phoenixrising

  Vijaya Diwas   10 years of forgetfulness 10 years devoid of tears…   No resounding booms to punctuate  The silences that now follow, No cries of war No silent prayers    The bullets that pierced  a  soldier’s flesh  And bled a mother’s heart dry  Death awarded to those  Who, fear so bravely defied.    The thousand deities  Of the Indian soil.. Looked on as they fell Not a finger they raised to help, No flashes of lightning Simply the fires of hell…   Heaven ceased to exist in those days, Leaving in it’s wake not a single ray, An extinguished sun  And a cavernous  darkness …   Nowhere more pronounced  Than in the recesses of the mind Where memories of kargil Seem to have been left behind…   For those too young to remember  For those too old to try,   It’s not  death that concludes life , It’s when  life’s  memory dies.    For those faces named and ...

Your sins  Connected to the colour your skin Your crimes Attached to your local clime.  Your love Extends to only you and yours  Your hate  To everyone else, therefore.  The skull cap you wear,  The cross you bear,  The rudraksh you hold, Your soul is yet sold.  Denounce everything,  That you do not understand  Condemn all,  That opposes your  chosen brand  The only name,  That’s written on your sand,  Must be yours,  And yours alone.  Your God,  Is odd.  In that he calls for the blood.  Of everything that he creates.  Your goddess,  She waits,  Till it’s too late,  To stop the screams of fate.  None to save  Only a path to pave.  To drown all life,  The good and the brave. 

  On and on The boots trudged on. Through slick and slime,  And Mangled flesh, from shrapnel torn.  The boots, they didn’t care.  They had orders that bind  And duty and missions  That do turn a man blind.  Pay the piper, one must  To ensure triumph, a decisive win.  The price to be paid  With blood, bone and skin.  The boots move on,  Their soles only slightly soiled ; Indifferent lacing and leather,  The war machine’s well oiled.  The wearer of the boots.  They aren’t deaf, you know,  Sights and sound to shock the soul,  Can nary force the march to slow.  Resolute boot prints,  Over sand, soil and snow;  The message sent out loud and clear  Wherever they go.  The boots are here to stay  Till their destruction is done.  Once they’ve blotted out your Sun,  They’ll move on as one. 

  Speak to me,  She said.    Of Your wildest dreams,  Your most restless thoughts, Your silent screams.  Speak to me,  She invited.  Of that which hurts you,  And what keeps you alive.  Of the myriad mindless mayhem  That nourishes and deprives.  Speak to me,  She cajoled.  Tell me your name,  Tell me your settlement  And I’ll teach you this game.  I hear you,  She confirmed.  Your lips, they form the words.  Though whispers may err in showing,  The soft cooing of the birds.  I see you,  She smiled.  Your yearning to fill your heart’s empty bowl Your begging,  seeking, outstretched arms…  Needs only love to calm your soul. 

  And what do you do in a barren land?  Of Greys and browns and saffron sand?  You call this the country of the forgotten God, The lord of the majority, the holder of the sword.  Justice delivered with a single swift blow;  Blood and mangled flesh, your devotion does show.  Limited imagination and a tiny, petty mind;  In brutal savagery, divinity they find.  The righteous are rarely creatures in the right,  Truth is decided by unholy might.  A temple does now replace a tent,  Now that blood and bones have paid the rent.  A rose by any other name…  Is not how you play the piety game…   Hey Ram! Hai Allah! Jesus Christ!  May the sacrifices at your altar be more reasonably priced. 

 A prince of the north,  A Princess of the east  Did once upon a time  Embark on love’s feast.  Their story was rife  With passion and plight  Till one fine day  Cupid regained his sight  His golden arrow,  It had missed its mark;  His aim, while true,  Was lost in the dark  They weren’t for each other,  Of two different worlds  One was salt and soil  The other pain and pearls.  But such was their story  On that fateful night  When reason was lost  And wrong made right.  It could never last,  They whispered at dusk  Her floral perfume  Should never have mingled with his musk.  Their prophecy was true  For it soon came to be  That love no longer enchanted  And their hearts were set free.  Dawn brought a new day  Of indifference and woe  So poignant that they wondered  What of each other they truly know?  A stranger with a fam...

 Black  Cloak your white Dim your sight  No wrong no right.  Black.  Watch it vanquish  Your demons and angels  Alike.  Black  Will take no prisoners  Nor grant you mercy  Or bright  Black  Adjust your eyes  The darkness grows  No fear, no flight.  Black  The chalice falls  Your cold, cold fingers  No longer fight  Black  The sleep eternal  It promises the sun  The moon, the stars…  Black  For what is light And what is dark?  But one.