Crux of Life

Amidst mountains,
Sheathed in rain,
Dwarfed by snow,
I met my fears,
And saw it grow.

When you face,
Sheer nothingness.

When you realize,
Human insignificance.

When Nature is,
Your best ally.

When Elements become,
Your worst opponent.

When caution is,
Basic survival.

When abandon is,
Guaranteed risk

When you understand ,
Life’s illusion.

When you accept,
Death’s deception.

Amidst mountains,
Sheathed in rain,
Dwarfed by snow,
I faced my fears,
And let it go.

Forgotten Soldiers

A visit to the War Memorial
Made me wonder
About this creed of people
Who set aside their lives
At the beck of their country

Who pick up thorns
So that we are left with only roses

Who stand in the unflinching cold
So that we are warm in the hearth

Who sweat in the unforgiving heat
So that we are cool by the shade

Who disguise their fear
So that we stay strong

Who embrace darkness
So that our lives are always lit

Who plunge deep in despair
So that our hopes stay afloat

Who leave behind their family
So that we can stay with our loved ones

Who die young
So that we live through old age

Who become a fading memory
So that we build our legacy

A heartfelt salute
And a promise
To all those heroes
Whose names have been
Etched in eternity
On the Memorial Walls

We will become
The beacon of hope
To achieve your dream
Of making this World
A better place
Where there is only
Harmony, Peace and Love
And where no Soldier
Ever loses their life to War

Mother Nature

Mother Nature – in its glory,
Bestowed her love on us,
Celebrated our life,
And embraced our struggles.

In our greed,
We trivialized her gifts,
Took her liberties for granted,
And abused our privileges.

Like a valiant warrior, she took it all,
Without a murmur.
But with time, her tough facade,
Is beginning to crumble.

Mighty mountains with a strong demeanor,
Now longs for some rest.

Fiery volcanoes spewing fire,
Now seeks solace for its burning soul.

Turbulent seas with rough waves,
Now longs for the calm.

Arid deserts lost in oblivion,
Now seeks companionship.

Beautiful valleys with unseen scars,
Now longs acceptance.

Snow landscapes with ruthless wind,
Now seeks warmth.

We have delayed,
Yet it’s not too late,
To turn back the wheels,
And recompense.
To recreate all that we have lost,
And rebuild burnt bridges.

Friends

We often come across strangers
Who become so close
That it gets difficult
To think of a time
When we didn’t know them

We also come across friends
Who become so distant
That it gets difficult
To remember those times
When things were better

While young
Surrounded with friends
We tend to believe
Everything we see
Everything we hear
Unable to see through pretences

But as we grow wise
We learn to see through facades
And we realize there are only
A few gems among many stones

These gems, called friends
Love us for who we are
Cheer us for our victories
Support us through failures
Embrace us with our weaknesses

Our sorrows
Becomes bearable with their presence
Our happiness
Becomes double with their existence

Their radiance
Erases all negativity
Their zeal
Brightens up the mundane

Friends, bestowed by the Almighty
Are our priceless treasure
To be cherished for life!!!!

Daughter

Creation of life
Is the most precious gift
Yet birth of a child
Becomes a bane
If it is a baby girl

A mother’s happiest moment
Turns into her worse nightmare
When celebration of life
Is replaced by a sense of acute fear

She has heard of atrocities
Meted out to baby girls
When the very guardians
Morph into demons

But she will not let her daughter
Become another statistic
With an iron will, she will rise
Above the patriarchal society

She will set an example
For all those women
Who cower under
The pressures of the society

She will raise her daughter
In a land

Where she is revered
And not shunned
For being a girl

Where she is a free spirit
And not weighed down
By misogyny

Where her life
Is her decision
And not an extension
Of society’s beliefs

Yes, she will be
The change
As today, though she gave life to her daughter
Her daughter gave life to a woman!!!

My Ideal World

 

I pine for a world,
With no boundaries…

Where nature is revered,
Not merely trivialized…

Where knowledge is your identity,
Not a mere degree…

Where hard work is your foundation,
Not a mere lineage…

Where love is the voice,
Not mere languages…

Where humanity is your religion,
Not some mere ideologies etched in stone…

Where an individual opinion is a statement,
Not other’s right to judgement…

Where behavior is an individual belief,
Not a coercion of the society’s belief…

Where freedom is a way of life,
Not a luxury enjoyed by a few!!!

A New Beginning

Yet again I am at a crossroad
Wondering which road to take

The regular trodden path
Adopted by many
Or the unknown path
Braved by a few

Crowd favors the first
Calling it a risk-free life
My heart yearns for the second
Saying what is life without adventure

I refuse to be tamed by the ordinary
I refuse to let others break me
My body might be battered
But my spirit is invincible

My life beckons me
To live on my terms
Where Promises replace Rules
Where Passion replaces Drudgery
Where every Night is the end
And every Morning – A New Beginning

RIGHT OR WRONG

RIGHT OR WRONG

Right and wrong – are they different sides of the same coin??

When two countries fight, who is right  and who is wrong?

Aren’t they both protecting their people??

When mind is in conflict with the heart, who is right and who is wrong?

Mind which looks for many reasons to disapprove or heart which looks for just one reason to approve??

When your duty is at war with conscience, who is right and who is wrong?

Duty which requires you to orphan another’s chid or conscience which, requires you to orphan your child??

A world which increasingly believes in black or white,

How does one explain to this world the depth of the grey area??

Where everyone is looking for a reason to claim the right and blame the wrong to the other,

How does one explain that there is no right or wrong??

Is there any end to this madness,

Or is this the beginning of the end???