jab'r o qad'r

 jab'r o qad'r

existential dilemma
desiring without deserving
deserving without desiring

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot.com

lonely in the pandemonium

 lonely in the pandemonium

by the roadside
sat this hirsute man
ignoring the din and the dirt
scribbling notes all-day
and late into the night
pausing to talk to himself
but seldom with passersby
was he lonely
or content within his self?

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot.com

if there were no words

 if there were no words

who would have read

mir, ghalib, ten commandments

who would have described

mother's loving look

infant's smile

lover's embrace

down the centuries

reaching our comfort zones

artists' canvas do convey

but the printed word

over whelms

revised

#tpoem

#www.baithuk.blogspot.com

intezaar aur mjuntazir

 intezaar aur  mjuntazir

        intezaar
kisi na kisi baat ka
       hota hay
her kas o nakas ko
muntazir hona
       albatta
ik a'lug baat hay
her intezar kernay wala
muntazir hota nahiN hay

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot.com

the darkness

 the darkness

darkness
reveals
the truth
not visible
in the light

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot.com

keep the door ajar

 keep the door ajar

live with the door ajar
no walls to bar where
birds, beasts, bores 
roam without hindrance
walls and locks suffocate
mind, body, relationship

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot.com

 a blessing

the lucky ones know how to wait
the unlucky waste the moment
patience breeds virtue and pays off
impatience spoils the pickings
wait and you will be rewarded

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot.com

weh'm ya saraab

 weh'm ya saraab

woh mera weh'm tha

ya aankhoN ka saraab

ik muddat huee hay

is ki joos'tu'jooo maiN

woh weh'm tha ya saraab

jo bhee thaa yaad ooski

mehfooz hay is dil maiN

     

#tpoem #www.baithuk.blogspot.com

nothing matters

 nothing matters

when we're
deprived of
oxygen


#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot.com

goals

 goals

analytical minds
seeks gargantuan goals

plebeian minds
vociferously indulge
in current events

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot.com

naqsh aur naqqash

 naqsh aur naqqash

ha'rum e dil maiN
sab't hu'aye naqsh
-woh muskurahat,
-woh yaadaiN
               
kisi shuhra-aafaq  
naqqash kay
taraashay hu'aye  
mujassam say
kum nahiN

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot.com

the sun - two views

 the sun - two views

looks down
sees nothing
         different
burns some more

sunrise or sunset
make little difference
in our cacophonous
existential dilemma

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot.com

yaad tri buhat aaee aaj

 yaad tri buhat aaee aaj

hai zaalim
yaad tri buhat aaee aaj
tri khusboo
tri taazgi
woh lizzat bharay lamhay
is barfzaar maiN
yaad tri buhat aaee aaj
o khalifa ki naankhatai


#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot.com

taqdeer humari kaun badlay ga?

 taqdeer humari kaun badlay ga?

woh jis ka plaster
kabhi is tang per
kabhi oos tang per
hota hay?
ya woh jo haiN munharaf
apnay haqeeqi baap say?
(ji yeh ik teer say dou....)
ya bhai ghulam hussain qureshi?
hum tou saat dihayouN say
haiN muntazir


#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot.com

hirsute con artists

 hirsute con artists

promises for the faithful
by hirsute faithless con artists
with rosaries in hands

beyond azure skies
hidden heavens offering
mythical rewards
for good behavior

they think they can fool
all of us all of the times

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot.com

smiles - alluring and deceptive

 smiles - alluring and deceptive

deceptive

late night at the bar counter
friend introducing a stranger
gathering of inlaws

alluring
amor's
infant's, child's
mother's holding the child

so tell me sheila
oh wait! don't. #tpoem #www.baithuk.blogspot

@sheilabenson

Resolution for the day , "Smile" ! ... Just to prove a friend wrong !

paani

 paani

kahaani
paani ki
oos ki
farawani ki
kar gaee
paani paani
bum hay paas
qalander nahiN hay

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot

what is the end game?

 what is the end game?

when the sun does not rise
and the whole world glows
drowned in disbelief
drained of emotions
screens, minds, papyrus
go blank, senses desert
and the infant forgets
                      to smile
  
#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot

bored and boring

  bored and boring

a bore is a bore
who has depleted
his inquisitiveness
a bore is a bummer
marvel i a child
          any child
for the child
is never bored

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot

a balancing ad

 a balancing ad

dreamt this @Shiringul
mother returns home
from a busy day
at the hospital
father in apron smiles
takes her coat
and points to the dinner table
where children await
voice over says
"abba aur dalda
khushaal gharana"

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot

is wisdom dead?

 is wisdom dead?

can't be dead
lurking around
         probably
wisdom's soul is
blessed by khizr
ask me not
for i know not
ask shaikh saadi
he found it
in all unlikely places
and persons

