक जरिया हैँ. पेट पालने का ही नहीं, उस से बहुत उच्च जीवन स्तर का. गाडी, बांग्ला, सैर सपाटा, समाज में सम्मान, दिखावा इत्यादि. इस सब की आहुति ये बेजुबां दे रहा है. बछड़ा गाय हुई तो उसी समय गरीब को माँ से दूर एक खूंटे के साथ तीन फीट जैसी लम्बी रस्सी से बाँध दिया जायेगा. इतनी दरियादिली! आख़िर गऊ माता जो है.उस बछड़े को देख देख कर दूध जो देगी, प्रतिदिन एक इंजेक्शन के बाद. ऐसा दर्द जो उसकी आत्मा हिला दे. बदकिस्मती से यदि बछड़ा बैल निकला तो उसको बीच सड़क पर मरने को छोड़ दिया जायेगा. गाड़ी बँगले के खर्च से इनके लिए चारा जो नहीं कोई खरीद पाता.आपने भी कई बार इनको सड़क पर हॉर्न बजाते हुए पार किया है. इतने छोटे और मासूम होते हैँ कि इन्हे मालूम ही नहीं होता कि सड़क के नियम क्या होते हैँ. बेचारे अनाथ जो हैँ. ऐसा बार बार जबरन गऊ माता को माता बनाया जाता है. इसी बात पर याद आया, भैंस के मांस का निर्यात करने वाले देशों में हम प्रमुख हैँ. क्यूंकि भैंस बेजुबां है, नहीं तो मौसी भेदभाव के बारे में पूछती. शायद ये भी बता देती कि सारी ज़िन्दगी तीन फीट लम्बी रस्सी से बंधकर इंजेक्शन का दर्द, भूसा भरे बछड़े के लिए रोते हुए बँधी हुई टांगों में दूध देना या कई घंटे कट कट कर मरना, उसको क्या अधिक पसंद है.

बकरों की तो पूछो ही मत! बेचारों का वाक्य “मैं “ पूरा ही नहीं हुआ. शायद ये बोलते कि “ मैं मरना नहीं चाहता हूं “. पर इस से पहले ही काट दिए जाते हैँ. वाक्य नहीं, बकरे. अजूबा ये कि इनको मारना भी धर्म के आधार पर तय किया जाता है. बारिश, मौसम, त्यौहार, दावत, खुशी के बहाने. और स्वाद के बहाने. उन 15 बेहतरीन मिनट के लिए, एक बेजुबां जान.

जेल में क़ैद बच्चे. मुर्गी के, सूअर के, अन्य जानवर के. सांस के लिए तड़पती मछली. और ना जाने क्या क्या. हमको दर्शन कराने, माल ढोने के लिए, ऊन के लिए, खाल के लिए …शायद ज़ुल्म की सूची बहुत लम्बी है.

अब हम इस प्रकार की बातों को पढ़ना नहीं चाहते. पर हम ये सब ख़ुद कर या पैसे देकर करवा सकते हैँ. क्यूंकि जानवरों के पास ज़बान नहीं. इनको कटते हुए देखना. उनकी जुबां तो है, हम सिर्फ उनकी चीख को सुनना नहीं चाहते. ये बेजुबां नहीं है. हम बेहरे हैँ और हमारी आत्मा भी.

 विषय

विषय है विशेष निवेश

सर्व जन परन्तु विशिष्ट

सर्वदा सन्दर्भित अतः विशिष्ट

निवेश – सर्व जन समूह का

समूह की ऊर्जा और चेष्टा का

मन का, वचन का, प्रत्येक जन का

ध्यान का, ज्ञान का, धर्म का, विज्ञान का

पारस्परिक प्रतिस्पर्धा से हानि में नहीं

सार्वजनिक रूप से हमारे उत्थान का

तिमिर से रश्मि की उम्मीद में प्रतीक्षा का

दमन करने का नहीं दामन थामने का

जब तक सर्व विशिष्ट नहीं होता

और विशिष्ट सर्व नहीं बनता

तब तक दस्तक देगा यह विषय

भूले बिसरे दिवस पर

एक बार पुनः सजी हिंदी

The silent sound

 

The city is decked amidst abundant cheer

Processions erupt from every here and there

The throng is filled with deep gratitude

Behold ! The Lord comes with His gandeur

His followers celeberate with aplomb 

Strew the air with myriad hues and petals

The chant of His auspicious name

Amidst humming of echoing hymns

The thunder of resounding  drum beats

Dipped in shrill chimes and constant rattle

And the gong of tumultous metal bells 

Hammer symphony with  barrel drums and cymballs

Then the trumpet bellows to trample the sound

Like a rampaging trunk conquers the wood

Finally they reach the eidifice to worship the deity

The sentiment is lifted to a higher pitch and pace

The entire euphoria explodes to a mounting cresendo

The diety gives a large ear to many a silent breath

That fail to weave prayers in deep awe and faith.

