Barren Land- Beauty Kena

She, sat by the window

Threads of pink and blue strewn across the table

Drooping, pooling around her feet

Her eyes sees a distant meadow covered with beautiful spring blooms

She smiles, her eyes glimmers, a sense of hope arise

Her urge to reach the meadow grows

longing to caress the new born flower spills

But to her dismay, what she saw was just a mirage

Back to reality, she remembers

That within her, there is nothing but eternal winter

A womb that won't breathe life

A womb where no seed will take root

Truth, that cannot be undone

Now she weeps

Melancholic cloud hovers over her as she grasps for air

Dragging along any hope of a child bearing

Her face

Her likeness

Her truth, causing pain acute

What remains she thinks

Either to tend the barren land

Overlooking the sea of emptiness

Or

Tend to her man

For the eternal winter have made the man distant

He craves to leave the winter to forage

For a land that is fertile

For a blood that is his own

For a life that will continue the legacy his ancestors bore

The art of detachment - Shilpa Dwivedi

I practice detachment

Like the art of killing

Slowly, mercilessly, ruthlessly

I bring my havoc

Upon your soul first

And question your worth

On the Earth

Oh no, I don't curse you

Or immerse you

In the plunges of my hatred

Oh no, I don't ditch you

Or back bitch you

In my world, so sacred

I gradually let you seep

In the deep sleep

Of my conscious

Then subconscious

Then unconscious mind

I stab you a thousand times

By being to you, kind

All your cries fall

Dead upon my ears

As I let you, at once

Pass upon my fears

I poison you first

In my ideas

Then I kill you in my nerves

Then I kill you in my muscles

Then I kill you in my actions

Then I kill you in my face

Then I kill you in my smile

Then I kill you in my heart

Then I kill you in my eyes

Until you are numb

Into my surmise

I burn you into ashes

Until you succumb

To your injuries in me

Finally,

I don't let you

Encounter death

In the hell of my place

I give you heaven outside me

And in me, a rest in peace space

Spritual Illumination- Riya Rohilla

I was dancing on the terrace on the beats of oud ,

Feeling high, smiling wide then, tears come out of blue.

First I thought It was crazy but truth blown my mind,

You are crying through my eyes

And I'm smiling by your eyes.

I can feel your pain ,

I hope you can feel mine.

Time and distance is illusion ,

You are already mine .

I thought to tell this happy feeling to someone else ,

They said it's your bubble world, here's your reality check .

We wish you'll find someone just like your dreams,

but don't you think so it is too childish .

Their words tramped all over my bubble world ,

I see shattering it's pieces all over the floor.

So I finally decided to close my door ,

Cuse I was too much magical for this logical world.

I was crying by holding peaces of my bubble world ,

Thought I could never ever ever be recovered .

But thanks to god that he made me optimistic,

I keep going with my faith in his magic tricks .

The day came when he finally came ,

He hold my hand took me on the path to the heaven .

There I foremost meet his lovely messengers,

They were none another than my fav. Taro readers .

They've ve exploded my brain with synchronization,

They re ignite the flame of magic into my heart .

I walk ahed and found Archangel Gabriel there,

He came closer and gave me 5 boxes , I stare .

I opened it and found it's MUSIC ,

which took me to another level of spirituality .

These two gifts gave words to my revire ,

I was soo happy because I get to know alot about me.

One was speaking and other singing out my soul,

For the first time in forever I felt I am understood by someone .

I was literally flying all over the moon ,

Then God opend the gate of my childhood wounds .

I was crying out my heart , feeling pain in my nevers ,

Feeling soo skeptical about my caliber .

God said this holding me tight into his arms ,

I'm with you my child no matter how hard the path .

So I finally decided to step into the gate ,

Coz I know my God is there no matter how much it pains.

One by one all the layers came to the my surface ,

And I found my self in the state of emotional breakage .

As I've already shut the doors for logical beings,

so the one who left to talk is Only me .

So I've started talking and writing all my pain ,

Confronting each emotions coming to the surface .

When I was feeling that I can't do it more alone ,

I put my hand on heart and prayed to dear God .

I started to walk alone in the dry desert , having faith that I will surely get that one drop of water .

