Skip to main content

Standing Still (Dedicated to the divine land of Ladakh, India)

Standing still in this land I wonder,
wonder if time trickles through its sieve.
Chilling winds gush from hills yonder,
I wonder if they hear me heave.

I heave for the river that streams,
I wonder if it could just trickle,
trickle ever so slowly and stand still,
stand still with me, in this land arcane.

I envy the little pebbles that revolt,
revolt against the mighty stream's run.
I wonder if their resolve is borrowed,
borrowed from the mountain's gentle tremble
(as much as it may tremble, it stands still.)

The purpureal hills crowned with divine dust,
seamlessly strung to the heavens above,
treaded by monks and shepherds august,
who spin their wheels and lead their herds.
Wheels of dharma spun with wisdom and love,
wheels of patience and the wheels of trust.

Columns of pebbles and heaps of stones -
like scattered epitaphs they remind,
of man's restlessness to leave his marks behind.

As I prescind from this land sublime,
the distant gongs play a peaceful hymn.
A hymn of delight, a hymn of lament,
a lament of losing its weary guests,
a delight of reclaiming its lost solace.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Citizenship Amendment Bill: The demon that it never was

The Citizenship Amendment Bill having occupied a prominent part of the political discourse in India in recent days has deservedly won its acronym, the CAB. Although, it has become one of those pieces of legislation which has been given interpretations beyond its scope and aims. It has become a vent for those who perennially believe that the Indian government has sinister motives at its heart and wants to make India a Hindu Rashtra. There is no denying that there is a section in the ruling dispensation that does want that, but the quintessential question is, as it always is, has the actions of the democratically elected and accountable government reflected those desires? People will agree to disagree on that question. My objection is not to that disagreement but to the overarching misinformation that is going around about the CAB. Usually, I do not attach much importance to the reporting of foreign media outlets on events in India, since they are filled with biases and oversimplificat...

A tale of two fires

Some folk once sat around a table, To share a meal and sing and fable. ‘Twas sturdy but would shake and rumble When they did pause and stealthily mumble, For it was afraid of losing its guardians, Just as the fire feared of losing its radiance. The parting flame wildly wobbled a bit, When one man exclaimed in a wilder fit, We have lost our hearth, tell tales sans heart, Some gifted a gaze, others granted a glance. He then closed his eyes and fell to his chair, Tables shook and men still mumbled – But he could not yield nor could he care, Far away he saw another fire, slightly warmer. It had its own audience, just slightly quieter. He listened to their tales, unchained but entwined, In the lulling melody of crackling timbre behind. Tales of men and women, of gods and of beasts, Their wants and wisdom, conquests and defeats. Half a man, and half a bull, an old man exclaimed, In one hand his rosary, with the other he aimed, First at the heavens and then at the dun...

दोपहर की बौनी परछाइयाँ

प्रात: की प्रथम किरण से भेष पाकर, ओज की प्रथम छुअन से प्राण लाकर, जिस परछाई ने मुझमें प्रवेश किया था, एक मध्याह्न की तेज़ धूप ने उसे एक पल में, जला कर भस्म कर दिया था | अब वो लंबी उदार परछाइयाँ तो याद नहीं पड़ती, जो कभी आगे-आगे मार्गदर्शक बन कर चलती थीं, पर वो दोपहर की बौनी परछाइयाँ,  जो मेरा हाथ पकड़ कर साथ चलती थी, बातें किया करती थीं, बहुत याद आती हैं | सायं कल के डूबते सूरज से प्रश्न तो नहीं कर सकता, पर उन बिछुड़ती, दूर चली जाती -  लंबी ओझल होती परछाइयों को, एक अर्सा और ठहरने का आग्रह तो कर ही सकता हूँ | कुछ क्षण अगर वह मुझसे दूर ही सही पर ठहर जाती, तो इस निस्तब्ध अकेली रात्रि का मोल, उसकी आन कुछ कम हो जाती क्या?