Friday 8 January 2016

Unusual Homecoming

   




                                          UNUSUAL HOMECOMING
                       



                                    Home he did come that ill-fated day,
                                     But  none had thought the way he did,
                                     All wrapped up in the solemn tricolour,
                                        Sure symbol of ultimate honour.




                                     Truly it was the most befitting honour,
                                     For a braveheart so  bold  and daring,
                                     Who put himself at stake without fear,
                                      To ensure that the nation doesn't suffer.
                                                                                                                                                                                                            Devotion to duty was his prime concern,
                                     Fighting till the end to foil the attack,
                                     Paying  his flesh  and blood as the cost,
                                     He set an example of supreme sacrifice.

                                     The strike having been foiled  now,
                                     The guns are silent  for a while,,
                                      But the sounds of anguish still resound,  
                                      Inside and around the home he lived.

                                      Which had  hoped he would, someday,
                                      Come back alive, secure and gay,.
                                       Instead came the bolt from the blue,
                                       Bringing him home this gloomy way!

                                       Heaps of flowers and wreaths offered,
                                        Tributes and messages of condolence,
                                       Are but poor solace to the   kins,
                                         Shattered by the sudden blow.


.                                        Words and gestures of sympathy,
                                        Can hardly lessen so profound a grief,                                                                                                           What can compensate  the loss,   
                                         So immense and beyond repair?

                                        The only healing thought is that,
                                        He gave his life  for the country's sake
                                        And that will  keep his name alive,
                                         Forever in our minds and hearts.
                         

                         
Written as a tribute to the martyrs of Pathankot terror attack.

Saturday 2 January 2016

Musings over a Passing Day


            It's new year eve again,
            And I am happy,
            But a little bit pensive too.,
            Silently I hear the clock tick,
            And watch the tiny moments,,
            slip from my hands,
            Like grains of sand,
            In the hourglass.

               Time ---the mightiest of the mighty,
               The subject of  eternal wonder,
                wrapped in folds of mystery,
                 Defying all human wisdom,
                 At defining its peculiar history.

                    I, too, often wonder,
                    As to how its unseen hands,
                     manage this vast universe,
                     Its myriad life forms,
                     And even insensate things.

                     Like a traveller ever on the move,
                     It goes on forging ahead,
                     Turning days into months and years-
                     Centuries and millennia.

                      On what fateful day of yore,
                      Did it set out on this unique voyage,
                      What undiscovered  continent,
                      Is it headed forever to ?

                      And here we are trying,
                      To bound its eternal run,
                      Into the frames called tenses,
                     Past, Present and Future.

                     But where are the lines of  divide,
                     Or do they at all exist?
                    My mind is dwelling again,
                    On this perpetual riddle -

                     About the  nature  of  Time,
                     That always seems  beyond,
                    The knowledge of human  minds,
                    Through all the ages bygone.

                     As to how its magic wheel,
                    Carries us always forward
                    On the cycle of  past and present
                    To the future ever unknown!





              


Wednesday 16 December 2015


                                       In Memorium ......................... Lest we should Forget
     Let us all bow  in reverence and gratitude, my countrymen,
        to the memory of those brave hearts
          who stood  as an iron wall  facing the shower of bullets
         to defend the sanctity of the Parliament, the pride and honour of the  nation
       Despite Death  dancing around, did not leave the post of duty
          till the nasty plot of terror was not foiled and smashed to the ground!
          
                            And we all, across the country, heaved a sigh of relief !!
Could it have been possible without the keen alertness and valiant action of a handful of security personnel?
  And, Alas  ! some of them did not live to see the result of their eventful fight!
     But  their supreme sacrifice  has been definitely  engraved in the history of martyrdom
   as  well as in the hearts of people who, I  am sure, will not forget to light a few candles
                              in their hallowed memory  !