On my next step I found a brilliant team,

They were influencer and some spritual being.

They took me to the ocean of Sprituality ,

They show reflection of devine and society .

What it looks ,how it is, what is it's reality ,

They taught me trick, how Can I handle it.

They have introduced me to my tool kit ,

Which was always there present inside of me .

It is none another than my perspective ,

Now I see how my reality is relfected .

When I understand the power of my thoughts ,

I found Life was always my friend in disguise of monster .

Life came closer and told this to me ,

That I was always working for your destiny.

Whenever I've injected pain inside of you,

It have triggered burried emotions into you.

So you can literally understand this simple thing ,

That darling you need to work you can't sit on it .

So you can evolve and meet your higher self ,

And She will show you your signed soul contract .

ALL your definition of Success that society have told you,

The name , the fame, and the cash in your bank account .

that you always thought is your passion and purpose,

it will started to seem nothing infront of your soul contract .

And when you'll do what your destined to do you'll get ,

More than you ever wished Lord to do.

And after listning to her ancient wisdom ,

My " Why me, changed to It's me life anthem .

All those emotional pain and childhood wounds ,

I finally learnt what I have to do.

I've cutted the the chord of victimization and guilt ,

and Accepted it as part of my dastan-e -zindagi .

This darkness have given a sacred spritual light to me ,

Which I can live and radiate to those who need. 🌻

Women- Chehak Kathuria

Sit like a lady, speak like a lady, behave like a lady

Where are these people when we speak about our safety

Don't be out late, don't hang out with boys

Wonder who is gonna tell them we are humans not toys.

To have power is to dictate how to dress and be modest

Anyway, who gave them the key to our closets

They choose how we spend our 24 hours

As if time management isn't already our superpower

Stepping out or staying in has become a forced choice

So scared of being called out, that they suppress our voice

They say the end goal's to be a wife, to be a mother

But what if we want none of the above

Beauty is in our silence and not on our face

Left natural, you're ugly. With makeup you're fake and a disgrace

Climbing up the professional ladder, comes with rumours and incessant chatter

And our worth being defined by people who don't matter

They say housework is no work so no perks

How about a little help if you don't wanna end up with our corpse

Opinions on our bodies and jokes at our expense

Isn't that too shallow even for those who live their life in pretence

Why were you out so late, why did you dress like that

This is where our society's at

Because of them nights bring fear

But are we even safe to soak up the sun here

चलोगे?- Gravity Singh

चलोगे?

ऐसे जहां में

जहाँ मैं

मैं कम, तुम ज्यादा हूं

तुम्हारी ही परछाई का

हिस्सा आधा हूं

जहाँ बातें हैं बातों से बढ़कर थोड़ी

जहाँ हर बात से एक याद है जोड़ी

जहाँ शब्दों से ज्यादा आंखें समझाती हैं

हँसती हैं, रोती हैं, कभी रिझाती हैं

जहाँ विस्मय है, विचलन है, विडंबना है

हर कदम से पहले सांसों का थमना है

थोड़ा असमंजस है, शायद थोड़ा ज्यादा है

स्वयं तो बस एक छलिए का प्यादा है

रातों में रंजिश का डर है

सुबह साजिश का स्वर है

छोटी सी प्यारी सी दुनिया

लिबास में भयावह डगर है

भूतकाल का भय है

भय का बस भूत है

भावनाओं का बहाव

भयकारी अभूतपूर्व है

आंखों से ओझल होती एक तस्वीर

ओस की ओट और उज्ज्वल लकीर

दोनो के मध्य में एक भीनी सी रेखा है

पारखी भले जाने, पर तुमने तो देखा है

उस रेखा से परे एक झील बहती है

एक मीनाक्षी सुंदरी उसमें रहती है

मीनाक्ष कुंतल के सिरे दो मोती हैं

एक से सुबह, एक से रात्रि होती है

सुबह के सिर पर सच्चाई का ताज है

रात्रि में सिर्फ छलावे का आगाज़ है

बहकने को राहगीर आएगा एक रोज़

तब जानेगा उस रात पर कितने ही राज़ हैं

राज़ उसका साज हैं, ख़ामोश आवाज़ हैं

छटपटाए तो छिपालो, ये राज़ लाज हैं

चमचमाने को छटपटाते हैं

इस जमाने को पढ़ाते हैं

हठ करते हैं, होड़ है

खुदसे खुदकी एक दौड़ में

भागते हैं, भगाते हैं

जागते हैं, जगाते हैं

चलोगे?

