No stink

The body lay on the garbage heap

Camouflaged

Partly in appearance

But completely, in spirit

Wasted, broken and discarded

The question is not: 'why does it feel repulsive?'

The question is: 'why does it feel repulsive, now?'

When in life, it did not matter

But dead matter needs to be attended to

Else it would stink our fragrant lives

Ah, we won't stink when we're dead

They'll take care

The question is not: 'why does it feel repulsive?'

The question is: 'why does it feel repulsive, now?'

Offered a ritual In death

But none in life

Yet the vagabond remains a vagabond

In life and in death

The question is not: 'why does it feel repulsive?'

The question is neither: 'why does it feel repulsive, now?'

But 'what's repulsive about that?'

Riverview

I an deep, I am vast
Sometimes steady, and at times fast
In the bosom of the earth I lie, I flow
And in my bosom, a thousand creatures dwell
Some high, some low
I birth, I nurture, I carry you burden, your strife
I give, I hold and take lives, I am life
I am a river - ravishing, serene, raging, white, brown and blue
I am a seeker, I am the sought
I am contradictions, I am you

Terror strikes home

They are apparently called terrorists
They came with guns and bombs
Blew my fellow people, destroyed families
Ravaged cities and set others on 'high alert'
Yet they did not strike terror in my heart
Overcoming grief, I continued to live
Head held high and with no fear of them
But terror was to strike again
From close quarters, in different ways
I am terrorized now and fear for life and freedom
Fear for myself and for others
I fear that I may be attacked
Lynched, stripped, intimated, humiliated
For what I wear, for what I eat
For what I read and who I love
Fear that acts of peace like sport and art
Will be drowned in the politics of hate
Fear the death of reason and the path of doom
That popular presidents professed
Fear for people who're forced
To live around toxic dumps
Even as people pretend to clean India
Fear the destruction that development brings
Fear that I shall be branded, and labelled
And thrown on either sides of the fence
Without as much a chance to argue
Argue, reason? No way, I'm too terrorized
All I can say is among those who intended to strike terror
Some are doing a better job than others
Some have indeed struck terror, but with time
I shall overcome this too

Clear, but still

Like an agitated reflection

Of a still monument

In stirred waters

Into a thousand fragments broken

The mind is but an image

That with the water wants to flow

But is confined to its reality

Of an unmoved structure at the edge

It sighs and waits for the water to calm

To cease its own quivering

To be whole, to be blithe

To play fool and shake the waters again

Ripples in the glass

 The plain glass
 Sometimes reflects
 And at other times
 It lets you see through
 Like clear water
 You look into it
 Think about reaching out
 To a glimpse of you

 Stained and broken
 Though it may be
 It stands between you
 And the other side
 How deep is the water
 How thick is the glass
 How separate are you
 From your inside?

 When you drink it up
 You might feel
 You’ve emptied the glass
 Though the glass is still there
 Maybe you’ve filled yourself
 To the brim
 With enough of you
 And let emptiness stare

Searching me

What journey and what road
Takes you ahead and afar
When you find
That through all your searches
And walking through new lanes
You only get what you left behind

Slow

Unnamed to fame
Now dying, now flickering flame
Last moments of a dreary game
All you loved to hate
Failing to communicate
Building bridges that alienate
Trying to hear a sound
Of inner-voices from all around
With an ear pressed to the ground
Slow steps to the darkest dawn

Over the Hills

In the roars of the sea
In the hustle of the trees
In the murmur of the oars
In the whispers of the breeze
There are songs that never leave me
There are voices I always hear
Teasing me in my reflections
And in a blink the haze is clear

In the journeys across the fields
And trudges in narrow lanes
Watching myriad peoples ways
Prayers, chants and names
I try to blend myself in the colors
As my soul dances to the beat
I feel my world catch the rythm
I feel a love thats so complete

Subtle revelations, fine moments bring
As you yearn & long to share
With doted ones, with warmth & love
As pure as the mountain air
May unbridled joy surround you
As you celebrate the years
Under the sky and over the hills
Fine moments & happy cheers!!