Delhi

2368

15.24

14.9.26

The wish

 

The shadow comes a long way ahead

After dropping the treasures within pockets

That remained unstitched within a taterred garb

The dimming lights of the dusk do not show

The path of return amidst dissolving darkness

For the blazing orb is down and dusted now

Before shedding his gory wounds in the night

Bereft of even a faded soul , the shadow quivers

For there is no opportunity to return and retrieve

The strewn shards of my fallen fragmented self

And to stay still is a certain surrender to time

As the shadow trudges in the looming despair

It finds a semblance of glow in the fickle moon

A night long stare into fallen horizons till morn

Propels the light back into the anxious realm.

When He extended to support my feeble palm

Often I ended up covering it by an empty platter.

Dehradun

2367

4.9.26

18.11 hrs

 बेइंतेहा हसीं मंज़र है मुक़ाबिल,ओ सजनी मेरी सुन री 

पहाड़ों के कांधे पे, आसमां ने सजाई है बादलों की चुनरी

 ना बहाओ अपने बेशकीमती अश्क़ मेरे जानाज़े पर

कि क़त्ल करने वालों को अब से क़ब्र का दीदार होगा

ज़िन्दगी तो खैर चाहने वालों ने दफ़न कर दी कब से

आज तो तबाह करने वालों का मुस्कराकर दीदार होगा

When Wrinkles Ripple

 

The waters were once tranquil till deep

Turqoise of tinge and placid of poise

Then the disruption of a swooping drop

That plucked peace with a sudden thud

Leaving a tremble with her retreating recoil

Shredding the serene skin to myriad hues

Triggering wrinkles on the perplexed forehead 

And inciting disquiet on the anxious mind.

Before these miniature waves dissolve in time

The drizzle of arrows sow ripples in the soul

Till the agitation reverberates in unison

To dislodge the calm from his command

Only to wriggle in the dust with humiliation.

With such turmoil my ripples could swell into tides

Only they felt it was awkward to weep aloud

And did not carry sufficient tears as a validation

Of unpredictable interrogations raised from within.

Beyond the margins of swollen eye , survived a dream

Dazzling to smile like a short lived bubble

With her visage lit by reflection of a silvery cheer

Distant but a dream nontheless worth a smile

With a jewel sparkling the soul till the time

When wrinkles ripple to burst life back to the serenity.

RIshikesh

01.08 hrs

26.8.26

2366

Meet yourself

 

Meet yourself

The one who vexes innocent souls

Those who take you to diety

Where you find it tough to walk

They suffer multiple trips in the day

Only to have grass and hay 

That they had freely in the meadow

Only to be sadly enter this trap!

Those who get slaughtered

For a few minutes of your taste

And fur, wool, carts and belts

And the nutrients more essential

Than the very life of the voiceless

Tormenting the innocent day and night

For no fault of theirs 

Other than that they got trapped

In the clutches of humanity!

Bon appetite , dear friend

As you pierce through the flesh

That hangs from the caracass

For your few moments of choice

Some calf went hungry for your morning tea

Good morning !

And if the vexation is so acceptable

Go, meat yourself 

2365

22.34 hrs

19.8.26

Noida

The Return on Marble steps

 

An hour before dusk swoops to snatch light

When the elongating shadows cover our limbs

The anxiety of impending night must spur us

But the weary day has seared the marble steps

The blistered hop on the scorching pieces of stone

Descends from supreme divinity to mediocrity

To find compassion in soft soles for the beleaguered 

Thankfully, wisdom preached which side was the temple.

Then the dark showers much relief from the fire

As the happy gait brings us to shore from horizon

The same soles turn bereft of all their wonted solace

For the marble steps were no more set ablaze

These steps determine our notion of the benevolence.

Ludhiana

2364

23.54 hrs

12.8.26

The Memories

 

The haze this dusk is thick

Webbed by the sprayed eye

Even as the sun blazes with fury

The blind of the mind is drawn

For the stutter holds the thought

Conjures a whirlpool of emotion

The capsized intellect is tossed

Unable to escape the drops of past

A cocoon forever with no evolution

The vibrance of time is thwarted

A superfluous sepal of shrivelled bud

Our dreams fail to come true

Merely by elongating the nights

The drops of time continue to flow 

Despite the hurdle raised by mental palm

Memories bring a false solace to mind

And thwart the pangs of growing time.