ऐसे जहां में

जहाॅं भागना पड़े पर राह न हो

जहां जागना पड़े पर रात न हो

चलोगे?

ऐसे जहां में

जहां खुशी सिमटने को आतुर होगी

चिंता चहकती सी खूब बहादुर होगी

साथ होने का, साथ सोने का जी होगा

वक्त की ढली में लम्हा लम्हा घी होगा

तिनकों से जज्बातों को आंहो की फूंक लगेगी

भरे भरे से दिल को भी जोरों की भूख लगेगी

खाली खोखले मन में गड़ी हुई कुछ बातें होंगी

बातों को यादें बनाने को कई शामें फिर रातें होंगी

दुनिया की चुप्पी में सुकून की तलाश होगी

मीलों की दूरी और धक धक दो पास होंगी

सूनी सी दीवार पर

कलाई से पोंछ कर

कुछ तस्वीर लगानी है

कभी घबरा कर

निकाल फेंक कर

फिर नई कील की जगह बनानी है

टूटे कांच को अनदेखा कर

फिर उसी तस्वीर की नजर उतारी जायेगी

बारिश रंग छिटकाएगी

कभी धूप उसपर नाच दिखाएगी

हवा संग उड़ने को तैयार मेरी किताब के मैले पन्ने

अपनी तकदीर में तेरे किस्सों को पाके मुस्काएंगे

कालिख से पुते हुए हार मान चुके हैं जो पहले ही

माहौल में उठती मीत महक में दोबारा जी पाएंगे

चलोगे?

ऐसे जहां में

जहां खिलौनों सी रंग बिरंगी एक खिलखिलाहट होगी

गुमसुम से कोने में कुछ सिसकियों की आहट होगी

बाहों में भरने को तो बाहों की भी चाहत होगी

सांसें ये तरसेंगी, इनके तरसने में लानत होगी

जहां खोए खोए से रहने में ही पाने का सुख हो

सूरजमुखी सी मीरा मैं, और सूर्य तेरा श्याम मुख हो

रेशम सी बांधनी से कलाई में मेरी रंग चढ़े

तितलियों के पंख पर कोई आयाम सा गढ़ें

जहां थोड़ा सा डर हो

कारणों की डगर हो

पत्थर से इरादों पर

धार का एक मगर हो

तुमसे सिर्फ तुम्हारी ही बात हो

संधली सा साया सदैव साथ हो

कभी छुअन में एक चुभन सी हो

हिचकिचाता हुआ चुम्बन भी हो

पलकों पर उम्मीदें रखके कभी आंखें बंद ना कर पाएं

उन्हें मूंदकर कूदना हो और वादा बस इतना किया जाए

चलोगे?

ऐसे जहां में

जहां बातें धुली हुई हो और वादे साफ

अदृश्य से आंसुओं में सच्चाई की भाप

कि हाथ तुम्हारा मेरे हाथ का हिस्सा होगा

तुम्हारा या मेरा नहीं, ये हमारा किस्सा होगा

चलोगे?

