sleeping long is like laughing
at a soap bubble getting into eyes
which you wish to get rid of soon
but then after that
cleaner eyes
see what you did not see so long
as if you really wanted to see
wish
bubbles can engulf me and i close my eyes
till
i do not have to see any more, just feel, hear, and may be taste
sundarta ki paribhasha kai baar dhundi
sundarta ki paribhasha kai baar dhundi
lekin alag alag mili har baar
kabhi laga
ki jo dil se sachhi awaj nikleye, wahi sundar hai
par phir laga, ki ek awaaj sabhi ko to sukh deti nahin hai,
to wo kaisey sundar ho sakti hai
phir laga
ki shayad sundarta apni aawaj ko bahar laaaney mein hai
to phir sawal utha ki ki kya har bar
apni awaaj keval apni hi hoti hai
isee pashopash mein, uljha raha
sundarta murhjayey phoolon ki tarah sikudati rahi
merey sawalon ki ladiyan diye maine jalti rahin
na main kuchh aur keh paya
aur tum bhi to wahi ki wahin adti rahin
could we live in a jungle
when we need freedom
we long to live in a jungle
assuming that there are no laws
no rules and no norms
but then ask a dear
or a lion or a squirrel
each has boundaries
to be respected
and every time these are violated,
some thing happens
a flower blooms in a wrong season
a yearning arises when it should not
but in nature, nothing happens without a
reason or season
has the climate change caught up
with us inside now
an impossible night
when you turn sides
to find the same smell
of serene sticks of incense
you burned when you went to a dargah together
you wonder
why have you not been able to breathe this
every day, every night
and then comes the realization
why do we pray
only some times so intensely
why shall i ask you to wait
why shall i ask you to wait
for the bells to ring the time
of laying the wreath
on the grave of those
poems which were written to myself
but which ended up creating
expectations all around,
every tree in bloom
felt that these poems were celebrating
the arrival of spring
when i had actually only narrated the
solemn demise
of certain hopes
that be better laid to rest
after all, do we sow the seeds in desert when
drought has alredy begun
should i thank you
should i thank you
for all the topsy turvy
roads you made me walk on
how else would i have realized the beauty of
pursuing paths
without any end in sight
but still so nice
so delightful
to pursue
soch bhi nahin pata hun, jo tum keh deti ho
soch bhi nahin pata hun, jo tum keh deti ho
merey wishwas ke jakhmon ko sah leti ho,
kya pata kis tarah itney badlon ke beech, akeli rehti ho
na chamakati ho, na girti ho,
bas asmaan ki kisi gehri ganga mein beh leti ho
tumhey shikayat hai, ki mainey saarey dard kyun diye na tumhey
chup chap yaka yak ro kar, meri aaho me apni khushia bhar deti do
baat to itni badi na thi
baat to itni badi na thi
phir kyun toofan uth gaya
kitney najuk rahey hogey wo khamabey
jin par tika vishas, yuhin dhah gaya
har baar har koshish jo ki mainey
tumko thoda sukoon de paun
lekin kya bataun, byaj to diya nahin
aur bhavanon ka mool utna hi reh gaya
do you remember?
do you remember, he asked,
what should i say?
why should i remember the part of past which is painful
the part in which i lost track of boundaries
and the part about which i do not feel so good about
but that part was a truth
and can we ignore truths because they remind us of our weaknesses
do we become stronger that way,
do we,
i do not think so
we must learn, if its possible at all
but not ignore, it reverberates
when the habits change the language
when the habits change the language
we forget the argument and pick on the words
why are we worried,
because the argument is trivial
the words are irrelevant,
but the meanings have been inferred already,
“i know what you want to say but are not saying”
why do we do that?