RESURGENCE

I also had dreams
Like any one.

Having dreams, I thought
Was my birth right...
As natural as
Trees flowering,
Rivers flowing,
Birds flying, and
The winds breezing.

I dreamt of
Sitting on the motley rainbows,
Running with speeding horses
In a fierce race,
Climbing the heights
Of tall and steep mountains,
Riding on the crest
Of soaring ocean waves...
Play,  dance, sing and recite...
Like a prodigy.

But my hopes came down....
Shattered, sheared, and
Smeared with descending darkness,
When I was told
In a devilish voice,
That I have no right to dream,
No choice to aspire,
Not destined to live,
With freedom, faith and happiness.

But, my mind refuses
To embrace the designs of destiny,
To accept the diktats of fate.
My inner voice...
Prompts me, and propels me
To break the black shackles,
To tear the dark circles,
Woven around me,
Strewn all along my path.

My intellect instigates me
To realize my dreams...
To reach my goals --
Crossing all hurdles,
Crushing all barriers.

© Srinivas N R

A Prayer

Two and half decades ago
God gifted us a toy
A bundle of joy,
Happiness and pleasure.

We thanked Him
For the lovely gift,
For the beautiful boon.

The toy was our life and breath
We raised it,
With utmost care, love and affection
The toy has grown up
Fully, with strong legs and hands,
And a pair of sturdy wings.

The toy flew away one day
Leaving us, cheering at us
In search of greener pastures,
To the land of dreams.

Little we know
Whether the toy will return to us
Any time in future,
At least before our departure
To God's kingdom

We earnestly pray the God
To send our toy
Back to us,
To be with us forever.

Look Inside

When found in deep trouble,
Profound pain, and serious crisis,
We look for help...
At every corner.
Not knowing to do what,
We seek advice,
From everyone we can.
Remedies may not be forthcoming...
Throwing us into total chaos.
Restless we are left.
Not aware of where to go,
We turn to the Gods and the Goddesses,
And to all who we think
Can guide us, steer us,
Out of the quandary.
But ironical as it may prove,
The solution may lie with  us,
Within us, may be in our own backyard.
Not exploring our own self, 
Our own strength and stamina,
We peep elsewhere.
Belittling ourselves...
Disbelieving our inner abilities...

Friends With Troubles

There is no one on this earth
Without troubles
Some trouble or other
Always bothers you and me
I have my own quota of troubles
Constantly poking me
Continuously pricking me
I didn't know for very long
How to deal with them
I remained troubled most of time
I found a way at last
To deal with my troubles
Now I don't allow them
To overpower me
Nor do I try to ride over them
I allow them
To travel with me
By my side
I talk to them
Whenever I find time
Some of them leave without notice
With some I negotiate to leave
Some will continue the journey
I befriend those troubles
And plead with them
To come along with me
If they desire
And to be my companions
Till I die

i want to die with you

don't say...
that i don't know
what love is...
how to love...
and to leave you-
i agree...
i am ignorant of love
and i don't know
how to love -
but the only thing
i am aware is..
i want to live with you
and die with you..
i also promise you
that atleast before i die
i will know what love is,
and i keep loving you
till my last breath!

my love for you

do not ask me
why i love you-
whatever i say..
that is only a fraction
of what you are-
do not ask me
how much i love you-
whatever i say..
that is only a fragment
of what i have-
and that will not kill
but scorn my love
for you forever!

a sculptor's vow

i am a sculptor
i always yearn to convert
a hard rock into
a beautiful sculpture-
but thinking of transforming
every stone i see
into a great piece of art
is nothing but my greediness
may be that is the reason
why all my creations have
some or other defect-
however my endeavor
will not end...
one day i will
create a master piece
to the liking of one and all !

aim of life

an answer is not the end
to any question ...
certain questions
have inbuilt answers
and many answers will lead
to many a new question-
tha aim of the life is
to search for the answers
in questions
and to segregate questions
from the answers
and cross the doors of
doubt and dissatisfaction
and enter the fire of truth
before vanishing into the eternity!

i want to die with you

don't say...
that i don't know
what love is..
how to love..
and to leave you-
i agree...
i am ignorant of love
and i don't know
how to love -
but the only thing
i am aware is..
i want to live with you
and die with you..
i also promise you
that atleast before i die
i will know what love is,
and i keep loving you
till my last breath!