ऐसे जहां में

कि आखिरकार जब अंत आएगा

दोनो के धड़ को धरा से ढूंढा जाएगा

तो एक नहीं वहां दो जिस्म मिलेंगे

शैया में साथ सोए हुए एकसाथ जलेंगे

कि तुम ना भी होगे तो मुझमें तुम्हारा वास होगा

साधारण सी हूं तुम्हारा होना ही खास होगा

कि जान तुम में बसेगी और जान लो इतना

जान देने में भी क्षण भर संकोच नहीं होगा

खुदको पाने में खोना है, खोकर ही पाना

खुदा और खुदी से सब खुद बेखबर होगा

मेरे कफन में तुम्हें कुछ एहसास लिपटे मिलेंगे

सफ़ेद से उस कपड़े में कुछ कहानी वो सिलेंगे

सिलवटों के बीच तुम्हे अक्षर खोजने होंगे

हमेशा ठंडे रहने वाले ये दो हाथ सहेजने होंगे

आखिरी बार मेरे माथे से दो घुंघराली लट हटा देना

मुमकिन हो तो अपने होठ से मेरे चेहरे को सजा देना

आंखो में आंसू आने ना पाएं

मेरी अंतिम तस्वीरें धुंधला जाएंगी

जुदा होने के गम में पहले से नम

मेरी बंद आंखें भी पानी छलका जाएंगी

राख होने से पहले भी मैं तुमपे सिहाऊंगी

खाक हो जाने पर भी खुदको वहीं पाऊंगी

मेरी सेज से उठती लपटें भी तुम्हे इठलाती नज़र आएंगी

तुम पास खड़े रहना, तुम्हारे सर्द से दिल को तपाती हुई जाएंगी

छिटक कर चमकती हुई चार चिंगारियां तुम्हे छूने को आगे आएंगी

दो कदम पीछे लेना, इस बार की ये छुअन साफ़ जख्म छोड़ जाएंगी

कलकलाते पानी में मेरे संग मेरी यादें बहा देना

सर उठा कर पीठ दिखाना, उसी पल भुला देना

मुड़कर देखोगे तो वापस जाना मुश्किल हो जायेगा

बहतर है चले जाना, मेरे रुक चुके दिल को भाएगा

नई सी एक दुनिया बसाना

कहीं तो फिरसे मन लगाना

मेरी जगह ना देना किसी को, दिखेगा, दुखेगा

कोई आए और तुम्हे भाए तो नई जगह बनाना

उसे मेरे बारे भले ना बताना

ना ही मेरे ना होने को जताना

पर आसमां में देख पल भर ही सही

मुस्कुरा दोगे ना, ऐसे भूलोगे तो नहीं

वो मुस्कान ही मेरा दिन बना देगी

तुम खुश हो, मुझे ये धूप बता देगी

कभी अकेला पाओ खुदको तो फिर याद कर लेना

एक बार नाम लेना, किसी शीशे से बात कर लेना

तुम में मैं हमेशा हूं, तुम तब जान लोगे ना

तुमसे ज्यादा जिद्दी हूं, अब तो मान लोगे, है ना

झीनी सी एक चादर में फिर खुदको हौले से तुम ढांक लेना

तुमसे लिपटने की उसकी कोशिश से मेरे प्यार को आंक लेना

दिल भारी हो जाए तो दो मोती आंख से बहने दो

मेरा साया घर कर लेगा उन्हें संभाल के रखने को

दोनो को हथेली में थामे अपने साथ ले जाऊंगी

खो जाने का डर होगा उन्हें धागों में पिराऊंगी

दोनों हाथ में एक एक धागा

धागे में बुनी असंख्य आस होंगी

आस को आसरा देने की मांग है

भगवा ही साधु, संतरी सा ढोंगी

चलोगे?

ऐसे जहां में

जहां बिछड़ने के बाद भी मिलने की आस हो

नामुमकिन से खयालों में इतना विश्वास हो

आस होगी कि अगली बारी तुम्हारे पास होगी

सिर्फ हमे नहीं, किस्मत को भी जोड़ी रास होगी

चलोगे?

ऐसे जहां में

सोचलो, जानलो

समझ कर बतादो

निमिष भर साथ भी काफी है मुझे

साध लूंगी कभी दिया जो ये बुझे

तब तक मेरे पास ही रहो

मीठी सी दो बात सुनो

हंसके तुम भी कहलो कुछ

दो चार बातें करलें सच

तेरी आंखों में चार दिन खुदको देख लूं

गालों को चूम लूं, हाथों से हाथ सेंक लूं

हंस लूं तेरे साथ, तेरे साथ थोड़ा रो लूं

बांध लूं गलबहियों में, कभी ना खोलूं

चांदनी में चांद तांक कर

अंधेरी का इंतजार नहीं करते हैं

पास बैठ, मुझे अपना बना

तारे गिनते, कुछ बात करते हैं।

चलोगे?

ऐसे जहां में

चलोगे?

