august 30, 2021

august 30, 2021

midnight's border
laced with fumes
exhausted exhaust
dawn far from reckoning
the journey ending
          and beginning
dark not so dark
light not light enough
future bartered
held in abeyance

as shehnai moans

jalliaNwala bagh

 jalliaNwala bagh

nishaan goliouN kay
tum bhar dougay
tazeen o aaraish kay liyay
laikin zakh'm
lagay haiN jo
dil o dimagh per
woh tum kabhi
mita na paaou gay

image courtesy 

@MujeSakshiMaan

o

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/E-CFDm-WQAkqpp6?format=png&name=small

jub sawal na hoNgay

 jub sawal na hoNgay

poucha oos shaukh nay
aap sawaal buhat kartay haiN
kaisay kahaiN
jub sawal na hoNgay
hum bhee na hoNgay

screening impulses

 screening impulses

cloaking?
bidding
          for time
suppressing impulses
figuring out instant response
a gift denied
the mind-battles chaotic
harnessing calm reflection
a herculean effort
introspection and patience
          both elusive
karaiN tou kya karaiN

the black hole of afghanistan: or how the MIC successfully dupes every administration

 the black hole of afghanistan:

or how the MIC successfully dupes every administration

(this #tpoem will be shorter than the head)

the administration
has to shake off
the MIC vultures
or be doomed

https://youtu.be/OyBNmecVtdU

crimson flood

crimson flood

in the wasteland
tears flood crimson
death's hegemony
remains unchallenged

musings in an age of vaccines

musings in an age of vaccines

like me, do you also wish
for 'mrna' vaccines
for peace and tranquility
for truth and honesty
for tolerance over intolerance
for a half-full mindset

end of musing
now have to wonder
to go or not to go
for the booster

circle of life: sorry frost

circle of life: sorry frost

circle of life
from start to finish
(umbilical to casket)
goes up and down
forward and backward
searching for the circle
          not taken

options

options

there are times
when friends are
busy elsewhere
those are the times
feel like befriending
devil who is always 

          available

nirvana

 nirvana

     freedom
     oblivion
loss of pain
insensitiveness
or disillusionment
from here and now
peace without peace

on a bridge

on  a bridge

on a bridge
to nowhere

as the world
unravels

unaware
of the end

to traverse
or retrace

confusion
overwhelms

maskless - ii

maskless - ii

come, a trip
down memoryville
when masks
were seen in ICU only
yes, those were the days

fifty shades of the taleban

fifty shades of the taleban

in simpler times
'they' informed us
of the two kinds
the good and the bad
          of late
the pontificators
and the usual suspects
mention fifty shades
of the taleban

the seeker and the sought

the seeker and the sought

the seeker learns
and moves
                 forward
the sought
                 learns not
blinded by greed
                doomed
to replay the past

aaj ki raat

aaj ki raat

aaj ki raat
guzar janay dou
kal dekhi ja'aye gi
jo hoga seh laiNgay
kaha na aap say
aaj ki raat
guzar janay dou

curriculum woes

curriculum woes

single curriculum
abandoned schools
ghost teachers
no students
carry on mr know-all cricketer

aik kitab
aik nisab
khander school
ustaad mafroor
bachchay ghayab
karlo siyasat
darakht ugao

flags

flags

a flag goes up
a flag come down
a flag is unfurled
a flag is folded
and handed to the family
the life for the inhabitants
remains unchanged
suffering continues

august 2021

august 2021

chalo aaj
tasalli e dil ka
kuch samaan kerlaiN
khushiyaaN mana laiN
kal phir....

let us
enjoy and be merry today
tomorrow
is another day...

shish jehat: clash of the lilliputian

shish jehat: clash of the lilliputian

in all six dimensions
this era portends
clash of the lilliputians
jonathan would be swift
to be amused
at huntington's expense

shish jehat hay
qehat ur rejaal
her soo'

it was a dark cloudy night

it was a dark cloudy night

'once upon a time"
and
"there was a time"
in literature
now denote
the era
before covid

aik sawaal

aik sawaal

bhaiyo aur behno
yeh jo shaa'er hazrat 

likhtay haiN
"jaan leva muskurahat"
kya yeh
"crimes against humanity"
(انسانیت کے خلاف جرائم)

nahiN hay?

durr

durr

aapko humaiN
durr kis ka hay?
durr kya hay
kis rung ka hay
kis nas'l kay hay?

apni dagar chaltay haiN
dakhal andazi kertay nahiN
phir kyuN had'f buntay haiN?
kya yeh durr
mansoob hay paidaish say?
khittay say? dharam say?
ger hay
tou humara kya qusoor hay?

peace

peace

if the dead could speak
justice would bloom
peace would reign supreme

morning smile

morning smile

in these unsettled times
miss the early morning smile
easing the flow of day's bad news
in these unsettled times
the morning smile often
does not show up
          and if it does
it is late in the day

haar-jeet

haar-jeet

haar-jeet tou
hoti rehti hay
jo mazah
haar ker
jeetnay maiN hay
woh la-jawaab hay

@ArshadNadeemPak

for HN and RI

for HN and RI

do not be sad
or despondent
when the time is up
we got to go
our friend lives
in another dimension
          some day
when our time
also runs out
(as it must)
          hopefully
we'll meet up
with him and others
till then raise a glass

olympic colours

olympic colours 

these days

colours dominate 

gold, silver, bronze and red

(will refrain from talking blood)

the olympic chief

for the last 17 years

deserves a medal

for not winning one

and there is the know-all PM

qualified to win gold 

for most U-turns

for moeed

for moeed

am not anxious
nor perturbed
for she has not called me
neither did he
wish could say
the battery is low
but truth must be shared
have misplaced the cell

shuk'r al ham'd

shuk'r al ham'd

kabhi yeh khayal
kabhi nahiN aksar
kerta hay gardish
phans ga'aye kahaaN hum
phir jub  sun'tay haiN
ehvaal e watan e aziz
tou  shuk'r al hamd
kay saath kertay haiN sab'r

roz aati hay ik na'ee qayamat

roz aati hay ik na'ee qayamat

jaatay jaatay oos shoukh nay kaha
milaiNgay ab roz e mehshar maiN
muskurah ker kaha hum nay ab
hogi mulaqat aap say her roz

unmarked graves

unmarked graves

ignore the mausoleums
on the  unesco heritage list
ponder about those tales
of victory and struggle
love and sadness
smiles and tears, buried
in the unmarked graves
wreathless, abandoned and
ignored by the barely living
who would soon occupy one