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot

@OL_Spirit  Is wisdom dead?

have faith but...

 have faith but...

kishwar nahid
trusted her maid
lost her valuables

we do not learn
repeatedly trust
the politicians
the establishment
who rob us blind
time and again

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot

https://jang.com.pk/news/1179228

exercycle

 exercycle

pak politics
an exercycle
pedal hard
       sweat
get nowhere

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot

bricks: old and new

 bricks: old and new

old

monuments
forts, palaces
archeological sites

new

concrete forests
partition walls
censoring conscience


#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot

observations

 observations

some talk but listen not
give them a wide berth
others listen but talk not
follow their writings
check out their canvases
they enrich our world

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot

perception

perception

real is unreal
unreal is real
we walk in the fog
of self-created myths
and fight with sharpened words
to kill the other self

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot

@sheilabenson
Nothing is as it seems ...

another day

 another day

gathering graffiti
after the festivities
the garbage collectors
        picked up
newly minted resolutions
wonder if any were yours

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot

erased borders

 erased borders

geographical borders
cannot be erased
himalayas, nile, danube

manmade national borders
always in flux

friend's borders  -- perhaps
but a true aashiq's (lover's)?
cannot be erased

it is ordained

___________

@SonyaKassam

if you draw the line
someday it shall be crossed
footmarks over time
recognise no boundaries
someday we shall erase borders

2023: look back - look forward

 2023: look back - look forward

be not like
the moulvis, the mullahs
pujaris, pandits, purohits
priests, preachers, popes
who drive looking
into the rearview mirror

learn, stay safe, look forward
some good may touch you

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot

aah o fughaaN

aah o fughaaN

khuwandgi
zawal pazeer
degreeiaN jaali
khundar school
a'saatza ghayab
unpaRh bachchay
aur dohri bhurmaar
taalim yaafta juhalaa

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot

lamentation

lamentation

literacy down
fake degrees up
schools in ruins
ghost teachers
youth uneducated
double whammy
the educated
don't educate
(themselves)

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot

holy pity

holy pity

the moulvis, the mullahs
pujaris, pandits, purohits
priests, preachers, popes
who drive looking
into the rearview mirror
bless them
    with
        holy
            pity

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot

aqsaam e fasurdgi

 aqsaam e fasurdgi

youN to haiN
ghum hazaraha
laikin hay jo
ghurbat ka ghum
bhari hay woh
sub ghumoN say
ger ho na yaqeen
tou pooch lo
sailab zadgaaN say
bay rozgaroN say

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot

jaam e jamshed

jaam e jamshed

mehfil thee baam per
jhalak rahay thay
jaam per jaam  
maizban nay poocha
'aapki ki pasand?'
kaha hum nay
'hay justujoo
ik jaam e jamshed ki'

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot

andruni musarrat

 andruni musarrat

bar'f zyada nahiN giri
khabroN say perhaiz kya
aa'aye jo azaab aa'aye
ukraine, talibaan, afraat e zar
hawaii adday per taakhir
saRkoN per haadsaat
canvas per acrylic chiRka
andruni musarrat say 
faizyaab hu'a

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot

feel good

 feel good

not much snow accumulation
so no need to clear the driveway
did not listen or read the news
about any impending doom
ukraine, inflation, taliban
airport delays, road accidents
dabbed acrylic on the canvas
             feel good

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot

snowflake / bar'f ka toda

snowflake / bar'f ka toda

snowflake

said the snowflake
see you later


bar'f ka toda  

jaatay jaatay
kehnay laga woh
achcha phir milaiNgay

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot

season's greetings

 season's greetings

      rain
turning to snow             
holiday rush
flight cancellations
disappointed families
worst storm warning       
cold turkey
but the silver lining
   the soaked cake
the jamaican neighbour
bakes every christmas

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot

smell or aura, parveen?

 smell or aura, parveen?

water sprinkled on dusty roads
in the afternoon
spilled kerosene or gasoline
freshly bathed infant
soiled diapers, garbage bins
all have smells
pleasant or unpleasant
but the beloved
    has an aura
        not a smell

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot

gardish e ...

 gardish e ...

...ayyam
...aalum
...taqdeer
...aasmaan
...shub o roz
...nau-paanch
aur ikhtitaam
aap aur hum

#tpoem
#www.baithuk.blogspot

waqfa

 waqfa

sunheri ghuroob e aftab
saahil ko choomti lehraiN
khanay peenay ka ifraat
b'jooz aiyaashana zindagi
arzoo satati hay
ghar maiN bu'nee chai
aur apna bistar

#tpoem
www.baithuk.blogspot  

interlude over

 interlude over

golden sunsets

waves kissing the beacherlude

plentiful food and drinks

idyllic living

but now longing

for home-brewed tea

and the welcoming bed

#tpoem

(sunday)