The sky is beautiful, not anymore- Bitupan Das

A beautiful night sky

Not anymore

Because you’re not here with me

To show me the magic

Through your eyes

Tonight I can’t see the stars

Maybe because there are dark clouds in my eyes

And slowly it’s raining

Raining sadness like hemoglobin

And the love like oxygen that is flowing in my blood

Through my veins

 

I am thirsty

Thirsty for your love

Your lips

How can even whiskey replace it

Wind is blowing

And it is softly touching my skin

And I am closing my eyes

To feel your hand over my body

How can even these winds

Replace the soft touch of your hand

 

The sky is beautiful

Not anymore

Because you’re not here with me

How can even the moon replace you

 

The sky is beautiful

Not anymore

Because you’re not here with me

And I am too not here with me

Because I loved you more than I loved myself

And you took me with you

The wounds of impurity - Parizad Gaur

The wounds that fill the gap with dried lips and slit skin, as dark as ashes flying in the thin air,

An "untouchable" rises from the pollution he is believed to be born from,

At night, when others sleep,

He wanders with broom tied behind his bony back,

Clapping hands,

Thump- thump

To let the "clean" know that "an untouchable" has entered so close your eyes,

The indispensable notion of being "impure"

Echoes, louder and louder in the bleeding ears of the "untouchable" that he's gone deaf,

He starts fearing his own shadow,

that falls on the land of where an

"Upper caste" walks on.

Forty five days into old age - Anya Oberai

Title : Forty five days into old age

Aged 50 years ahead .

My will holding my mental tone ,

and my mouth having a mind of its own .

Hurts me as much as others

Whence I speak .

The backyard boy was ready to help.

Off course , that skinny wretch

Could stop my old lady whimper!

Distractions and drama!

“You’re in the mood”.

Dreams and a little more of that idiocy,

unusual habits and tics,

“You’re in the mood, focus!”

What honest promises to make ,

Before I bend them and they break ?

Yes, I forgot - my mood was a stillborn.

The Backyard boy broke the television !

Bubble wrap,lying, sun soaked on the grass!

This wasn’t to happen under my vision ,

But, Blow raspberries and it’ll all pass.

I fear change and endings .

So,

I want endings - sad .

Then, that’ll make

the whole process forgettable ,

I’m not a child anymore,so I don’t have second thoughts,

I have no thoughts, really. Hail the lord !

The Backyard boy broke the only television !

And there’s Bubble wrap,lying on the grass!

What is happening under my vision ?

Just hail the lord and it’ll all pass!

I’m tired of running.

Taking two minutes

to think through everything,

Whilst always knowing

That things will remain the same

Be it Two minute before

Or two minutes after.

So dysfunctional .

Speaking of DYSFUNCTIONAl

Let’s add the societal touch .

We fail to pretend .

We can’t even pretend to pretend .

Yet, we live in crooked harmony

Like pencil in still water .

Take the incense stick out someone ,

The smoke smells too honest in here!

Lost- Alsa S

She is in her bed,

Woke up by the shiny rays of the golden Sun- That pierced through the white curtains of her room.

She walked to the kitchen,

Did her household chores,

Packed up lunch for her husband and daughter.

She saw the clock-

The time ticked fast.

Gathered up her pace,

She ran to the bathroom, cleaned up,

Tidied her hair in the mirror,

Ran out for bus.

She ran among the crowds,

Bumped into someone-

Who was once her soul, The medicine for her sorrows,

The magical element that could make her smile

Even in the darkest of days.

A person who is now a lost love.

She stood there expecting to talk to her. "Why? Didn't she see me?"

She was my life.

Why is she turning her back on me?

Amn't I supposed to be happy?

But she continued to walk away from her-

Through the crowd.

These questions passed through her mind.

The clock rang when it reached nine.

That is when she understood- She was glaring at herself through the mirror

And the person who is lost in the crowd is her self.