Monday 14 December 2015

In Memorium --------------- Lest we should Forget

                                                                                                       December 13, 2015
                    Let us all bow, my countrymen,
                    in reverence and gratitude,
                  To the  memory of  those bravehearts,
                  Who faced the shower of bullets,
                  To defend the sanctity of our Parliament.

                   And did not leave the post of duty,
                   Till the  nasty  plot of the terror,
                  Was  foiled and brought  to the ground,
                 Making all of us heave a sigh of relief.

               Could it have been possible,
               Without  the keen alertness, 
               And valiant  action  performed,
              By a handful of security persons?

               And some of them did not live to see,
               The outcome of their gallant feats.,
                But the day and date will remain,
               Engraved  in the  history  of  martyrdom,
 
             As well as in the hearts of the people
             who, I am sure, will not forget to light
             A candle or two in their hallowed memory
            On this day every year.

Wednesday 25 November 2015

Desecrating the Deity.

        Violence!  Bloodshed ! Massacre ! Hatred and callousness being inflicted upon innocent people across the world.  And all these insane acts being done in the name of religion.                                                   What a fallacy of ideas to profess cruelty and god in the same breath!  Can this play of ill will please God who, by all believers over the world, is regarded as the ultimate source of love and kindness?.                          Is it not blasphemous to link His name with such devilish acts and blemish His holy image?                              Besides sinful sacrilege, these votaries of violence, also indulge in killing the very essence of human values and ethos of the age they live in. Sadist to the core, they love wrecking havoc on the civilised world every now and then.      The situation is grave indeed and seems to be going out of control at the hour.  Isn't there a way out?   Is our age-old civilisation doomed to be annihilated?  A dreadful nightmare to imagine!   Despite the grim situation prevailing around, I wish to hope (against hope ) that maybe, all is not yet lost.                      The optimist in me keeps dreaming that sooner or later a day will dawn with the light of reason and good sense that will dispel the darkness of delusion and bring them back on the path of righteousness. The world will again become a better place for everyone to live in peace, sans fear.
         In the meantime, let us hope so and pray together!

Friday 6 November 2015

GIVING A DAUGHTER AWAY

       A queer experience it is, a feeling that defies description, an emotion beyond expression.
        Thoughts of varied colours blended together in a peculiar mode, overwhelming you with a mood never known before.
                                You don't know what to name it !
     Is it a sense of self-satisfaction at having performed a parental duty gracefully in accordance with the established customs?
          A  sense of relief that your beloved daughter is going to enter a new phase of life that holds the promises of a rosy future with the fulfilment of all her happy dreams?
        Or is it a late realization that you entrusted the future of your loving daughter to the mercy of a stranger?
            Regret, that you consented to give her away rather early, while it could be done a little later?
         Apprehensions, will or won't she be granted the same love and care she has been brought up with, and will she be ensured protection as was done right from birth up to her present age?
  Or is it the fear of impending loneliness back at home caused by the glaring
    absence of a darling child?
The chain of unsavoury thoughts keeps confusing the mind, making it difficult  to
know which of them is the hardest to cope with.
             But then, as it always happens, Prudence gets the better of emotions and rhyme and reason begin to prevail, asserting the truth that we are merely a link in the ages-old tradition and are bound to act as our predecessors have been doing since time immemorial.
          Hence, no matter how painful the parting, how deep the sense of loss, how dreadful the worries about her future, the fact remains that she is born a daughter, an asset that belongs to others and therefore must be parted with, a loving farewell
is all we can give her with gifts of blessings and good wishes in abundance for her happy going in the new household. Tears may be welling up in the eyes but must not roll down till she is believed to have entered there to a cordial welcome, marking the beginning of celebrations henceforth, extending to the whole of her lifetime!

Monday 5 October 2015

No kind action ever stops with itself ,one kind action leads to another .Good example is followed .A single act of kindness throws out roots in all directions and the roots spring up  and make new trees . The greatest  good that kindness does to others is  that it makes them kind themselves .
                                                                                                                    Amelia Earheart