Jewel in the Crown

I'm not alone, though I'm a lonely man
And I won't take a helping hand
You can tell from the look in my eyes
That I'm searching for paradise
I’ve stumbled upon a treasure
And I'm feeling a little strange
But I can't hold on to the feeling
I'm still dying for some change

I laugh to myself as I look in the mirror
And see the world goin' upside down
They can't understand, and they can't get over
Seeing the lady with the clown
Loving isn't easy
If you aren't crazy
I'm still dreaming when I'm really seeing
I'm with the jewel in the crown

I take a walk down Easy Street
Tryin' to catch a glimpse of the town
I wanna lose myself in the lights and the sound
And in the action all around
But I can't get myself to give it away
I'm still rooted to the ground
I just sigh and look around and smile
And start to find my way back home

I'm a funny man, but when I'm with her
I can't understand where the wit disappears
My best laid plans are blown away
I feel like I've been speechless for years
What spell she casts is still unknown
Her magic touch is grippin' the whole town
I believe she's gonna take me to paradise
I know she is the jewel in the crown

Hey, Piper!

I'm waiting for the piper
As I'm chained to my chair
By the waves from the radio
Do I smell freedom in the air?

And while the music plays
I'm lost amidst the scribes
I wake up when the song is over
The piper's led away his tribes

Glorified

Is life as glorified as it should be?
Is life as glorified as it should be?
The joys of birth
Young days of play and mirth
Maybe heaven's descended down here on earth
The schemes and foils
The years of struggle and toil
Mundane routines and shallow plastic smiles
What is the price
Of dark lines under weary eyes
That cannot see beyond the veil of hidden lies
Is life more glorified than it should be?

Is love as glorified as it should be?
Is love as glorified as it should be?
The restless mind
Always trying to find
The charming face that you can't leave behind
The serenading songs
The questions of right & wrong
The disillusion that surrounds when you don't belong
The forlorn days
The nights of empty gaze
Crazy memories and their haunting ways
Is love more glorified than it should be?

Is war as glorified as it should be?
Is war as glorified as it should be?
The nations' pride
Smart soldiers on every side
The glory of sacrifice and courage undefied
After the retreat
The men and women meet
To wash the blood stains off the streets
The children weep
The wives have nothing to keep
Victory comes at a price that is too steep
Is war more glorified than it should be?

Is truth as glorified as it should be?
Is truth as glorified as it should be?
The peace it brings
The bells of trust that ring
A song that conscience never ceases to sing
The pangs of doubt
You can't hear what you shout
Contradictions deep within and without
All the calls you heed
Where does the pursuit lead
To endless new beginnings, the quest concedes
Is truth more glorified than it should be?

Un-grow

Dictated by violence
That engulfs moments
And lifetimes
Distanced by proximity
To transgression
And thought-crimes
Seeking through disillusions
And mirages within
The bridge to struggle
Left as helpless
As a human infant
In the struggle to bridge
Amidst sheltering elements
Death paves the way
For the self to be
To integrate, to defy
To deny and alleviate
And to un-grow
The distances
And all that is life

A Unison

Like an often told story
That never dulls in its romance
Each new morning
Spurred me to take another chance
And wait for a message
From a lover across the seas
Many years have now gone by
That I heard foot-falls in the breeze
And then on that fateful morn
I felt a touch upon my hand
I looked up towards the rays of dawn
Though blinded by light, I tried to stand
With great delight, I smiled at the skies
On my long trudge, they have connected me
To her with rainbows & raindrops galore
And as I step towards the distant horizon
To embrace the inviting tide of the sea
I sing away muted songs of yore
Like a mad spirit, I dance with the illusion
This, my dear is my lasting unison

Waving Hands

Waving hands, bidding goodbye
Hands that speak, hands that weep
Hands that hold, hands that let fly

In their waving, hands connect
Long after they are out of sight
Triggering hearts and souls to reflect

On journeys across the common miles
Of tunnels and bridges and winding roads
Hand in hand, winks and smiles

The journeys now wind through their own ways
To new destinations and to new joys
Holding new hands while riding new waves

Celebrating a life that kisses you sweet
With hands & spirits that wave in the air
Hands that pray, hands that greet

Hands that build, hands that shape
Hands that unlock, hands that free
Dreams and wonders for minds to gape

And then hands that hold must let fly
Over new seas, hands wave away
And in their waving, bid goodbye

Lullaby for the Dying

The words are blowing away
In the stormy winds
Tryin' hard to find a way
The spirit is breaking free
As the angels sing to me
The sweetest lullaby
Lullaby for the dying

Memories of trouble & strife
As I close my eyes to sleep
And wake in my afterlife
Dreams never meant to be
As the angels sing to me
The sweetest lullaby
Lullaby for the dying

Led by the failing sense
Filled with emptiness
Corroded by innocence
Stop feeling hollow and heavy
As the angels sing to me
The sweetest lullaby
Lullaby for the dying