Blue- Saumya Mittal

The colour blue gets me everytime

It reminds me of Uranus with its rings somewhat light

Just not as loud as that of Saturn

But poetic enough for its moon's to be named after Shakespeare's characters

This color blue gets me everytime

It reminds me of the depths of the oceans

And there's unexplored life

Almost as a metaphor of our own body, soul and mind

This color blue gets me everytime

It makes me want to look at that that beautiful sky

Though beautiful more when accompanied

With a tinge if love, care and a soulmate underneath

By now you must have guessed it right

How this blue gets me elated everytime

You know there's a seed in us just as blue

That connects us to the Blue Deity and such others too

So I think of my love for this color as an ode to the Creator of all

Who reflects through his skin the color of the cosmos

Kuch ankahi baatein - Sukriti Jain

Kuch baatein hain ankahi , kahi nahi jaati hain

Dil ke jazbaaton mai khoyi si reh jaati hain

Aaj dil ki hai khwaish ki sunadu wo saari baatein

Jo khamosh hokar bhi chupke se sab kuch keh jaati hain

Soch rahi thi kaise kahoon wo saari baatein jo dil mai chippi hai

Kaise likhun wo saari yaadein jo aankhon mai basi hai

Kya likhun kalam se jo bata sake aapko

Ki aapki khushi kis tarike se hum se judi hai

Likhna to bahut chahti hun, kehna bhi bahut chahti hun

Kalam se kaagaz ko dil ka aaina hee bana dena chahti hun

Par kya likhun, kaise likhun, in sawalon ne mana rakha tha sanaata

Tabhi maine aankhein band kari aur mujhe mil gaya jawab aur wo shabd tha PAPA

Paida hone par jisne aankhon se pyaar jataaya

Jiski godd mai puri zindagi ka sukoon humne paaya

Papa wo hain jinhone hume ye jataaya

Ki chaahe kitni bhi dhoop ho wo humesha banke rahenge humari chaaya

Ungli pakadke chalna sikhaya

Bachpan ko rangeen sitaron se sajaya

Rangon ke baazigar hain papa

Jinhone apne kaale safed rang se hume indradhanush ka ehsaas karaaya

Din raat mehnat karke khushiyaan ghar laatein hain

Takleefon mai doobkar bhi takleef ka ehsaas na karaate hain

Kaise hain ye papa humare, samjhana thoda mushkil hai

Jo chup chap rehkar humari saari khwaishein puri kar jaate hain

Khatta meetha swabhav hai inka

Kabhi gussa to kabhi pyaar hai inka

Agar karein gussa kabhi, to pareshan ho jaatein hain

Kaise manaoon yehi sochte reh jaatein hain

Par kaise bataye papa apko

Aapke gusse mai chippa pyaar dikh jaata hai humko

Hum kafi baatein keh nahi paate hain

Pyaar karke bhi jata nahi paate hain

Par ye khamoshi bhi wo goonj hai papa

Jo khamoshi se dil ko pyaar ka ehsaas kara jaati hai

Takleef hume ho to dukh aapko hota hai

Khushi hume ho to haste aap ho

Pareshani aati hai to na bataakar bhi pata chal jaata hai aapko

Pata nahi papa samajh nahi aata

Ki aapke dil ka wifi connection sab kuch kaise samajh pata

Par hume pata hai papa ki humare sapne aapne dekhe hain

Humari khwaishein puri karna khwaish hai aapki

Apna mann marke humare bare mai sochna zaroorat hai aapki

Par vaada hai aaj aapse papa

Ki aapki tarah aapki khushi aur sapne honge humari zimedaari

Bahut kuch kehna chahti thi, ankahi baatein sunana chahti thi

Dil ka samundar baha diya, lehron ko kinara dilana chahti thi

Bahut kuch kehna tha par kalam ruk gayi

Kyuki aap kitne zaroori ho ye ehsaas shabdon se nahi balki dil se dil tak pahuchana chahti thi .....

Blue- Sulagna Bose

You asked me what I would do if I didn't see you again.

Maybe I will miss you,

Maybe I will cry,

Or maybe I will just come to the house we called 'home'.

Your coffee cup will still be in the kitchen counter

I will hold the blue mug and see you left a little bit of it at the bottom,

I will sip the cold leftovers.

It was brewing hot when you were here,

Now it's just blue.

Our dog will be just wagging its tail ; waiting for you to come home.

But you won't.

Ever.

I will have to break it to him.

He will stop having food for a day or two

Then will eventually give in to survival principles.

This is what we all do at the end right?

Survive?