Ludhiana

2363

11.8.26

23.56 hre

The reverse sense

 

What is the question to a known response

In such a hunt the key seeks her lock

Like a prey in ambush for the peril

Much as a flow in wait of molten waters

A hearty laughter amidst a silent throng

The jubiliant feast without a reason

An intoxication before the tavern is open

It’s the unexpressed emotion of my  heart.

Enroute Delhi

Reverse sense, read past line upwards

2362

4.8.26

12.38 hrs

The Dream Destination

 

Where to set foot amidst darkness

When the stifled cries hold all light

Flogged forever from plough to the barn

Tethered to a shrunk horizon every dusk

The unbrindled flow of a free mind

Remains fetterred to an unrelenting belief

Even as the innocent infant gets dragged away

And starves to a neglected demise

The mind continues to chew the cud

Milched to the last single drop every time

The swollen udder covers exploding veins 

And merely awaits the hour of slow slaughter

In such an hour of swarming darkness

Even as the herd lines up to a plank

Every stride contemplated to break loose

In itself is a lifelong dream destination.

2361

Heathrow,London

4.8.26

7.40 hrs

The reflection

 

The reflection glazes flow of life

Sprinkles her silver on the twirls

Torches waters with her golden glow

Or brings blush to the paling visage

Before conjuring tides in the dark

To contrive their gallop into trojan castle

Laden with lost treasures of dissolved marks

When the sky merges with my infinite waves

She peeps with an encompassing halo

That glows deep within my eager soul

And she can find my incadandescent flicker

Kindle her ever inspiring resplendence.

 

2360

Toronto

16 30 hrs

1.8.26

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The chimes

 

Reverberations of mild waft

Resound with a faint clang

Fragile rippples in the air

The footmarks of an unseen tiptoe

Perceptible to a vigilant mind

Only when someone cares to absorb

The sighs of concealed emotions

And a thud of agitated heart

That still doubts an acceptance

And understanding of his beat

The chimes are a subtle symbol

Of a raging storm deep within

If only someone would stop to listen.

Enroute London

2359

19.22 hrs

16.7.26

The orchids

 

Vivid and exquisite, your petals

That spread like a bold enigma

Much like your invisible fragrance

Or cascading memories in your presence.

When the buzz digs deep into nectar

You recoil to bring breath to breeze

The hues resonate with butterflies 

And color the vagabond rainbows

Tender petals of dazzling dreams 

Held by pragmatic hardened twigs 

Your myriad shades of pink, purple, yellow

With contrast of faded trail to turgid  pistil 

With a promise to bring another morn

Vibrant and fragrant days to forever follow.

 Yamuna nagar

23.44 hrs

2.7.26

2358

The sail in a storm

 

Like a beast when yanked in all directions

It crashes to the ground on the block

To suffer the spectacle of her gory demise

Her drowning in the gory gush of her own

No matter the vessel carried often the treasures

Now it scuttles alone and empty in a storm

With the intruding water that gurgles inside

It wipes the word of dreamy soul scribbled within

After many a thoughtful hour and sigh 

Even the ink that lent herself for the word

Now betrays the sail that promised a horizon

When scribbled upon in a vacation noon 

The flesh is torn like a paper as the beast

Is abandoned in storm with a capsized life

The vows of a horizon are wiped down the drain.

Rishikesh 

12.10 hrs

2357

27.6.26

The desperate calm

 

Stranded between uncertain because and despite

In preordained predicament there is little respite

Like a tangled clump of infinite string of time

That could unfold many a flight of grounded kite.

To seek redemption the wayward winds blow

Our abilities like a latent seed their response bestow

Soiled, but not sown and yet winnowed off in futility 

The storm in simmering womb smothers his flow.

The desperate calm that we upon ourselves heap

Torments like a deadly deamon put to brittle sleep

Our countenance drapes a tranquil façade for pretense

While angst perpetually pricks our soul in the deep.

Moradabad 

2356

23.23 hrs

24.6.26

 र लफ्ज़ के कफ़न में मुझको पहचानो 

बँधी है मेरी रूह मुसलसल रिवाज़ में 

दाद देनी है तो ख़त्म करो मुशायरों को 

अर्ज़ होगा वो जो है दबा कुछ लिहाज़ में