जाने कब, कहाँ

जाने कब, कहाँ छोड़ आये हम उसको
या,
कौन जाने वो कब, कहाँ छोड़ आगे बढ़ गयी हमें,
ज़िन्दगी साथ ही तो चल रही थी हमारे,
जब नज़र मिली थी उससे.

सपने भी वो सारे ले गयी शायद...
बेज़ार, वीरान थीं जब मिलीं थीं हमें
 कल, आईने में दो बेचारी आँखें!

 jaane kab, kahaan chhod aaye hum usko
ya,
kaun jaane vo kab, kahaan chhod aage badh gayii humei.n,
zindagi saath hiii toh chal rahi thi hamare,
jab nazar milii thii usase.

sapne bhi vo saare le gayii shaayad...
bezaar, viiraan thi.n jab mili.n thi.n humei.n
kal, aaiine mei.n do bechaari aankhe.n!

A menace of its kind

"It's been irking me ever since I read in the news about a youth being thrown out of the train by eunuchs, today!" I wrote, on May 27, 11, but couldn't go on, for some inexplicable reason/s!


The sight of a drunk 'eunuch' trying to cajole money off any and every guy that he passed by, by clinging to them, and even pecking some odd guy brought it all back!


A winter afternoon on board the A.P. Express, en route to Delhi. I bring out a couple of poories and some vegetable fry, of my meager meal, and before I can lay my hands on it, a eunuch has turned up, and taken a bite out of my plate! Not just this, he has the audacity to tell me that he had just had a bite, to taste it, asking me to have the rest of it! He didn't like my idea of taking it all since he'd already 'tasted' from it!


At least I got away just with eating two poories less! The men in the train have to bear with their flirting and stuff and part with some of their money, or handle abuses and curses hurled at them, in generous measures!


As kids we saw eunuchs come over (uninvited of course) to people's houses if they had a baby boy or married off a son. They'd sing and dance to the tunes of dholak and manjire and bollywood songs. They'd bless the baby/the newlywed and their family and then, demand exorbitant 'inaam' (presents) in cash or gold!! Refusing them entailed inciting their wrath, and bearing with their threats of unclothing themselves right there, in public, to humiliate the unrelenting 'host'! People ended up parting with quite some money, food grains, even a piece of jewelery at times, other than some hours' time, in the name of saving their integrity!


The nuisance has taken a much colossal and uglier shape by now, what with their presence spreading its wings to trains, and even traffic signals now! With them knowing no bounds, from embarrassing everyone around, to even harassing them and now, pushing them out of running trains, things have really gone out of hand!


Yea, and they go scot-free, of course, given our superstitious, eunuch-fearing  society--police et al.!

There was not a whisper heard.
No one spoke...yeah, no word.
A little snap, and it was gone,
No ripple caused in anyone's world


Had the time just stood still?
Wouldn't of course, for some 'run of the mill'!
All that lay was some broken glass.
Who could say, of a broken heart!

Jam's Chronicle: Review of A Thousand Splendid Suns

Jam's Chronicle: Review of A Thousand Splendid Suns: "'Suggest me a book to read', I asked my friend . ' A thousand splendid suns ', came the reply in a blink! 'But, its not for a light readin..."

इस पल में...

इस पल में जी ले तमाम उम्र अपनी,

कल का दिन जाने क्या साथ लायेगा .

इस पल में कर ले हर तमन्ना पूरी अपनी,

कल न जाने किस शक्ल में आयेगा.

"isa pal mein jii le tamaam umra apni,

kal kaa din jaane kya saath laayega.

isa pal mein kar le har tamanna poori apni,

kal na jaane kis shakl mein aayega."

The ants 'episode'!

The other day I saw a patch of black on my bathroom wall, with specks of white in it. The sight transported me back into time...