Silent promises made
In comforts of desperation
Unveiled now by the breeze
Recollections I fail to see
As the angels sing to me
The sweetest lullaby
Lullaby for the dying

A sense of deja vu
As I journey inward of me
On a flight of fancy that’s true
While I leave behind just me
As the angels sing to me
The sweetest lullaby
Lullaby, for the dying

A Love Song

Devoid of emotion
Anxiety or fears
In word and expression
Of unconcealed years

Unheralded passion
Trickling down in deeds
Through shabby lanes and lives
And some more adjusted needs

Hurdles and milestones
Amidst resolute ways
Yearning cries and comforts
And weathered by dogged days

A mountain ascended
By treading step by little step
No spontaneous miracles
Though faith guides every step

Subtle joys and peace
Begotten by many ammends
A song and living story of love
That endures and never ends

Old Mrs. Rusty

Pretty summer afternoon, the clock strikes four
Old Mrs. Rusty stepping out the door
Into the green lawns to bask in the sun
Watching little children giggling on the run

With a twinkle in her eye, she calls their names
As they merrily go about playing new-found games
Now sit, now run, now skip, now hide
Old Mrs. Rusty dances on the hill-side

She's got new laces and ribbons for all the dolls
Now they're hiding in the flowers while she fondly calls
Getting darker now, and sun is gone behind the hills
Mrs. Rusty waiting long after the siren from the mills

From the yard, the children disappear one by one
The dolls and the flowers vanish and soon there are none
Old Mrs. Rusty can't hold back the tears
She's living in the same dream for many many years

Its a summer afternoon, the clock strikes four
Pretty Mrs. Rusty stepping out the door
Into the green lawns to bask in the sun
Waiting for her little children to return

At peace?

Pictures of another dawn
Are staring at my poise
Messages in dead letters
Speak to me through the noise
The dreams are now asleep
Weary and tired of watching over me
Though frozen in time, I lay still
I imagine all else around me free
Wisdom of ages failed to succour
As from my ascent I fell
A vain endeavour to comprehend my mind
I'm stoic or at peace, I cannot tell
Stoic or at peace, I cannot tell

Ridin' on Luck

I just keep moving on
'round the world singing my songs
Memories come trotting along
For a while and then they're gone
All towns now look the same
All colors just shades of gray
A thousand times, I face the wall
With a little luck, I pass each day

Desperate for love and life
I no longer am, no longer care
Its only a mirage I've learnt
You'd be lucky to be out of there
And when the sun shines in your face
Ya think of those who could share this place
And you think of the glory days
As you try to find a resting place

With a little luck, I wake up each day
I lie, I steal, I run away
With a little luck, I hide in the night
With darkness there to show me the way
Its some luck that my wounds don’t heal
Sometimes I’m numb, so I don’t feel
Sometimes it’s the pain that helps me smile
And the scars shall remain all the while

Its some luck that I make no friends
I don't have to part, I don't have to cry
With some luck, I'll learn to fly
And with a little luck, someday I'll die
What remains then is my lonesome soul
Come hell or high water, I'd just rock and roll
Either ways, its my luck that I ride
And with the devil, let my spirit glide

Life, Timed

Times, they say are meant to change
The good ones do come seeking to avenge
The dark lonely hours of those sombre days
And to clear every path from mist and haze
Displaying all things bright and beautiful
And showing life can still be wonderful
Until the end of time, hope remains a friend
So I quietly wait for time to end

Lost & Found

Desperate cries give way to exhiliration
Temptations yield, striving to satisfy
Joys and woes show in the animation
When the moment of glory arrives
As drops of tears and perspiration
Lose themselves and wash away
When heaven decides to pour
You find a place
You know you're here to stay
When you trade the pace for making a way
And thoughtful smiles come to the fore
When you lose the race
But you find what you're running for

Dogged

There's a hint of reason behind
Those disconsolate eyes
An impassionate & unenvious mind
Mocking at pretenders and their lives

He can be a raucous wild canine
Or a kind hearted figure sublime
He can play toddler, child & young lad fine
And brave adversity when it comes with time




The truth about him only few realise
Far varied from men is their tribe and creed
Honor, trust and faith they symbolize
Yet men swear and insult by their breed

The dog in man is not a vice
For every virtue that men comprise
In dog's nature, it richly lies
For in the bones they love, no contentions arise

Highway

Come on baby, hit the highway
Lets go beyond destiny
For once, lets have it my way
After this, we'll all be free
Take me to another country
Another life, another home
I no longer care about the distance
I like it this way, on my own

I'd give it all for the highway
I don't have nothing to save
The only way, the highway
My preacher and my grave