I will forget to water the plants, the house will lose it's green

While I lose my yellow

And everything turns grey.

Your shirt will be lying on the couch,

Still smelling like you.

I will find the pair of earrings, I wanted so badly, in your pocket.

Maybe I will wear it and stand in front of the mirror,

Expecting someone to come and kiss my earlobes.

The windows of your room will still be open,

The wind-chime will chime in with a good feng-shui inside,

All the pictures framed in our room will make me realize that,

I was building sand castles of dreams just for you to destroy it once again.

I will see a paper stuck in your typewriter,

You started writing a poem;

Was it about me? For me?

I guess you always had a habit of leaving things midway.

I will clean your ashtray and keep the new pack of cigarettes beside it.

I will lie down on your side of the bed

Just to try to see things from your perspective for once.

Then I will realize how your side of the bed will never be warm again.

I will remember touching your face for the last time,

Your eyes shut, lips a fading pink, hands holding mine.

This is the only bed i can't share with you, no matter how much I want to.

A tear drop will roll down my face and no one will wipe it off,

Alexa will still be playing the old Bollywood playlist -

'तुम इन सबको छोड़के कैसे कल सुबह जाओगी

मेरे साथ इन्हें भी तो तुम याद बहुत आओगी'

I will pause the song and go to sleep,

Knowing we will be together again someday.

Dignity- Dwiti Patel

"DIGNITY"

Honour and respect is all desired world wide,

Where a good run in a rat race ,

defines mark of the man and its mates,

How lost we have been since so long

That for the approvals sake their opinions are asked for ,

While knowing that,

That this fragmentary enthusiasm won't last long ,

Cause going gaga upon it is a real ease ,

Whereas missing upon the true deep sense

Of knowing oneself

Is where the dignity flees..

-Source•°

I will sing a new song... -Varsha Chaurasia

I will sing a new song

I pray for my country..may it live long.

My country is my life

And, I love my country.

The river here quietly flows,

The wind here gently blows.

The forest here are very dense Therefore, some people think that they make a suspense.

The sun here shines very bright

And also shows the direction whether, you have to go left or right.

To make India honest, clean and beautiful

Towards are motherland we must be very sincere and faithful.

Towards others we should never feel or look jealously,

We should laugh and enjoy with them, so that they can also live with us happily....

The Real Love- Pranjali Khanna

I’ve been looking for love in the hollow spaces,

Only to realise those are the wrong places.

I’ve been seeking it in a mortal body,

That mortal love,

Perishes with everybody.

The love that is mortal,

Was never love,

For the real love is a perennial dove.

Fortunate is the one who is mindful of what real love is,

Indomitable,

Invincible,

A beautiful agony it is.

For it takes a lot of strength to love,

It takes the soul to the heights,

No one can get above.

Unmindful ones have that strength,

They find it easier to hate,

They find it easier to grab what’s on their plate,

They don’t do the searching,

They don’t pull their hands out of the glove,

They don’t know how to practice love.

Searching for it the whole time,

Finally I found the greatest love somewhere,

Where even the stones shine,

The weak don’t whine,

The saddest ones laugh,

Nothing is tough,

Even the roughest aren’t rough.

For it’s a place no one has the directions to,

Its location is known but unknown too.

If the real love is searched for,

It’d be found soon,

But if it’s misused,

It can bring doom.

I searched every nook and corner,

Every next place, even warmer.

Hot or cold,

Sweet or sour,

Soft or rough,

It didn’t matter,

Because I had to be tough,

It didn’t matter,

Because I knew what I was about to find was more than enough,

Enough to not regret my life,

Enough to not become a part of hatred that’s rife.

Because finally when I saw it,

I didn’t want anything else,

It was worth every place I decided to roam,

God opened his arms and said

“My Child, COME HOME”.

Albatross' Cry- Ankita Mishra

Dead crimson roses lay above us,

Their petals once kissed by dawn's first light,

Now rest upon a bed of time.

The dead rocks churn with agony,

Silent witnesses to time's cruel flow,

As they hear the albatross cry for its mariners,

Souls lost in sublime.

Through the bustling crowds, they roam,

Each heart a universe of its own,

Yet amidst the noise and rush,

A sense of loneliness begins to crush.