thirst of a poet

hollowness unfathomable
dissatisfaction inexplicable -
even after living
among the versatile thoughts
the whole day...
even after pouring every thought
on the paper -
unquenching thirst..
unending quest -
to reveal..
to decipher..
the imperceptible
the illusory and enigmatic -
to turn a hard rock
into a beautiful sculpture -
to convert a raw feeling
into an alluring poem!

wailing village

what happened to my village?
to the smiles of lush green crops
the warm greetings of innocent people
the whispering streams
the playful calves
the twilight hues and sounds
the chirping nests
and the mesmerizing monsoons...
the sweet smell of the earth
wet with a fresh drizzle..
the granneries filled with grains..
the festive celebrations...
where all have they gone?
who has taken them away?
why are the streets wearing
a deserted look?
why are the people looking lifeless?
why is my village dried up?
why is it wailing??

thoughts of a poet

the waves of an ocean
how mighty they are..
and unruly they may be..
have to meet the shore
and disappear -
the thoughts of a poet
how amusing they are
and vibrant they may be
have to converge
and settle into a word!

i love myself

i love myself-
yes i do love myself-
so long...
i have been
finding it difficult
to love others-
i was puzzled
since i couldn't get
the reason for that-
i thought i was selfish..
i love only myself..
and that's the reason
why i couldn't love ohers-
i pondered over
and i realized to my amusement..
i do not love myself either-
very sad in deed
i began to love myself..
and pampering my feelings..
now surprisingly
i am able to love everyone
as they are all same as me
as lovable as me
since then.....
i am in love with myself
and i also love others!

the fear of a fish

a small fish
in the mighty ocean
free and fearless-
moving to any depths
swimming so fast
facing the roughness
of any weather...
showing the toughness
of it's scaly skin...
escaping from the big fish
very often ...
it is not afraid of
strong and furious waves-
but can't stand
even a tiny net of
a naive fisherman!

he keeps killing us

he mows down some of us
in front of our eyes
we say we are brave
nothing can disturb us
we are all united
we show our strength of unity...
our ability to tolerate gruesome acts...
of violence and terrorism -
we pray for the departed souls...
strict vigil is maintained
and our security system is strengthened
at least for a few days...
then normalcy is restored
everyone is busy again leading their lives
peace prevails everywhere...
we have almost forgotten his attack -
suddenly he strikes again
he kills mercilessly
we raise our voices in fury
we say this is enough...
we shouldn't take it anymore...
but we calm down in no time
we are lovers of peace
we are brave any how
we all stand together
and show our grit and resilience
in such times of horror...
but it happens many a time
he targets us several times
he keeps taking our lives
to satiate his thirst to kill -
we keep watching..
we keep getting killed -
he also watches us ..
he continues to kill us !

since i met you...

whenever i see you...
the words of my heart
remain still
on my lips -
the feelings
i nourish
in my mind
couldn't stop
reflecting in my eyes-
your sight
clips my wings
and makes me inert -
i do not know...
why this happens
since the moment
i met you !

am i changed?

one day i got up
from sleep
early in the morning
and stood
in front of the mirror -
oh my God !!!
it's not me
that is reflected
in the mirror
it's someone else
looking some what cruel
with darkened face, reddish eyes...
oh..no..!
i never looked that way -
i never wanted to appear the one
seen in the mirror....
i cleaned the glass
i cleared my eyes
still it's the same image -
i couldn't understand...
have i changed...?
am i really changed..?
i do not know!
i do not know!!

I Am a Gardener

i am a gardener
i like plants
i like greenery
i move from place to place -
wherever i go
i lay a garden
i nourish the plants
like my children...
everyday feeding them
talking to them
i feel happy
when i see them
growing tall and big-
finally...
when the moment comes..
the moment to leave them
my heart becomes heavy
i start crying
as if i am leaving
my own children..
my dearest friends -
i take a vow
not to grow a garden again-
but i promptly
begin to lay a garden
all over again
where ever i go
what can i do...
after all i am a gardener
i love plants
i can't live without them!

Me and time

how eagre i have been
to be with each moment of time?
all my efforts have gone futile -
i am clueless
how those minutes
have esacaped me..
i always feel
i am in full control
of my journey with time
but when the circumstances change
i do not have a hint
every time it happens
i gather myself
i again sit all the time awake
but how i slip into deep sleep silently
i am not aware
am i incompetent?
a question always lingers in my mind
whatever it is -
i do not give up
i will try to remain awake
all the time...
to follow every movement of time !

Ending dishonesty

To end
Dishonesty...
Let us start
Respecting
Honesty and
Honest people !