For the first time, I'm returning smiles
To onlookers and passersby
They're with me now, but not forever
Some know it better but some others cry
It took me time to understand
They're 'still' but are on their way
Everybody needs direction
But not all are in disarray

What I have are not my possessions
They belong to this wonderful rave
The only way, the highway
My angel and my grave

Too many thoughts breed confusion
Too many hopes bring disdain
Nothing stays, not even illusions
We gotta wait and take our share of pain
We're travelling in a circle
We have to find within it an end
Take me to anybody who needs
A hand to hold and an ear to lend

I know its just imagination
To chase this dream is all I crave
The only way, my highway
My cradle and my grave

Been

Counting the steps
In the long dark stairways
Feeling the walls for direction

Craving for space
A time and a place
To hide your only possessions

Searching the memoirs
To put back the pieces
Of misplaced myriad recollections

Looking over the shoulder
Where, how and what you've been
Comforted by saddled reflections

Savoring the moments
Caressed by the breeze
Gently sweeping away impressions

Hiding the lost
Identities that have been
And the flaws that render perfection

Reaching the end
Of the stairway descended
Where you've been so many times for redemption

When wheels acquire wings

Where are those uncountable miles
Dotted with sparkling sunny smiles
The sights of fields, the splendid hills
Glittering rivers and lofty wind-mills
Multitudes of people, the varied songs and dance
The wonderstruck moments and ideas of romance
The journeys filled with life up to the brim
The anonymous voices that still draw you within
Where are those times when we indulged ourselves
And discovered traits of our unseen selves
Where do the trepid hours disappear
As the flying machines take to the air
Roaring and soaring at higher altitudes
Ushering new meanings to sublime solitude
Though unchanged the destinations remain
The fleeting sojourn is not the same
Far removed is the sense of wondering
From unabashed joy that new sightings bring
The fascinating gypsies that merrily sing
As tireless rolling gives way to gliding
And the colossal turn into tiny little things
When wheels acquire wings

Warriors Without Guns

We were made of wild passion
We couldn't hold fast to dreams
We had to fly so high,
We found the sky was not enough
But our youth was fleeting
And the hopes we lived on
Were buried in the ground alive
We saw them with emotionless dry eyes

Those dreams that once came true
Those dreams of glory days
Have blown up with the smoke
From the guns that mutely blaze
And tonight the heroes lie
In a pool of blood and slime
Dead to the sweet victory
Dead to the midnight chime

We're warriors
Warriors without our guns
Fighting for survival
Fighting when the battles are undone

And when the morning mist clears
You smell agony in the air
As cold unblinking eyes
Seek the roads that go nowhere
Society sleeps in peace
With peace to us betrayed
Can they bring back the blood that's shed
Can they bring back all the dead?

We're warriors
Warriors without our guns
Fighting for someone
And somewhere we'll never ever learn

We're warriors
Warriors without our guns
We lived up to the faith
Marching on, on the paths that don't return

We're trapped n the swamp of a lost out cause
To burn out in despair

And from the ash that remains, no Phoenix flies
To die in the choking air

We're doomed to be lost in conflicting ways
But none without a dead end

But we were hard and could stand the inflicted pain
Prepared to break but not to bend

We're warriors
Warriors without our guns
Fighting for survival
Fighting when the battles are undone

We're warriors
Warriors without our guns
Fighting on somewhere
For someone we'll never ever learn

We're warriors
Warriors without our guns
We lived up to the faith
Marching on, on the roads that don't return

We're warriors
Warriors without our guns
Warriors!
Without our guns!!

Vacuum

Surrounded by visions
And voices that ring
In the still of the night
In autmn and spring

Staring at future
Through the eyes of the dead
Driven beyond horizons
Speaking words left unsaid

At infinity's end
When time finally stalls
In splendid vacuum
I find it all

Scared

Scared that my plans will fall in place
Scared that my deeds will be above disgrace
Scared that my voice may never falter
Scared that my prayers will be answered

Scared that she'll smile at me everyday
Scared that my hidden love will find a way
Scared that its the end of feeling blue
Scared that my wishes may come true

Scared that my ego will never fall to pride
Scared that I may never break from inside
Scared that I'll never lose control again
Scared that I may never be amused by pain

Scared that I may finally communicate
Scared that I may have no one to hate
Scared that I'll never use profanity
Scared that my hopes will become reality

Scared that I may never dabble in confusion
Scared that I may tell bliss from illusion
Scared that I may never be called insane
Scared that I may never be scared again