A little girl crouched on the ground, next to a black patch on it, watching it closely--perplexed, amused, intrigued...Her mom, seeing her glued to the spot came over, to see what was going on with her daughter. The girl couldn't hold back further, and soon her mother was showered with a volley of questions! "What's wrong with these ants?" "Where are they all going?" How did sooo many ants get together?" "Are the little white things they are carrying, their luggage?"

Mom, her smile wider now, said "The ants have their own mechanism to know that the monsoons are round the corner, and it'll start raining after some time. So, they move from their current colony to a safer place. This is what these ants are doing right now. And, the little white things they are carrying are their grub which will hatch one day, and become ants like these ones."

The girl had sheer awe writ large on her face...her mom must have been thrilled at that priceless sight! (I'd have said here "wish I had a way to find out for sure" but I won't...any mom would have felt this way!)

The girl didn't forget what her mom told her, and not many days after the 'ant' episode, she came dashing to her mom, straight into her arms and said "can i go to the terrace and bathe in the rain?" Of course her mom couldn't say "no"! She never could, when her daughter asked to go get drenched in the rain...she even joined her if she could, at times!

I woke up to the sounds of pouring rain this afternoon...and that little girl from the past came bounding out! "Wow!! the ant thing worked this time too!! I knew it would!" She smiled...thrilled beyond measure!

"Wow! Am so happy! Am thrilled! :)" I texted my friend (my rain and clouds advisor :P) "It's been raining for almost an hour :) n its so cool! :) Is this monsoon?"

"Wow! I think so." He replied. "Visit www.imd.gov.in to see the satellite picture."

I did...checked the 'infrared' images per his instructions, and thought..."it must be monsoon!"

Out peeked the little girl then..."didn't you see all those ants with their grubs? This 'is' monsoon!"

They're so close to the nature, they don't need satellite images and sophesticated instruments and gadgets to figure this out--the ants! We do! We've come such a long way...so far away from nature, we can't hear her anymore!

ये चाँद

सो जाऊं ज़रा मैं आँखें मूंद ,

ये चाँद जो यूं ताका न किये.

कह दे ज़रा कोई इससे,

खिड़की से मेरी झांका न किये.

On Children

Your children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life’s longing for itself.
They come through you but not from you, 
And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.

You may give them your love but not your thoughts,
For they have their own thoughts.
You may house their bodies but not their souls,
For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow,
which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.
You may strive to be like them,
but seek not to make them like you.
For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.

You are the bows from which your children
as living arrows are sent forth.
The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite,
and He bends you with His might
that His arrows may go swift and far.
Let our bending in the archer’s hand be for gladness;
For even as He loves the arrow that flies,
so He loves also the bow that is stable.


~ Khalil Gibran

from a different plane...

You probably can steal my smile that's yet to come from happy moments spent with you;
but can't rob those that I have safe in my memory vault, from happy moments gone by!
And...until then,
I'm rich...for I have made safe deposits of precious memories as I earned them, dear World! :)

In the darkest of dark depths where hand sees not hand,
I live in the light of these smiles, I thrive!
so come not to me if u so wish.
I'm gud by myself as can be!
for I live in the light of these smiles and I thrive!
for I have made safe deposits of precious memories as I earned them, dear World!

I am...

The bounding snow, that gives,

and gives with all her might.

Light and gentle, falls quietly, all around.

A pleaure to your eyes, until trodden all over

...dirt smitten and hardened

...driven to nothingness...by you!

Cold and severe yes, but just

to have you kindle a warmth in you

Much warmer within, at all times though...

As nothing does, I will not last either!

I am the bounding winter snow...

It'll soon be time for me...

...here the winters go!

He'll be back

T'was the crescent so loved...yet a little less bright
"it'll be brighter tomorrow, and thicker, as it grows."
I told my uneasy self.
I looked up today, to check in on it, and be sure.
Oh! but he was gone--the waning moon.
Some moon that was...

"He'll be back...just a matter of days"
I told my despairing self, and smiled!