In this labyrinth of dreams and despair,

They yearn to find a soul laid bare,

A connection in this sea of faces,

To fill their void, their hearts' empty spaces.

With each sip, the poison's taste,

A bitter reminder about life,

Yet, in its venom, they find release,

An escape from sorrow.

But the albatross soars in the sky,

It cries a song of hope and redemption,

For amidst the thorns, they found light.

STARDUST - SHWETA RAI

It’s the darkest hue of grey these eyes ever saw,

This heart ever conjured,

Storm has engulfed every glimmer of light,

Death of dreams, hope and my believes,

A smoldering, combustible piece of log,

This creature has endured the harshest struggles,

Broken, scalded, scarred before,

Yet this emptiness is first to be endured,

Learnt that change is the only constant,

Is a law applicable on people,

Amazing how the world looks and flows,

With the same rhythm,

This rage and despair engulfing all the sense and sensory,

Is but an infinitesimal dot on the world’s ebb.

The food no longer tastes the same,

The mountains no longer are the salve for the pain,

Why you remain stoic and firm on the edge of this madness,

Waiting to hold me when I tire or fall,

Why you still believe in me,

Befuddles, scares and invigorates me,

The sublime stardust that you fill in my shoes,

For you I am trying to rise again.

YOUNGER SELF: School Days- Varuna Ghosh

We are raised in such a world where we are expected to be what we are not

Where suppression in the name of discipline is taught

Twelve years later I ask myself who am I

Why do I feel so shy

Our system of education

Seems more like child degradation

A system of screwing up your motivation

And this song is one of the reasons

Why it hates our generation

Teaching you how not to speak up

Wait but that person could be wrong

“So what! It’s not your problem

Don’t do anything just shutup!”

School won’t make you realise your worth

There is a lot more that you deserve

Even you don’t know the power you possess

I go back and say this to my younger self

Oh what’s that

Two people don’t think alike?!?!

“Try to be more like her”

When you’re actually beyond compare

More than teaching they just keep repeating who's better

I think that's kind of unfair

They say rejections aren’t failures but a learning process

Well how would I know that

When I’m not allowed to fail

“Oh my god!! Why did you cut your hair

Does that mean you’re gay or what are they called, queer?”

They laugh at me for what I wear

And say that school is not a place you should fear

Have you heard of the word ‘representation’

How is that not part of education

How can school ever be a better place for you and me

When a kid can’t even feel free

I hope there’s a day that these things become something no child has to go through

Maybe you could start by teaching the truth

احتساب- Anika Maheen

کبھی تاریخ کے اوراق پلٹو تو کھلے تم پر

وباؤں کا تو پورا سلسلہ ہے

وبائیں دستکیں دیتی رہی ہیں وقفے وقفے سے

وبائیں جب بھی آتی ہیں

زمین و آسماں ماتم کناں ہوتے ہیں ایسے ہی

ہزاروں گھر بکھر جاتے ہیں لمحوں میں

پرندے آشیانوں میں سمٹ کر بیٹھ جاتے ہیں

سبھی انسانیت افسردگی کے دام میں ایسے لپٹتی ہے

کہ جیسے کوئی چڑیا زیر پر منقار کو رکھ لے

روابط ٹوٹ جاتے ہیں

تعلق کی دیواریں منہدم ہو نے کو آتی ہیں

معاشی ابتری سے شاہراہیں یوں اٹی ہوتی ہیں

جیسے بھوک کا سیلاب بے قابو

ہزاروں خودکشی کی داستانیں

انگنت اموات

۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔

غرض یہ کہ

وباؤں کے توسط سے

نہ جانے کیسی کیسی آفتیں

انسانیت پر وار کر تی ہیں

۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔۔

کبھی سوچا ہے تم؟

آسماں والا

زمیں والوں پہ کیوں ایسی وبائیں بھیج دیتا ہے

بہت ممکن ہے

وہ ناراض ہو ہم سے

چلو ایسا کریں

اپنے گناہوں کی معافی مانگ لیں ہم سب

کہ رب ناراض ہو جائے

تو سجدوں اور دعاؤں، آنسوؤں سے

مان جاتاہے